NameCensus.

UK surname

Boots

An occupational surname for a maker or seller of boots or for a person who wore boots.

In the 1881 census there were 312 people recorded with the Boots surname, ranking it #9,451 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 300, ranked #14,738, down from #9,451 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Ewhurst, London parishes and Shipton-under-Wychwood. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Bradford, Blaenau Gwent and Solihull.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Boots is 368 in 1911. Compared with 1881, the name has stayed broadly stable by 3.8%.

1881 census count

312

Ranked #9,451

Modern count

300

2016, ranked #14,738

Peak year

1911

368 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Boots had 312 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #9,451 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 300 in 2016, ranked #14,738.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 368 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Inner Suburbs and Small Town Living.

Boots surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Boots surname density by area, 1881 census.

Loading map
Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Boots 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 176 #11,489
1861 historical 263 #9,423
1881 historical 312 #9,451
1891 historical 272 #11,957
1901 historical 329 #10,927
1911 historical 368 #9,886
1997 modern 337 #12,522
1998 modern 344 #12,679
1999 modern 340 #12,870
2000 modern 336 #12,921
2001 modern 326 #13,006
2002 modern 351 #12,583
2003 modern 332 #12,914
2004 modern 328 #13,058
2005 modern 304 #13,724
2006 modern 305 #13,766
2007 modern 308 #13,791
2008 modern 303 #14,038
2009 modern 313 #14,015
2010 modern 321 #14,066
2011 modern 329 #13,694
2012 modern 315 #14,031
2013 modern 317 #14,186
2014 modern 310 #14,499
2015 modern 314 #14,275
2016 modern 300 #14,738

Geography

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Where Boots' are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Ewhurst, London parishes, Shipton-under-Wychwood and Portsmouth, Portsea. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Bradford, Blaenau Gwent, Solihull and Aylesbury Vale. 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 Ewhurst Sussex
2 London parishes London 1
3 London parishes London 3
4 Shipton-under-Wychwood Oxfordshire
5 Portsmouth, Portsea Hampshire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Bradford 026 Bradford
2 Bradford 019 Bradford
3 Blaenau Gwent 008 Blaenau Gwent
4 Solihull 025 Solihull
5 Aylesbury Vale 016 Aylesbury Vale

Forenames

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First names often paired with Boots

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Boots

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

Inner Suburbs and Small Town Living

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

Read profile summary

Group profile

Families with resident dependent children (but not students) are common. Established family groups and White ethnicity predominate, as do individuals born in the UK. They are more likely than the Supergroup average to have been resident in their terraced, semi-detached, or detached houses for more than one year. Levels of multiple car ownership are high. Properties are owned and typically have surplus living space. Associate professionals and administrative occupations are prevalent, and parents are likely to be in middle age or approaching retirement. Educational attainment is above the Supergroup average. Scattered developments and concentrations are found in many small towns.

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

Young Families and Mainstream Employment

Group

Terraced and Semi-Detached Suburbs

Within London, Boots is most associated with areas classed as Terraced and Semi-Detached Suburbs, part of Young Families and Mainstream Employment. 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 concentrated in suburban areas, these terraced and semi-detached developments are less overcrowded than the Supergroup average, and resident households are more likely to own two or more cars. There are fewer residents aged 25-44, and a larger share of residents employed in administrative and secretarial occupations. Residents are more likely to have been born in the UK, less likely to have been born in the EU or Africa, and much less likely to self-identify as Bangladeshi.

Wider London pattern

Many families in these neighbourhoods have young children. Housing is principally in the social rented sector, in terraced or semi-detached units. While over-all residential densities are low, overcrowding is also prevalent locally. Residents are drawn from a range of ethnic minorities, with many identifying as Black and above average numbers born in Africa. Numbers identifying as of Chinese, Indian or White ethnicity are below average. Levels of proficiency in English are below average. Levels of separation or divorce and incidence of disability are both above average. Education is typically limited to Level 1, 2, or apprenticeship qualifications. Few residents work in professional or managerial occupations but the employment structure is otherwise diverse: it includes skilled trades, caring, leisure and other service occupations, sales and customer service occupations, construction, and work as process, plant, and machine operatives.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Boots 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

Boots 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 Boots 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 Boots, not the ethnicity of every person with the surname.

