NameCensus.

UK surname

Bolshaw

In the 1881 census there were 178 people recorded with the Bolshaw surname, ranking it #13,840 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 154, ranked #23,293, down from #13,840 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Prestbury, Astbury and Sandbach. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Cheshire East, West Lancashire and Cheshire West and Chester.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Bolshaw is 211 in 1911. Compared with 1881, the name has fallen by 13.5%.

1881 census count

178

Ranked #13,840

Modern count

154

2016, ranked #23,293

Peak year

1911

211 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Bolshaw had 178 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #13,840 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 154 in 2016, ranked #23,293.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 211 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Spacious Rural Living.

Bolshaw surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Bolshaw surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Bolshaw 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 117 #15,456
1861 historical 145 #15,715
1881 historical 178 #13,840
1891 historical 172 #16,663
1901 historical 179 #16,227
1911 historical 211 #14,467
1997 modern 170 #19,505
1998 modern 182 #19,162
1999 modern 188 #18,931
2000 modern 173 #19,889
2001 modern 175 #19,484
2002 modern 177 #19,759
2003 modern 168 #20,171
2004 modern 169 #20,206
2005 modern 161 #20,799
2006 modern 157 #21,322
2007 modern 160 #21,296
2008 modern 167 #20,901
2009 modern 175 #20,707
2010 modern 178 #20,965
2011 modern 177 #20,874
2012 modern 159 #22,361
2013 modern 162 #22,433
2014 modern 156 #23,231
2015 modern 156 #23,106
2016 modern 154 #23,293

Geography

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Where Bolshaws are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Prestbury, Astbury, Sandbach, Manchester and Northampton St Giles, Northampton St Sepulchre, Northampton Priory. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Cheshire East, West Lancashire, Cheshire West and Chester, Tandridge and East Devon. 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 Prestbury Cheshire
2 Astbury Cheshire
3 Sandbach Cheshire
4 Manchester Lancashire
5 Northampton St Giles, Northampton St Sepulchre, Northampton Priory Northamptonshire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Cheshire East 020 Cheshire East
2 West Lancashire 001 West Lancashire
3 Cheshire West and Chester 003 Cheshire West and Chester
4 Tandridge 008 Tandridge
5 East Devon 002 East Devon

Forenames

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First names often paired with Bolshaw

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Bolshaw

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

Retired Professionals

Group

Spacious Rural Living

Nationally, the Bolshaw surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Spacious Rural Living, within Retired Professionals. This does not mean every Bolshaw household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

These predominantly ageing households typically have no resident dependent children. Most are owner-occupiers and live in detached houses in low density residential developments (although renting is more common than in the rest of the Supergroup). White ethnicity predominates. Residents are typically beyond retirement age but those still in work have managerial, professional or skilled trade occupations. White ethnicity and Christian religious affiliation predominate. Neighbourhoods are located throughout rural UK.

Wider pattern

Typically married but no longer with resident dependent children, these well-educated households either remain working in their managerial, professional, administrative or other skilled occupations, or are retired from them – the modal individual age is beyond normal retirement age. Underoccupied detached and semi-detached properties predominate, and unpaid care is more prevalent than reported disability. The prevalence of this Supergroup outside most urban conurbations indicates that rural lifestyles prevail, typically sustained by using two or more cars per household.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Professional Employment and Family Lifecycles

Group

Inner London Working Professionals

Within London, Bolshaw is most associated with areas classed as Inner London Working Professionals, 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 primarily Inner London neighbourhoods are more densely populated than the Supergroup average. Residents have a younger over-all age profile than the Supergroup as a whole, and are less likely to be owner occupiers. Full time employment is more common than elsewhere in the Supergroup and multiple car ownership is uncommon. Chinese and non-EU-born European migrants are less in evidence than elsewhere in the Supergroup.

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

Bolshaw 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

Bolshaw falls in decile 7 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.

7
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

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

1881 census detail

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Bolshaw families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Bolshaw 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. Cheshire leads with 112 Bolshaws recorded in 1881 and an index of 29.56x.

County Total Index
Cheshire 112 29.56x
Lancashire 45 2.21x
Northamptonshire 7 4.34x
Staffordshire 6 1.04x
Gloucestershire 2 0.59x
Warwickshire 2 0.46x
Flintshire 1 2.17x
Worcestershire 1 0.45x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Monks Coppenhall in Cheshire leads with 26 Bolshaws recorded in 1881 and an index of 181.82x.

Place Total Index
Monks Coppenhall 26 181.82x
Chorlton On Medlock 15 46.35x
Church Hulme 14 3589.74x
Marton In Prestbury 10 5555.56x
Sutton In Macclesfield 9 229.01x
Cheadle 7 96.69x
Wildboarclough 7 5384.62x
Everton 5 7.70x
Northampton Priory St 5 51.60x
West Derby 5 8.39x
Wincle 5 2941.18x
Betchton 4 816.33x
Butterworth 4 80.65x
Haslington 4 373.83x
Kirkdale 4 11.67x
Quarnford 4 1538.46x
Smallwood 4 1176.47x
Wincham 4 571.43x
Church Minshull 3 1363.64x
Odd Rode 3 159.57x
Pendleton In Salford 3 12.36x
Toxteth Park 3 4.35x
Acton In Northwich 2 571.43x
Birmingham 2 1.39x
Bristol St James St Paul 2 17.81x
Broughton In Salford 2 10.74x
Congleton 2 30.53x
Macclesfield 2 11.88x
Nantwich 2 45.45x
Northampton St Sepulchre 2 24.36x
Allostock 1 344.83x
Cheetham 1 6.58x
Chorlton Cum Hardy 1 74.07x
Cranage 1 384.62x
Hanmer Willington 1 526.32x
Heaton 1 526.32x
Liverpool 1 0.81x
Northwich 1 166.67x
Salford 1 1.67x
Warmingham 1 526.32x
Wolstanton 1 5.68x
Worcester St Michael 1 384.62x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Elizabeth 15
Mary 14
Sarah 7
Alice 4
Ann 4
Annie 4
Emma 4
Lucy 4
Martha 3
Edith 2
Ellen 2
Jane 2
Julia 2
Kate 2
Lois 2
Maria 2
Rachel 2
Ada 1
Adeline 1
Bertha 1
Betty 1
Clara 1
Clarissia 1
Eliza 1
Elsie 1
Emely 1
Florance 1
Florence 1
Frances 1
Hannah 1
Harriet 1
Henrietta 1
Jessee 1
Jessie 1
Joaquina 1
Lizzie 1
Louisa 1
Lydia 1
Margaret 1
Margt. 1
Maud 1
Minnie 1
Phoebe 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
John 15
George 6
Joseph 6
Thomas 6
James 4
Samuel 3
William 3
Arthur 2
Edward 2
Henry 2
Walter 2
Alberto 1
Alexander 1
Alfred 1
Arron 1
Boyd 1
Elksnah 1
Enoch 1
Ernest 1
Frank 1
Fred 1
Frederick 1
Herbert 1
Hugh 1
Infant 1
Jabez 1
Jas. 1
Jeffery 1
Johnathan 1
Joshua 1
Percy 1
Richard 1
Sam 1
Saml. 1
Tom 1

FAQ

Bolshaw surname: questions and answers

How common was the Bolshaw surname in 1881?

In 1881, 178 people were recorded with the Bolshaw surname. That placed it at #13,840 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Bolshaw surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 154 in 2016. That gives Bolshaw a modern rank of #23,293.

What does the Bolshaw map show?

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