NameCensus.

UK surname

Bayliss

An English locational surname derived from Old French meaning "bailiff" or "administrator of a town."

In the 1881 census there were 3,786 people recorded with the Bayliss surname, ranking it #1,209 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 8,044, ranked #822, up from #1,209 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Wolverhampton, London parishes and Coventry Holy Trinity (incl. Radford), Coventry St Michael, Wyken. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Herefordshire, Blaenau Gwent and Forest of Dean.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Bayliss is 8,424 in 1999. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 112.5%.

1881 census count

3,786

Ranked #1,209

Modern count

8,044

2016, ranked #822

Peak year

1999

8,424 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Bayliss had 3,786 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #1,209 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 8,044 in 2016, ranked #822.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 6,771 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Rural Amenity.

Bayliss surname distribution map

The map shows where the Bayliss surname is concentrated in each census or modern distribution year. Darker areas mean a stronger local concentration.

Distribution map

Bayliss surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Bayliss over time

The table below tracks recorded surname counts and rank from the 19th-century census years through the modern adult-register period.

Year Period Count Rank
1851 historical 1,625 #1,769
1861 historical 1,458 #1,946
1881 historical 3,786 #1,209
1891 historical 3,999 #1,197
1901 historical 5,895 #942
1911 historical 6,771 #768
1997 modern 8,044 #792
1998 modern 8,347 #791
1999 modern 8,424 #794
2000 modern 8,376 #793
2001 modern 8,165 #798
2002 modern 8,284 #803
2003 modern 8,093 #800
2004 modern 8,044 #808
2005 modern 7,924 #806
2006 modern 7,919 #807
2007 modern 7,917 #814
2008 modern 7,974 #812
2009 modern 8,197 #812
2010 modern 8,319 #815
2011 modern 8,215 #813
2012 modern 8,109 #806
2013 modern 8,217 #810
2014 modern 8,209 #817
2015 modern 8,099 #818
2016 modern 8,044 #822

Geography

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Where Bayliss' are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Wolverhampton, London parishes, Coventry Holy Trinity (incl. Radford), Coventry St Michael, Wyken and Birmingham Town: Birmingham. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Herefordshire, Blaenau Gwent and Forest of Dean. Treat these as concentration signals, not proof that every family line began there.

Some modern areas include a three-digit suffix, such as Leeds 110. The suffix is a small-area code, so it stays in the table while the prose uses the plain place name.

Top historical parishes

Rank Parish Area
1 Wolverhampton Staffordshire
2 London parishes London 3
3 Coventry Holy Trinity (incl. Radford), Coventry St Michael, Wyken Warwickshire
4 London parishes London 2
5 Birmingham Town: Birmingham Warwickshire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Herefordshire 005 Herefordshire, County of
2 Herefordshire 006 Herefordshire, County of
3 Blaenau Gwent 002 Blaenau Gwent
4 Forest of Dean 001 Forest of Dean
5 Forest of Dean 005 Forest of Dean

Forenames

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First names often paired with Bayliss

These lists show first names that appear often with the Bayliss surname in historical and recent records.

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Bayliss

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Bayliss, this points to the kinds of places where the surname is most concentrated today.

These neighbourhood labels describe areas, not individual people. They are useful because surnames often cluster through family history, migration, housing patterns and local work. A surname can be strongest in one type of neighbourhood even when people with that name live across the country.

The UK classification gives the national picture. The London classification is more specific to the capital, where housing, age profile, tenure and population mix can look quite different from the rest of the UK.

