NameCensus.

UK surname

Beese

A derived surname referring to a person who kept or worked with bees.

In the 1881 census there were 214 people recorded with the Beese surname, ranking it #12,284 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 453, ranked #10,748, up from #12,284 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff, Dudley and London parishes. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Newport, Rhondda Cynon Taf and Blaenau Gwent.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Beese is 460 in 2014. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 111.7%.

1881 census count

214

Ranked #12,284

Modern count

453

2016, ranked #10,748

Peak year

2014

460 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Beese had 214 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #12,284 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 453 in 2016, ranked #10,748.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 436 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Rural Amenity.

Beese surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Beese surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Beese 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 113 #15,815
1861 historical 112 #19,279
1881 historical 214 #12,284
1891 historical 251 #12,729
1901 historical 341 #10,629
1911 historical 436 #8,711
1997 modern 429 #10,440
1998 modern 444 #10,513
1999 modern 447 #10,497
2000 modern 455 #10,340
2001 modern 444 #10,348
2002 modern 438 #10,675
2003 modern 417 #10,924
2004 modern 418 #10,923
2005 modern 412 #10,942
2006 modern 418 #10,861
2007 modern 439 #10,553
2008 modern 435 #10,735
2009 modern 441 #10,875
2010 modern 452 #10,880
2011 modern 457 #10,651
2012 modern 452 #10,619
2013 modern 455 #10,743
2014 modern 460 #10,713
2015 modern 458 #10,678
2016 modern 453 #10,748

Geography

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Where Beeses are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff, Dudley, London parishes, Bedwelty and St George. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Newport, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Blaenau Gwent and Dudley. 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 Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff Gloucestershire
2 Dudley Staffordshire
3 London parishes London 3
4 Bedwelty Monmouthshire
5 St George Gloucestershire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Newport 004 Newport
2 Rhondda Cynon Taf 026 Rhondda Cynon Taf
3 Blaenau Gwent 007 Blaenau Gwent
4 Dudley 011 Dudley
5 Newport 012 Newport

Forenames

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First names often paired with Beese

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Beese

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Beese, 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 Beese surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Rural Amenity, within Suburbanites and Peri-Urbanities. This does not mean every Beese 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

Professional Employment and Family Lifecycles

Group

Established Homeowners with Children

Within London, Beese is most associated with areas classed as Established Homeowners with Children, part of Professional Employment and Family Lifecycles. 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

These predominantly British-born residents are typically married/in civil partnerships and own the properties in which they are raising their children. Parents are typically over 45, and many other residents are beyond normal retirement age. Detached and semi-detached houses predominate and multiple car ownership is common.

Wider London pattern

These neighbourhoods house people of all ages, predominantly of White British or European extraction. Resident turnover is low. Religious affiliation is less common than average and tends to be Christian if expressed. Homeownership, typically of terraced houses, is common but use of the social rented sector is not. Employment is typically in professional, managerial and associate professional or technical occupations. There are few full-time students. Level 4 qualifications are common. More households lack dependent children than have them which, considered alongside low levels of crowding and over-all age structure, indicates that many households may be post child-rearing and in late middle age. Incidence of disability is low, as is residence in communal establishments.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Beese is most concentrated in decile 5 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.

5
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Beese falls in decile 10 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.

10
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Beese is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of 60-70 mbit/s.

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

9
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - British

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

Meaning and origin of Beese

The surname BEESE is believed to have originated in England during the medieval period. It is thought to be a variant spelling of the Old English word "bēse," which means "bramble" or "blackberry bush." This suggests that the name may have been used to describe someone who lived near a thicket of brambles or worked in an area abundant with these plants.

The earliest known record of the name BEESE can be found in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire from 1327, where a person named William Bese is mentioned. This indicates that the name was already established in that region by the early 14th century. Other early spellings of the name include Beese, Bease, and Besse.

In the 15th century, the BEESE surname appears in the Feet of Fines records for Norfolk, which were legal documents related to land transactions. This suggests that the family had acquired some level of wealth and status by that time.

One notable individual with the BEESE surname was John Beese, who was born in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, in 1560. He was a contemporary of William Shakespeare and is believed to have been a glover by trade.