Meaning and origin of Boots

The surname Boots is of English origin and dates back to the 13th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old English word "bōt," which meant "boot" or "shoe." The name likely referred to an occupation or a nickname for someone who made or repaired boots.

In medieval England, surnames often arose from the type of work a person did, and the name Boots may have been given to a cobbler or shoemaker. The earliest known record of the name appears in the Hundred Rolls of Cambridgeshire in 1273, where it is spelled "Bote."

During the 14th century, the name is found in various historical records, including the Poll Tax Returns of Yorkshire from 1379, where it is listed as "Boote." This variation in spelling was common in those times due to the lack of standardized spelling conventions.

One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Boots was John Bote, who was mentioned in the Court Rolls of the Manor of Wakefield in Yorkshire in 1315. Another notable bearer of the name was William Boots, a tanner from Nottingham, who was born around 1550.

In the 17th century, the Boots family established themselves in the village of Radcliffe-on-Trent in Nottinghamshire. John Boots (1615-1684), a farmer from this village, is considered one of the earliest ancestors of the famous Boots family of entrepreneurs and businessmen.

The most famous bearer of the surname Boots was Jesse Boots (1809-1887), the founder of the Boots Company, a prominent retail chain of chemists and pharmacists in the United Kingdom. His son, Jesse Boots (1850-1929), continued the family business and was later ennobled as Baron Trent.

Other notable individuals with the surname Boots include:

1. William Boots (1799-1880), a prominent English industrialist and manufacturer of agricultural machinery. 2. Reginald Boots (1884-1943), a British architect and designer known for his work on several iconic London Underground stations. 3. Beryl Boots (1918-2005), an English opera singer and actress who performed with the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company. 4. Eric Boots (1910-1984), a British journalist and writer who worked for the BBC and authored several books on World War II. 5. Michael Boots (born 1962), a British evolutionary biologist and professor at the University of California, Berkeley.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Boots families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Boots 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. Sussex leads with 67 Boots' recorded in 1881 and an index of 13.31x.

County Total Index
Sussex 67 13.31x
Kent 63 6.19x
Middlesex 45 1.51x
Oxfordshire 30 16.28x
Surrey 15 1.03x
Berkshire 13 5.80x
Staffordshire 13 1.29x
Hampshire 12 1.96x
Monmouthshire 10 4.63x
Lancashire 8 0.23x
Nottinghamshire 7 1.74x
Cornwall 4 1.18x
Bedfordshire 3 1.94x
Channel Islands 3 3.39x
Essex 3 0.51x
Devon 2 0.32x
Cheshire 1 0.15x
Derbyshire 1 0.21x
Dorset 1 0.51x
Norfolk 1 0.22x
Royal Navy 1 2.81x
Warwickshire 1 0.13x
Wiltshire 1 0.38x
Yorkshire 1 0.03x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Buscot in Berkshire leads with 13 Boots' recorded in 1881 and an index of 3421.05x.

