NameCensus.

UK surname

Bowtell

In the 1881 census there were 292 people recorded with the Bowtell surname, ranking it #9,912 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 350, ranked #13,152, down from #9,912 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Edmonton, Braintree and London parishes. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include East Hampshire, County Durham and Enfield.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Bowtell is 451 in 1911. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 19.9%.

1881 census count

292

Ranked #9,912

Modern count

350

2016, ranked #13,152

Peak year

1911

451 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Bowtell had 292 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #9,912 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 350 in 2016, ranked #13,152.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 451 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Rural Amenity.

Bowtell surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Bowtell surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Bowtell 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 193 #10,704
1861 historical 225 #10,843
1881 historical 292 #9,912
1891 historical 357 #9,678
1901 historical 380 #9,823
1911 historical 451 #8,489
1997 modern 359 #11,956
1998 modern 373 #11,991
1999 modern 376 #11,979
2000 modern 365 #12,196
2001 modern 360 #12,127
2002 modern 376 #11,989
2003 modern 364 #12,068
2004 modern 349 #12,473
2005 modern 347 #12,436
2006 modern 344 #12,600
2007 modern 347 #12,661
2008 modern 351 #12,661
2009 modern 352 #12,918
2010 modern 363 #12,878
2011 modern 351 #13,059
2012 modern 353 #12,877
2013 modern 358 #12,952
2014 modern 356 #13,098
2015 modern 351 #13,135
2016 modern 350 #13,152

Geography

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Where Bowtells are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Edmonton, Braintree, London parishes, Shelford, Great and Thaxted. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to East Hampshire, County Durham, Enfield and East Riding of Yorkshire. 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 Edmonton Middlesex (Exclusive Of London Districts)
2 Braintree Essex
3 London parishes London 3
4 Shelford, Great Cambridgeshire
5 Thaxted Essex

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 East Hampshire 007 East Hampshire
2 County Durham 050 County Durham
3 Enfield 016 Enfield
4 East Riding of Yorkshire 003 East Riding of Yorkshire
5 County Durham 053 County Durham

Forenames

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First names often paired with Bowtell

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Bowtell

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

Young Families and Mainstream Employment

Group

Social Rented Sector and Diverse Origins

Within London, Bowtell is most associated with areas classed as Social Rented Sector and Diverse Origins, 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

Scattered across London’s Inner and Outer suburbs, residents of these neighbourhoods are typically housed in the social rented sector. Although terraced and semi-detached houses predominate, more residents live in flats than elsewhere in the Supergroup. Neighbourhoods are more ethnically diverse than the Supergroup average. Those identifying as of Bangladeshi, Pakistani and some Black ethnicities are more prevalent. Europeans born in a overseas non-EU countries make up more of the lower proportion of residents identifying as White. Few residents are very old (85+). Employment in distribution, hotels and restaurants is more common than elsewhere in the Supergroup.

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

Bowtell 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

Bowtell falls in decile 3 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.

3
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

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

1881 census detail

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Bowtell families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Bowtell 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. Essex leads with 145 Bowtells recorded in 1881 and an index of 25.88x.

County Total Index
Essex 145 25.88x
Middlesex 40 1.41x
Cambridgeshire 36 20.02x
Surrey 14 1.01x
Kent 10 1.03x
Hertfordshire 8 4.09x
Lancashire 7 0.21x
Norfolk 7 1.60x
Warwickshire 5 0.70x
Suffolk 4 1.16x
Devon 3 0.51x
Glamorgan 3 0.61x
Gloucestershire 2 0.36x
Staffordshire 2 0.21x
Worcestershire 2 0.54x
Berkshire 1 0.47x
Hampshire 1 0.17x
Yorkshire 1 0.04x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Thaxted in Essex leads with 20 Bowtells recorded in 1881 and an index of 1075.27x.

Place Total Index
Thaxted 20 1075.27x
Braintree 15 298.21x
Little Dunmow 13 3939.39x
Great Bromley 12 1714.29x
Great Shelford 10 1063.83x
High Roothing 9 2093.02x
Bishop Stortford 8 122.51x
Clerkenwell London 8 11.94x
Bermondsey 7 8.28x
Bethnal Green London 7 5.68x
Ickleton 7 1093.75x
Little Clacton 7 1186.44x
Maldon St Peter 7 245.61x
Mile End Old Town London 7 11.59x
St Andrewthe Less 7 34.08x
Sturmere 7 1944.44x
Alpington 6 3750.00x
Chelmsford 6 62.44x
Deptford St Paul 6 8.03x
Saffron Walden 6 101.35x
Aston 5 2.54x
Chester St Nicholas 5 1250.00x
Chorlton On Medlock 5 9.34x
Dagenham 5 150.15x
Hackney London 5 3.14x
Leyton 5 51.81x
St Benedict Cambridge 5 495.05x
Camberwell 4 2.21x
Chelsea London 4 4.68x
Chigwell 4 75.61x
Duxford 4 533.33x
Great Chesterford 4 449.44x
Ipswich St Clement 4 45.51x
Steeple Bumpstead 4 388.35x
Bradwell 3 312.50x
Brentwood 3 87.72x
East Stonehouse 3 25.77x
Bristol St Philip Jacob 2 3.82x
Cardiff St John 2 12.39x
Cheetham 2 7.96x
Harlow 2 82.99x
Islington London 2 0.73x
Lambeth 2 0.81x
Lower Mitton 2 61.16x
Plumstead 2 6.20x
Rugeley 2 29.07x
St Andrewthe Great 2 86.21x
Barnston 1 625.00x
Boreham 1 103.09x
Burnham 1 48.31x
Chatham 1 3.75x
Colchester St Mary At 1 50.25x
East Donyland 1 74.07x
Farnborough 1 16.37x
Great Dunmow 1 34.25x
Hampstead London 1 2.26x
Limehouse London 1 3.21x
Luttons Ambo 1 172.41x
Mortlake 1 16.23x
Norwich St Peter Southgate 1 181.82x
Paddington London 1 0.96x
Ramsey 1 135.14x
St George Hanover Square 1 2.00x
St George In East London 1 3.75x
St Michael Cambridge 1 188.68x
St Pancras London 1 0.44x
Stansted Mountfitchet 1 70.42x
Swansea Town 1 2.47x
Wallingford St Peter 1 222.22x
Whitechapel London 1 3.57x
Woolwich 1 2.79x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Sarah 14
Elizabeth 13
Mary 13
Ann 7
Annie 6
Martha 6
Eliza 5
Ellen 5
Emma 5
Charlotte 4
Ada 3
Emily 3
Ethel 3
Jessie 3
Margaret 3
Susan 3
Agnes 2
Alice 2
Clara 2
Flora 2
Hannah 2
Jane 2
Lydia 2
Maria 2
Matilda 2
Rebecca 2
Sophia 2
Amy 1
Anne 1
Arthur 1
Bertha 1
Elizth.Martha 1
Fanny 1
Florence 1
Grace 1
H.Maria 1
Harriet 1
Hester 1
Kate 1
Laura 1
Lizzie 1
Louisa 1
Margret 1
Marian 1
Millie 1
Minnie 1
Miriam 1
Nellie 1
Rosa 1
Silina 1

Top male names

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

FAQ

Bowtell surname: questions and answers

How common was the Bowtell surname in 1881?

In 1881, 292 people were recorded with the Bowtell surname. That placed it at #9,912 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Bowtell surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 350 in 2016. That gives Bowtell a modern rank of #13,152.

What does the Bowtell map show?

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