Another person of historical note was Richard Beese, born in 1635 in Gloucestershire. He was a prominent merchant and served as the Mayor of Bristol in 1689.

In the 18th century, the BEESE surname can be found in various parish records across England. One example is William Beese, born in 1725 in Oxfordshire, who was a landowner and farmer.

Moving into the 19th century, the name appears in connection with several place names in England. For instance, there was a village called Beeseborough in Northamptonshire, which was likely named after a family with the BEESE surname who lived there or owned land in the area.

One of the more notable figures with the BEESE surname was Edward Beese, born in 1810 in Somerset. He was a renowned architect and designed several churches and public buildings in the region, including the Somerset County Asylum in Wells.

While not as common as some other English surnames, BEESE has left its mark on the historical record, with mentions dating back to the medieval period and various individuals of note over the centuries.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Beese families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Beese 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. Gloucestershire leads with 100 Beeses recorded in 1881 and an index of 24.54x.

County Total Index
Gloucestershire 100 24.54x
Worcestershire 42 15.48x
Middlesex 18 0.87x
Surrey 9 0.89x
Staffordshire 8 1.14x
Yorkshire 8 0.39x
Glamorgan 7 1.93x
Somerset 6 1.79x
Monmouthshire 5 3.33x
Kent 4 0.56x
Buckinghamshire 2 1.59x
Leicestershire 2 0.87x
Cheshire 1 0.22x
Radnorshire 1 5.97x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Dudley in Worcestershire leads with 42 Beeses recorded in 1881 and an index of 127.35x.

Place Total Index
Dudley 42 127.35x
Bristol St George 37 196.29x
Bitton 34 957.75x
Mangotsfield 19 467.98x
Bitton Oldland 8 191.85x
Castleford 8 106.67x
St Pancras London 8 4.78x
Rowley Regis 7 35.82x
Battersea 5 6.54x
Staines 5 151.98x
Upper Llanvrechva 5 214.59x
Bedminster 4 12.73x
Eglwysilan 4 63.69x
Shoreditch London 4 4.44x
Roath 3 18.26x
Greenwich 2 6.05x
Leicester St Margaret 2 3.56x
Nailsea 2 151.52x
Newington 2 2.61x
Stapleton 2 25.87x
Upton Cum Chalvey 2 39.92x
Bromley 1 9.26x
Cefnllys 1 208.33x
Egham 1 16.08x
Kensington London 1 0.87x
Kingswinford 1 3.93x
Lewisham 1 2.65x
Spurstow 1 312.50x
Sutton 1 13.66x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 16
Elizabeth 8
Sarah 8
Eliza 6
Alice 4
Emily 4
Hannah 4
Ann 3
Annie 3
Hester 3
Lucy 3
Caroline 2
Elizth. 2
Harriet 2
Susannah 2
Ada 1
Alima 1
Allin 1
Betsey 1
Clara 1
Cristianna 1
Edith 1
Elizabh. 1
Elizabth. 1
Ellen 1
Emma 1
Esther 1
Florence 1
Grace 1
Isabella 1
Kate 1
Laria 1
Lily 1
Mabel 1
Margaret 1
Maria 1
Martha 1
Mina 1
Miriam 1
Priscilla 1
Prisilla 1
Rosa 1
Rose 1
Ruth 1
Sophia 1
Susan 1
Tamar 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
George 15
John 14
William 13
Thomas 9
Charles 8
Samuel 7
Robert 6
Henry 5
Albert 3
Isaac 3
James 3
Edward 2
Francis 2
Frederick 2
Samson 2
Abraham 1
Alfred 1
Eduard 1
Edwin 1
Geo. 1
Gilbert 1
Harry 1
Jack 1
Jobias 1
Josh. 1
Lewis 1
Oliver 1
Sam 1
Thos. 1
Walter 1

FAQ

Beese surname: questions and answers

How common was the Beese surname in 1881?

In 1881, 214 people were recorded with the Beese surname. That placed it at #12,284 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Beese surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 453 in 2016. That gives Beese a modern rank of #10,748.

What does the Beese surname mean?

A derived surname referring to a person who kept or worked with bees.

What does the Beese map show?

The map shows local surname concentration for the selected year. Darker areas have a stronger concentration of Beese 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.