UK neighbourhood type

UK Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Suburbanites and Peri-Urbanities

Group

Rural Amenity

Nationally, the Bayliss surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Rural Amenity, within Suburbanites and Peri-Urbanities. This does not mean every Bayliss household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

This Group comprises older parents or retirees, with no resident dependent children, and with the lowest residential densities in this Supergroup. Predominantly UK-born, residents typically live in detached houses, although others do live in semi-detached and terraced properties. The level of multiple car ownership is the highest in this Supergroup. Most houses are owner occupied although social renting is also present. Many concentrations occur in high amenity rural locations, such as Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

Wider pattern

Pervasive throughout the UK, members of this Supergroup typically own (or are buying) their detached, semi-detached or terraced homes. They are also typically educated to A Level/Highers or degree level and work in skilled or professional occupations. Typically born in the UK, some families have children, although the median adult age is above 45 and some property has become under-occupied after children have left home. This Supergroup is pervasive not only in suburban locations, but also in neighbourhoods at or beyond the edge of cities that adjoin rural parts of the country.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

The Greater London Mix

Group

Social Rented Sector Professional Support Workers

Within London, Bayliss is most associated with areas classed as Social Rented Sector Professional Support Workers, part of The Greater London Mix. This gives the surname a London-specific profile rather than forcing the capital into the same pattern as the rest of the country.

Read profile summary

Group profile

Mainly located in Inner London, these neighbourhoods retain a diverse employment structure, with some concentration in associated professional and technical occupations rather than skilled trades or construction. Social renting is more common and levels of homeownership are low. Many residents identify as Black. There is a lower than average rate of marriage or civil partnership, few that are very old (85 or over) and higher than average incidence of disability.

Wider London pattern

A Supergroup embodying London's diversity in many respects, apart from low numbers of residents identifying as of Bangladeshi, Indian, Pakistani or Other (non-Chinese) Asian ethnicity. There is lower than average prevalence of families with dependent children, while there are above average occurrences of never-married individuals and single-person households. The age distribution is skewed towards younger, single residents and couples without children, with many individuals identifying as of mixed or multiple ethnicity. Social rented or private rented housing is slightly more prevalent than average, and many residents live in flats. Individuals typically work in professional and associated roles in public administration, education or health rather than in elementary occupations in agriculture, energy, water, construction or manufacturing. Incidence of students is slightly below average. Individuals declaring no religion are more prevalent than average and non-use of English at home is below average.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Bayliss is most concentrated in decile 7 for access to healthy assets and hazards. This places the surname near the middle of the scale.

Lower deciles point towards weaker access to healthy assets or stronger exposure to local hazards. Higher deciles point towards stronger access and fewer hazards.

7
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Bayliss falls in decile 8 for neighbourhood deprivation. This puts the surname towards the less deprived end of the index.

Decile 1 represents the more deprived end of the scale. Decile 10 represents the less deprived end.

8
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Bayliss is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of 30-40 mbit/s.

The scale below places that band in context, from slower local download bands through to faster ones.

6
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - British

This describes the area pattern most associated with Bayliss, not the ethnicity of every person with the surname.

Meaning and origin of Bayliss

The surname Bayliss is of English origin, derived from the Old English words "baelli" meaning "berry" and "hiesse" meaning "brushwood". It was likely an occupational surname given to someone who lived near or harvested berries from a brushwood area.

The name first appeared in the late 12th century in records from counties such as Gloucestershire, Worcestershire, and Warwickshire in the West Midlands region of England. Some of the earliest recorded spellings include Baillyss (1275), Baylys (1327), and Bayleys (1379).

In the famous Domesday Book of 1086, a record of landowners in England after the Norman Conquest, there are no direct mentions of the surname Bayliss. However, there are entries for places like Baylies in Hertfordshire and Baylis Court in Berkshire, which may have been named after people with this surname or its variants.

One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Bayliss was John Baylys, who was born in Gloucestershire around 1390. Another early bearer of the name was William Bayliss, a merchant from Worcestershire born in 1425.

In the 16th century, there was a notable Bayliss family in Warwickshire, with members such as Richard Bayliss (1510-1575) and his son Thomas Bayliss (1548-1613), who were landowners and prominent figures in their local community.

During the English Civil War in the 17th century, Captain John Bayliss (1620-1679) from Worcestershire fought for the Parliamentarian forces against King Charles I.

