NameCensus.

UK surname

Bessey

An English surname derived from the Old French word "besier", meaning "to kiss".

In the 1881 census there were 130 people recorded with the Bessey surname, ranking it #16,911 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 268, ranked #16,003, up from #16,911 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Carlton Colville, Hellesdon, St Mary in the Marsh, St Clement, St Martin at Oak, St Mary at Coslany, St Michael at Cos and Lakenham , Eaton St Andrew, Town Close, St Stephen, St Peter Mancroft, St Giles, St Andrew, St John. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Waveney, Havant and Great Yarmouth.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Bessey is 287 in 2001. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 106.2%.

1881 census count

130

Ranked #16,911

Modern count

268

2016, ranked #16,003

Peak year

2001

287 bearers

Map years

8

1861 to 2016

Key insights

  • Bessey had 130 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #16,911 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 268 in 2016, ranked #16,003.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 206 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Rural Amenity.

Bessey surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Bessey surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Bessey 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 98 #17,383
1861 historical 114 #19,011
1881 historical 130 #16,911
1891 historical 189 #15,547
1901 historical 169 #16,824
1911 historical 206 #14,677
1997 modern 271 #14,486
1998 modern 280 #14,550
1999 modern 276 #14,762
2000 modern 284 #14,457
2001 modern 287 #14,131
2002 modern 271 #14,966
2003 modern 259 #15,254
2004 modern 254 #15,540
2005 modern 249 #15,679
2006 modern 247 #15,860
2007 modern 258 #15,554
2008 modern 261 #15,597
2009 modern 268 #15,620
2010 modern 277 #15,595
2011 modern 277 #15,433
2012 modern 264 #15,904
2013 modern 276 #15,683
2014 modern 278 #15,692
2015 modern 277 #15,622
2016 modern 268 #16,003

Geography

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Where Besseys are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Carlton Colville, Hellesdon, St Mary in the Marsh, St Clement, St Martin at Oak, St Mary at Coslany, St Michael at Cos, Lakenham , Eaton St Andrew, Town Close, St Stephen, St Peter Mancroft, St Giles, St Andrew, St John, London parishes and Great Yarmouth. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Waveney, Havant and Great Yarmouth. 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 Carlton Colville Suffolk
2 Hellesdon, St Mary in the Marsh, St Clement, St Martin at Oak, St Mary at Coslany, St Michael at Cos Norfolk
3 Lakenham , Eaton St Andrew, Town Close, St Stephen, St Peter Mancroft, St Giles, St Andrew, St John Norfolk
4 London parishes London 2
5 Great Yarmouth Norfolk

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Waveney 012 Waveney
2 Havant 009 Havant
3 Waveney 004 Waveney
4 Waveney 008 Waveney
5 Great Yarmouth 003 Great Yarmouth

Forenames

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First names often paired with Bessey

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Bessey

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

Bessey is most concentrated in decile 4 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.

4
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Bessey falls in decile 2 for neighbourhood deprivation. This puts the surname towards the more deprived end of the index.

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

2
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Bessey 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 Bessey, not the ethnicity of every person with the surname.

Meaning and origin of Bessey

The surname Bessey is believed to have originated in France. It is derived from the Old French word "besace," which means a traveler's bag or knapsack. This suggests that the name may have been initially given as a descriptive nickname to someone who carried such a bag, perhaps a traveler or a peddler.

The earliest recorded instances of the surname Bessey can be traced back to the 12th century in the Normandy region of France. It's likely that the name was introduced to England after the Norman Conquest in 1066, when many Norman settlers brought their surnames with them.

One of the earliest documented references to the name Bessey can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Lincolnshire, England, from the year 1176. These rolls were a record of financial transactions and taxes paid to the Crown, indicating that individuals with this surname were already established in England by the late 12th century.

In the 13th century, the surname Bessey appeared in various forms, including Besace, Besaz, and Besaz. These variations likely reflected regional spelling differences or phonetic adaptations of the original French word.

Notable individuals with the surname Bessey throughout history include:

1. Richard Bessey (c. 1550 - 1615), an English clergyman and academic who served as the Warden of New College, Oxford, from 1612 until his death.

2. John Bessey (c. 1600 - 1670), an English politician who served as a Member of Parliament for the borough of Taunton in Somerset during the English Civil War.

3. Guillaume Bessey (c. 1650 - 1725), a French architect and engineer who worked on several notable projects, including the reconstruction of the Palais des Tuileries in Paris.

4. Elizabeth Bessey (1685 - 1755), an early American colonist who was one of the first settlers of the town of Woodbridge, New Jersey, in the late 17th century.

5. Robert Bessey (1804 - 1888), a British botanist and writer who published several works on plant anatomy and physiology, including his seminal book "The Microscopic Anatomy of Vegetable Substances" in 1857.

While the surname Bessey has French origins, it has since been adopted in various countries, including England, the United States, and Canada, where it continues to be used today.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Bessey families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Bessey 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. Norfolk leads with 94 Besseys recorded in 1881 and an index of 48.96x.

County Total Index
Norfolk 94 48.96x
Suffolk 27 17.75x
Essex 5 2.03x
Cornwall 1 0.71x
Kent 1 0.23x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Great Yarmouth in Norfolk leads with 19 Besseys recorded in 1881 and an index of 119.50x.

Place Total Index
Great Yarmouth 19 119.50x
Heigham 15 145.63x
Carlton Colville 14 2500.00x
Thrigby 10 25000.00x
Lowestoft 9 125.35x
Winterton 9 2647.06x
Caistor Next Yarmouth 7 1029.41x
Ormesby St Michael 7 5833.33x
Thurne 7 7777.78x
West Ham 5 9.19x
Acle 4 1025.64x
Oulton 4 784.31x
Ludham 3 882.35x
Norton Subcourse 2 1250.00x
Norwich St John Timberhill 2 384.62x
Stratton St Michael 2 1818.18x
Wilby 2 5000.00x
Drayton 1 588.24x
Falmouth 1 20.00x
Filby 1 400.00x
Norwich St Stephen 1 56.82x
Reedham 1 270.27x
Rochester St Margaret 1 22.27x
Thorpe Next Norwich 1 49.26x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Ellen 6
Mary 5
Ann 4
Elizabeth 4
Sarah 4
Eliza 3
Emma 3
Alice 2
Amelia 2
Annie 2
Edith 2
Pheoba 2
Adeliza 1
Allice 1
Anne 1
Beatrice 1
Blanche 1
Caroline 1
Dorothy 1
Gertrude 1
Hannah 1
Harriett 1
Jane 1
Jessie 1
Kate 1
Laura 1
Louisa 1
Lousia 1
Margareat 1
Margaret 1
Maria 1
Phoebe 1
Susanah 1
Susannah 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
John 11
Charles 8
Robert 7
William 6
George 5
James 4
Arthur 3
Edward 3
Benjamin 2
Ernest 2
Samuel 2
Albert 1
Ambrose 1
Benjn. 1
Donald 1
Farnham 1
Henery 1
Isaac 1
Leonard 1
Levi 1
Matthew 1
Osman 1
Richard 1
Sydney 1
Wm.Henry 1

FAQ

Bessey surname: questions and answers

How common was the Bessey surname in 1881?

In 1881, 130 people were recorded with the Bessey surname. That placed it at #16,911 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Bessey surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 268 in 2016. That gives Bessey a modern rank of #16,003.

What does the Bessey surname mean?

An English surname derived from the Old French word "besier", meaning "to kiss".

What does the Bessey map show?

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