NameCensus.

UK surname

Bowmaker

In the 1881 census there were 179 people recorded with the Bowmaker surname, ranking it #13,787 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 264, ranked #16,172, down from #13,787 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Belford, Swinton and Gateshead. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Redcar and Cleveland, Sunderland and Gateshead.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Bowmaker is 277 in 1998. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 47.5%.

1881 census count

179

Ranked #13,787

Modern count

264

2016, ranked #16,172

Peak year

1998

277 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Bowmaker had 179 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #13,787 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 264 in 2016, ranked #16,172.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 211 in 1901.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Established but Challenged.

Bowmaker surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Bowmaker surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Bowmaker 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 144 #13,277
1861 historical 157 #14,732
1881 historical 179 #13,787
1891 historical 205 #14,649
1901 historical 211 #14,647
1911 historical 170 #16,510
1997 modern 262 #14,814
1998 modern 277 #14,646
1999 modern 256 #15,557
2000 modern 257 #15,468
2001 modern 249 #15,573
2002 modern 247 #15,941
2003 modern 248 #15,695
2004 modern 250 #15,695
2005 modern 251 #15,590
2006 modern 242 #16,097
2007 modern 247 #16,042
2008 modern 243 #16,397
2009 modern 246 #16,597
2010 modern 246 #16,975
2011 modern 252 #16,543
2012 modern 245 #16,745
2013 modern 257 #16,466
2014 modern 268 #16,111
2015 modern 271 #15,881
2016 modern 264 #16,172

Geography

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Where Bowmakers are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Belford, Swinton, Gateshead, Guisborough and Tynemouth. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Redcar and Cleveland, Sunderland and Gateshead. 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 Belford Northumberland
2 Swinton Berwick
3 Gateshead Durham
4 Guisborough Yorkshire, North Riding
5 Tynemouth Northumberland

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Redcar and Cleveland 018 Redcar and Cleveland
2 Sunderland 022 Sunderland
3 Gateshead 018 Gateshead
4 Sunderland 028 Sunderland
5 Gateshead 011 Gateshead

Forenames

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First names often paired with Bowmaker

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Bowmaker

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Bowmaker, 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 Bowmaker surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Established but Challenged, within Semi- and Un-Skilled Workforce. This does not mean every Bowmaker 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, Bowmaker 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

Bowmaker 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

Bowmaker falls in decile 1 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.

1
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

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

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

10
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - British

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

1881 census detail

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Bowmaker families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Bowmaker 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. Northumberland leads with 64 Bowmakers recorded in 1881 and an index of 25.34x.

County Total Index
Northumberland 64 25.34x
Durham 54 10.69x
Berwickshire 9 43.80x
Yorkshire 9 0.54x
Lanarkshire 7 1.28x
East Lothian 6 26.69x
Lancashire 5 0.25x
Gloucestershire 4 1.20x
Surrey 4 0.48x
Essex 3 0.90x
Midlothian 3 1.32x
Cumberland 2 1.37x
Middlesex 2 0.12x
Hertfordshire 1 0.85x
Selkirkshire 1 6.51x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Bishopwearmouth in Durham leads with 23 Bowmakers recorded in 1881 and an index of 53.07x.

Place Total Index
Bishopwearmouth 23 53.07x
Byker 12 96.15x
Elswick 10 49.60x
Gateshead 10 26.45x
Esh 9 245.23x
Houghton Le Spring 9 257.88x
Lucker 9 7500.00x
Guisbrough 8 217.39x
Glasgow 7 7.18x
North Shields 7 138.89x
Bedlington 6 71.17x
Dunbar 5 158.73x
Edrom 5 568.18x
Newington 4 6.38x
Toxteth Park 4 5.87x
Bamburgh 3 1500.00x
Bigges Quarter 3 2000.00x
Cheltenham 3 11.68x
Eccles 3 333.33x
Prittlewell 3 64.66x
Westoe 3 10.48x
Birling 2 4000.00x
Brampton 2 100.00x
Edinburgh St Georges 2 42.37x
Holy Island 2 625.00x
Newcastle On Tyne All Sts 2 13.26x
Adderstone 1 625.00x
Berwick Upon Tweed 1 18.69x
Broxbourne 1 43.10x
Dirleton 1 113.64x
Easington 1 1111.11x
Ettrick 1 434.78x
Glanton 1 344.83x
Hampstead London 1 3.78x
Hauxley 1 178.57x
Leith North 1 227.27x
Newcastle On Tyne St 1 7.64x
North Meols 1 5.07x
Ruswarp 1 53.48x
St George Hanover Square 1 3.34x
Stapleton 1 15.85x
Swinton 1 178.57x
Tynemouth 1 7.40x
Westgate 1 6.39x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 14
Elizabeth 12
Jane 10
Margaret 8
Ann 6
Isabella 6
Ellen 4
Elizth. 3
Sarah 3
Agnes 2
Fanny 2
Margt. 2
Theresa 2
Alice 1
Annie 1
Daisy 1
Elisabeth 1
Ellenor 1
Francis 1
Gvain 1
Harriet 1
Lily 1
Louisa 1
Margt.I. 1
Selina 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
James 14
John 8
William 8
George 5
Edward 4
Thomas 3
Adam 2
Charles 2
Henry 2
Peter 2
Albert 1
Christopher 1
Francis 1
Herbert 1
Jacob 1
Joshua 1
Lionel 1
Morris 1
Reguiald 1
Robert 1
Robt.Ord 1
Thos.Edwd. 1

FAQ

Bowmaker surname: questions and answers

How common was the Bowmaker surname in 1881?

In 1881, 179 people were recorded with the Bowmaker surname. That placed it at #13,787 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Bowmaker surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 264 in 2016. That gives Bowmaker a modern rank of #16,172.

What does the Bowmaker map show?

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