In the 18th century, one of the most famous individuals with the surname Bayliss was the English painter and engraver Wyke Bayliss (1835-1906), known for his landscape paintings and etchings of rural scenes.

Another noteworthy bearer of the name was Sir Nathaniel Bayliss (1857-1943), a British businessman and philanthropist who founded the Bayliss Trust, which supported various charitable causes in the West Midlands region.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Bayliss families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Bayliss surname. Use the location tables for concentration, then the name and occupation tables for the people behind the surname.

Top counties

Total is the county count. Frequency and index adjust for local population size, so they are better concentration signals. Warwickshire leads with 1,076 Bayliss' recorded in 1881 and an index of 11.54x.

County Total Index
Warwickshire 1,076 11.54x
Staffordshire 596 4.78x
Worcestershire 504 10.44x
Oxfordshire 258 11.30x
Middlesex 227 0.61x
Gloucestershire 178 2.46x
Herefordshire 144 9.50x
Surrey 114 0.63x
Lancashire 97 0.22x
Yorkshire 94 0.26x
Shropshire 47 1.47x
Buckinghamshire 41 1.83x
Northamptonshire 40 1.15x
Essex 34 0.47x
Hampshire 30 0.40x
Sussex 30 0.48x
Derbyshire 22 0.38x
Leicestershire 22 0.54x
Cheshire 17 0.21x
Kent 16 0.13x
Wiltshire 16 0.49x
Berkshire 15 0.54x
Montgomeryshire 15 1.77x
Devon 14 0.18x
Hertfordshire 13 0.51x
Monmouthshire 13 0.49x
Glamorgan 12 0.19x
Dorset 10 0.41x
Nottinghamshire 10 0.20x
Radnorshire 9 3.02x
Flintshire 7 0.70x
Norfolk 7 0.12x
Somerset 7 0.12x
Suffolk 7 0.16x
Brecknockshire 6 0.81x
Lincolnshire 6 0.10x
Rutland 6 2.21x
Midlothian 5 0.10x
Angus 4 0.12x
Cumberland 3 0.09x
Durham 3 0.03x
Royal Navy 3 0.68x
Caernarfonshire 2 0.13x
Huntingdonshire 2 0.27x
Lanarkshire 2 0.02x
Cornwall 1 0.02x
Denbighshire 1 0.07x
Northumberland 1 0.02x
Pembrokeshire 1 0.09x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Birmingham in Warwickshire leads with 383 Bayliss' recorded in 1881 and an index of 12.33x.

Place Total Index
Birmingham 383 12.33x
Aston 299 11.65x
West Bromwich 96 13.44x
Wolverhampton 81 8.44x
Kings Norton 76 17.56x
Tipton 50 13.09x
Dudley 46 7.84x
Walsall Foreign 45 6.98x
Shoreditch London 43 2.68x
Wednesbury 39 12.51x
Yardley 35 28.34x
Studley 34 85.32x
Bilston 31 12.82x
Coventry Holy Trinity 27 9.70x
Lambeth 25 0.78x
Islington London 24 0.67x
Kingswinford 23 5.08x
Oldbury 22 9.26x
Oxford St Thomas 22 20.65x
Ludgershall 21 393.26x
Wednesfield 21 11.44x
Coventry St Michael 20 6.68x
Hanley Castle 20 69.25x
Leamington Priors 20 8.72x
Sedgley 20 4.32x
Worcester St Martin 20 30.71x
Leigh 19 32.43x
Brimfield 18 224.72x
Handsworth 18 5.85x
Hipperholme Cum 18 11.19x
Oxford St Mary Magdalen 18 66.52x
Portsea 18 1.21x
Bethnal Green London 17 1.06x
Hackney London 17 0.82x
Woodstock 17 118.63x
North Middle 16 457.14x
Rowley Regis 16 4.60x
Bromyard 15 75.15x
Halesowen 15 35.40x
Kerry 15 58.89x
Nether Hallam 15 3.03x
Steeple Barton 15 129.42x
West Ham 15 0.93x
Wombourn 15 64.79x
Camberwell 14 0.59x
Edgbaston 14 4.84x
Gloucester Barton St Mary 14 10.55x
Holdfast Queenshill 14 600.86x
Litchurch 14 6.01x
Oxford St Ebbe 14 20.84x
Solihull 14 20.90x
Somerton 14 321.84x
Westminster St John 14 3.11x
Alcester 13 42.29x
Alveston 13 106.30x
Cowley 13 18.25x
Northfield 13 14.20x
Tirley 13 213.11x
Battersea 12 0.88x
Croydon 12 1.20x
Hunningham 12 355.03x
Nettlebed 12 143.03x
Norton Canes 12 26.39x
St Pancras London 12 0.40x
Stoke Upon Trent 12 0.91x
Twining 12 110.19x
Bermondsey 11 1.00x
Harborne 11 2.75x
Illey 11 1089.11x
Keighley 11 2.82x
Liverpool 11 0.41x
Shipton Under Wychwood 11 74.88x
Wandsworth 11 3.09x
Bow London 10 2.13x
Brightside Bierlow 10 1.39x
Clerkenwell London 10 1.15x
Kidderminster Borough 10 3.54x
Leicester St Margaret 10 1.00x
Stone 10 126.42x
Sutton Coldfield 10 10.21x

