NameCensus.

UK surname

Blackadder

In the 1881 census there were 210 people recorded with the Blackadder surname, ranking it #12,440 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 257, ranked #16,485, down from #12,440 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to New Monkland, Bothkennar and Falkirk. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Biggar, Symington, Thankerton and Dolphinton, Wellingborough and Dunfermline Abbeyview North.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Blackadder is 297 in 2010. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 22.4%.

1881 census count

210

Ranked #12,440

Modern count

257

2016, ranked #16,485

Peak year

2010

297 bearers

Map years

8

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Blackadder had 210 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #12,440 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 257 in 2016, ranked #16,485.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 225 in 1901.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Established but Challenged.

Blackadder surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Blackadder surname density by area, 1881 census.

Loading map
Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

Back to top

Blackadder 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 129 #14,406
1861 historical 142 #15,982
1881 historical 210 #12,440
1891 historical 212 #14,318
1901 historical 225 #14,047
1911 historical 44 #28,454
1997 modern 265 #14,692
1998 modern 273 #14,803
1999 modern 281 #14,578
2000 modern 271 #14,910
2001 modern 260 #15,113
2002 modern 261 #15,369
2003 modern 255 #15,416
2004 modern 255 #15,504
2005 modern 260 #15,250
2006 modern 271 #14,880
2007 modern 265 #15,295
2008 modern 269 #15,260
2009 modern 290 #14,778
2010 modern 297 #14,841
2011 modern 279 #15,353
2012 modern 263 #15,954
2013 modern 259 #16,392
2014 modern 265 #16,247
2015 modern 264 #16,186
2016 modern 257 #16,485

Geography

Back to top

Where Blackadders are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around New Monkland, Bothkennar, Falkirk, Govan Combination and Edinburgh. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Biggar, Symington, Thankerton and Dolphinton, Wellingborough, Dunfermline Abbeyview North, Blaeberry Hill and East Whitburn and Lerwick South. 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 New Monkland Lanark
2 Bothkennar Stirling
3 Falkirk Stirling
4 Govan Combination Lanark
5 Edinburgh Edinburgh

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Biggar, Symington, Thankerton and Dolphinton South Lanarkshire
2 Wellingborough 009 Wellingborough
3 Dunfermline Abbeyview North Fife
4 Blaeberry Hill and East Whitburn West Lothian
5 Lerwick South Shetland Islands

Forenames

Back to top

First names often paired with Blackadder

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

Modern profile

Back to top

Neighbourhood profile for Blackadder

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Blackadder, 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

Semi- and Un-Skilled Workforce

Group

Established but Challenged

Nationally, the Blackadder surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Established but Challenged, within Semi- and Un-Skilled Workforce. This does not mean every Blackadder household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

Many households in these neighbourhoods comprise separated or divorced single parents with dependent children. Residents are typically born in the UK, and these neighbourhoods have relatively few members of ethnic minorities. The prevalence of children, their parents and those at or above normal retirement age, suggests neighbourhood structures may be long-established. Levels of unpaid care are high, and long-term disability is more common than in the Supergroup as a whole. Use of the social rented sector is common, often in terraced houses. Levels of overcrowding are above the Supergroup average. Unemployment is high, while those in work are employed in elementary occupations such as caring, leisure and customer services. Many residents have low level qualifications. Neighbourhood concentrations of this Group are found in the South Wales Valleys, Belfast, Londonderry and the Central Lowlands of Scotland.

Wider pattern

Living in terraced or semi-detached houses, residents of these neighbourhoods typically lack high levels of education and work in elementary or routine service occupations. Unemployment is above average. Residents are predominantly born in the UK, and residents are also predominantly from ethnic minorities. Social (but not private sector) rented sector housing is common. This Supergroup is found throughout the UK’s conurbations and industrial regions but is also an integral part of smaller towns.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Professional Employment and Family Lifecycles

Group

Established Homeowners with Children

Within London, Blackadder 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

Blackadder is most concentrated in decile 3 for access to healthy assets and hazards. This places the surname towards the less healthy end of the index.

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

3
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Blackadder falls in decile 6 for neighbourhood deprivation. This puts the surname near the middle of the scale.

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

6
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Blackadder is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of 25-30 mbit/s.

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

5
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - British

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

1881 census detail

Back to top

Blackadder families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Blackadder 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. Lanarkshire leads with 50 Blackadders recorded in 1881 and an index of 7.55x.

County Total Index
Lanarkshire 50 7.55x
Stirlingshire 38 50.30x
Midlothian 33 12.03x
Cumberland 15 8.50x
Berwickshire 11 44.34x
Yorkshire 9 0.44x
Dunbartonshire 7 12.72x
Renfrewshire 7 4.41x
Roxburghshire 7 18.87x
Kent 6 0.86x
East Lothian 5 18.43x
Angus 4 2.11x
Perthshire 4 4.35x
Selkirkshire 4 21.59x
Lancashire 3 0.12x
Ross-shire 3 5.33x
Ayrshire 1 0.65x
Fife 1 0.82x
Hampshire 1 0.24x
Shropshire 1 0.57x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Falkirk in Stirlingshire leads with 17 Blackadders recorded in 1881 and an index of 96.10x.

Place Total Index
Falkirk 17 96.10x
Bothkennar 12 530.97x
Glasgow 12 10.20x
Caldewgate 10 103.52x
New Monkland 10 51.07x
Brightside Bierlow 9 22.61x
Cambusnethan 9 61.18x
Crichton 9 1168.83x
South Leith 9 29.15x
Govan 8 4.88x
Abbey 7 28.90x
Edinburgh Buccleuch 7 107.86x
Mertoun 7 1458.33x
Chatham 6 31.20x
Edinburgh St Cuthberts 6 5.43x
Larbert 6 132.74x
Melrose 6 186.92x
Barony 5 2.98x
Dumbarton 5 65.27x
Dundee 4 5.65x
Old Monkland 4 15.21x
Perth West Church 4 91.74x
Selkirk 4 76.63x
Caldbeck 3 361.45x
Dunbar 3 78.95x
Stirling 3 31.48x
Urray 3 171.43x
Bunkle Preston 2 392.16x
Everton 2 2.58x
Old Kilpatrick 2 30.72x
Sebergham 2 512.82x
Ayton 1 69.44x
Borthwick 1 81.30x
Cockburnspath 1 126.58x
Dalziel 1 14.03x
Edinburgh St Marys 1 18.76x
Falkland 1 52.36x
Hamilton 1 5.41x
Holdenhurst 1 9.08x
Kelso 1 27.03x
Kilmarnock 1 5.48x
Liverpool 1 0.68x
Prestonkirk 1 73.53x
Stenton 1 238.10x
Wem 1 38.02x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Ellen 2
Isabella 2
Margaret 2
Mary 2
Agnes 1
Ann 1
Clara 1
Clare 1
Eliza 1
Helen 1
Janet 1
Margret 1
Martha 1
Sarah 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
John 4
James 3
William 3
David 2
Andrew 1
Robert 1
Strachan 1
W. 1
Walter 1

Top occupations

Occupational titles are kept as recorded and later transcribed, so related jobs, spelling variants and mistakes stay separate. Scholar was the census term for a child in education. That means the other rows often tell you more about adult work in Blackadder households.

FAQ

Blackadder surname: questions and answers

How common was the Blackadder surname in 1881?

In 1881, 210 people were recorded with the Blackadder surname. That placed it at #12,440 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Blackadder surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 257 in 2016. That gives Blackadder a modern rank of #16,485.

What does the Blackadder map show?

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