Place Total Index
Buscot 13 3421.05x
Tonbridge 12 32.67x
Greenwich 11 23.15x
Faversham 10 102.99x
Aberystruth 9 47.32x
Charlbury 9 434.78x
Ewhurst 9 803.57x
Minster In Sheppey 9 53.35x
Brede 8 761.90x
Handsworth 8 32.22x
Lyneham 8 3636.36x
Peasmarsh 8 930.23x
Portsea 8 6.67x
St George Hanover Square 8 15.21x
Burford 7 437.50x
Eastbourne 7 30.22x
Rye 7 146.44x
Bishopstone 6 2068.97x
Nottingham St Mary 6 5.77x
St Pancras London 6 2.50x
Battersea 5 4.55x
Battle 5 147.06x
Harrow 5 109.65x
Paddington London 5 4.56x
Alverstoke 4 18.07x
Bromley 4 25.77x
Horsham 4 40.90x
Islington London 4 1.38x
Lambeth 4 1.54x
Liverpool 4 1.86x
Rame 4 459.77x
Woolwich 4 10.63x
Brighton 3 2.95x
Colchester St Giles 3 51.55x
Gillingham 3 14.29x
Grouville 3 121.95x
Hackney London 3 1.79x
Herstmonceaux 3 198.68x
Marden 3 125.52x
Shipton Under Wychwood 3 252.10x
Toxteth Park 3 2.50x
Wolverhampton 3 3.87x
Croydon 2 2.48x
Epsom 2 28.21x
Hanwell 2 37.81x
Hastings St Leonards 2 27.03x
Hollington 2 111.73x
Luton 2 7.48x
Lydd 2 91.74x
Stoke Newington London 2 8.60x
Swinbrook 2 1176.47x
Totnes 2 55.10x
Walsall Foreign 2 3.84x
Buckland Newton 1 113.64x
Camberwell 1 0.52x
Clapham 1 2.68x
Crich 1 32.79x
Eccleston 1 303.03x
Gedling 1 151.52x
Hampton Wick London 1 45.66x
Harbury 1 81.97x
Highworth 1 29.67x
Northfleet 1 11.15x
Oxford St Peter Le Bailey 1 108.70x
Ramsgate 1 6.02x
Rochester St Nicholas 1 31.55x
Sedlescombe 1 151.52x
Spitalfields London 1 4.45x
St Andrew Holborn London 1 7.74x
St Faith Under St Pauls 1 416.67x
St George Bloomsbury 1 5.84x
St Woollos 1 4.15x
Strood 1 17.21x
Topcroft 1 277.78x
Tottenham 1 2.10x
Warbleton 1 66.67x
West Derby 1 0.97x
Westminster St James 1 3.26x
Westminster St John 1 2.75x
Westminster St Margaret 1 6.94x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 18
Elizabeth 13
Jane 12
Sarah 9
Emily 8
Charlotte 6
Eliza 6
Emma 4
Harriet 4
Alice 3
Ann 3
Annie 3
Ellen 3
Louisa 3
Lucy 3
Martha 3
Agnes 2
Isabella 2
Margaret 2
Sophia 2
Blanche 1
Celia 1
Clara 1
Daisy 1
Dora 1
Edith 1
Elizth. 1
Eloner 1
Fanny 1
Florence 1
Frances 1
Francis 1
Frederick 1
Hanah 1
Hannah 1
Harriett 1
Hrriet 1
Jemima 1
Jessie 1
Kate 1
Katie 1
Keziah 1
Levinia 1
Lydia 1
Marianne 1
Marion 1
Maud 1
Nellia 1
Olive 1
Susan 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
William 26
John 13
Thomas 13
Charles 8
George 8
Albert 7
James 7
Joseph 6
Ernest 5
Frederick 5
David 4
Edward 4
Alfred 3
Harry 3
Henry 3
Isaac 3
Richard 3
Robert 3
Arthur 2
Benjamin 2
Fredrick 2
Herbert 2
Horace 2
Samuel 2
Upton 2
Walter 2
Amos 1
Benj. 1
Benjian 1
Bernard 1
Edgar 1
Francis 1
Frank 1
Fredc. 1
Harvey 1
Jesse 1
Josiah 1
Leonard 1
Philip 1
Reginald 1
Robt. 1
Tom 1

FAQ

Boots surname: questions and answers

How common was the Boots surname in 1881?

In 1881, 312 people were recorded with the Boots surname. That placed it at #9,451 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Boots surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 300 in 2016. That gives Boots a modern rank of #14,738.

What does the Boots surname mean?

An occupational surname for a maker or seller of boots or for a person who wore boots.

What does the Boots map show?

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