Top female names

These are the female first names most often recorded with the Bayliss surname in 1881. Names are not merged, so initials, variant spellings and transcription quirks can appear as separate rows.

Name Count
Mary 234
Elizabeth 152
Sarah 144
Ann 90
Eliza 66
Emma 62
Ellen 61
Jane 61
Annie 53
Alice 48
Emily 45
Hannah 39
Florence 28
Charlotte 27
Maria 27
Louisa 26
Fanny 25
Harriet 25
Edith 24
Kate 23
Martha 23
Ada 22
Catherine 22
Clara 20
Harriett 19
Caroline 18
Anne 17
Agnes 15
Rose 15
Lucy 14
Matilda 14
Amelia 13
Amy 12
Esther 11
Beatrice 10
Lydia 10
Margaret 10
Susannah 10
Ethel 8
Jessie 8
Laura 8
Lizzie 8
Phoebe 8
Ruth 8
Selina 8
Bertha 7
Frances 7
Julia 7
Minnie 7
Susan 7

Top male names

These are the male first names most often recorded with the Bayliss surname in 1881. Names are not merged, so initials, variant spellings and transcription quirks can appear as separate rows.

Name Count
William 305
John 215
George 153
Thomas 142
James 98
Charles 84
Joseph 80
Henry 76
Edward 53
Samuel 50
Walter 43
Alfred 42
Arthur 42
Frederick 39
Richard 34
Albert 31
Harry 27
Edwin 20
Francis 19
Benjamin 17
Frank 17
Ernest 15
Robert 12
Thos. 11
Herbert 9
Wm. 9
Fredrick 7
Mark 7
David 6
Chas. 5
Daniel 5
Jno. 5
Fred 4
Horace 4
Isaac 4
J. 4
Matthew 4
Oliver 4
Percy 4
Barnard 3
Geo. 3
Jesse 3
Joshua 3
Josiah 3
Leonard 3
Levi 3
Lewis 3
Solomon 3
Sydney 3
Tom 3

FAQ

Bayliss surname: questions and answers

How common was the Bayliss surname in 1881?

In 1881, 3,786 people were recorded with the Bayliss surname. That placed it at #1,209 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Bayliss surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 8,044 in 2016. That gives Bayliss a modern rank of #822.

What does the Bayliss surname mean?

An English locational surname derived from Old French meaning "bailiff" or "administrator of a town."

What does the Bayliss map show?

The map shows local surname concentration for the selected year. Darker areas have a stronger concentration of Bayliss bearers relative to the surrounding population.

What records is this surname page based on?

The historical counts come from census surname records. The modern counts and neighbourhood summaries come from later surname distribution records. Counts are recorded bearers in those records, not a live estimate of everyone with the name today.