NameCensus.

UK surname

Bradly

Derived from a broad meadow or clearing in the woods.

In the 1881 census there were 679 people recorded with the Bradly surname, ranking it #5,302 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 167, ranked #22,055, down from #5,302 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Sedgley, London parishes and St Pancras. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Bournemouth, Erewash and Leicester.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Bradly is 860 in 1851. Compared with 1881, the name has fallen by 75.4%.

1881 census count

679

Ranked #5,302

Modern count

167

2016, ranked #22,055

Peak year

1851

860 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Bradly had 679 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #5,302 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 167 in 2016, ranked #22,055.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 860 in 1851.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Inner Suburbs and Small Town Living.

Bradly surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Bradly surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Bradly 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 860 #3,164
1861 historical 809 #3,402
1881 historical 679 #5,302
1891 historical 615 #6,260
1901 historical 530 #7,728
1911 historical 378 #9,698
1997 modern 146 #21,494
1998 modern 164 #20,505
1999 modern 171 #20,072
2000 modern 177 #19,634
2001 modern 170 #19,838
2002 modern 172 #20,108
2003 modern 164 #20,483
2004 modern 155 #21,352
2005 modern 146 #22,146
2006 modern 136 #23,378
2007 modern 139 #23,377
2008 modern 141 #23,383
2009 modern 142 #23,791
2010 modern 153 #23,175
2011 modern 151 #23,204
2012 modern 165 #21,782
2013 modern 170 #21,726
2014 modern 169 #22,006
2015 modern 165 #22,241
2016 modern 167 #22,055

Geography

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Where Bradlys are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Sedgley, London parishes, St Pancras, Manchester and Greenock. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Bournemouth, Erewash, Leicester, Chelmsford and Castle Point. 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 Sedgley Staffordshire
2 London parishes London 3
3 St Pancras London (North Districts)
4 Manchester Lancashire
5 Greenock Renfrew

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Bournemouth 002 Bournemouth
2 Erewash 011 Erewash
3 Leicester 023 Leicester
4 Chelmsford 015 Chelmsford
5 Castle Point 002 Castle Point

Forenames

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First names often paired with Bradly

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Bradly

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Bradly, 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 Bradly surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Inner Suburbs and Small Town Living, within Suburbanites and Peri-Urbanities. This does not mean every Bradly 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

Older Residents in Owner-Occupied Suburbs

Group

Professional Periphery

Within London, Bradly is most associated with areas classed as Professional Periphery, part of Older Residents in Owner-Occupied Suburbs. 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 neighbourhoods predominantly house residents aged 45+, with many aged 85+. Most employed residents work in senior roles, and relatively few work in unskilled jobs. Terraced housing is comparatively rare, but communal living is more common. More residents identify as of Indian ethnicity and more affiliate with non-Christian religions. Disability levels are below the Supergroup average.

Wider London pattern

The age distribution of these neighbourhoods is skewed towards the middle-aged and old, although few residents live alone or in communal establishments and numbers of dependent children are around average. Owner occupation is the norm, as is residence in detached or semi-detached houses. Residential densities are low and many households have spare rooms. Most residents were born in the UK and, aside from some identifying as members of Chinese or Indian ethnicities, identify as White. Mixed ethnicity households are rare. Incidence of married couples is higher than average and few individuals have never been married. A large proportion of individuals still in employment work in administrative and secretarial occupations, or in the construction industry. Few residents are students, and many households own more than one car.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Bradly is most concentrated in decile 8 for access to healthy assets and hazards. This places the surname towards the healthier 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.

8
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Bradly falls in decile 10 for neighbourhood deprivation. This puts the surname towards the less deprived end of the index.

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

10
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

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

Meaning and origin of Bradly

The surname Bradly originates from England, where it was first recorded in the 13th century. The name is believed to be derived from the Old English words "brad" meaning broad or wide, and "leah" meaning a meadow or clearing in a forest. It is thought to have originally referred to someone who lived near a broad meadow or clearing.

Some of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Hundred Rolls of Bedfordshire from 1273, which mentions a William de Bradelye. The Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire from 1327 also list a John de Bradeleye. These early spellings highlight the variations in the name's form over time.

The Bradly surname is also associated with various place names across England, such as Bradley in Staffordshire, Bradeley in Yorkshire, and Bradleigh in Devon. These place names likely influenced the spelling and pronunciation of the surname in different regions.

In the 16th century, the Bradly surname appeared in the famous Boke of St. Albans, a treatise on hunting and heraldry published in 1486. This suggests that individuals with this surname were part of the gentry or nobility at the time.

Notable individuals with the surname Bradly include:

1. Thomas Bradly (c. 1570 - 1624), an English Puritan minister and author. 2. Richard Bradly (1628 - 1675), an English mathematician and navigator who worked on calculating longitude. 3. James Bradly (1692 - 1737), an English astronomer and developer of the Bradly Method for measuring stellar parallax. 4. Anne Bradly (1765 - 1838), an English poet and writer known for her works on education and children's literature. 5. Henry Bradly (1788 - 1876), a British military officer who served in the Napoleonic Wars and the Crimean War.

These examples demonstrate the long history and diverse contributions of individuals bearing the Bradly surname throughout the centuries.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Bradly families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Bradly 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. Lancashire leads with 98 Bradlys recorded in 1881 and an index of 1.26x.

County Total Index
Lancashire 98 1.26x
Durham 72 3.69x
Yorkshire 72 1.11x
Middlesex 67 1.02x
Lanarkshire 64 3.02x
Surrey 42 1.31x
Staffordshire 27 1.22x
Essex 24 1.85x
Wiltshire 23 3.97x
Nottinghamshire 20 2.26x
Cheshire 15 1.04x
Derbyshire 14 1.36x
Hampshire 12 0.89x
Warwickshire 12 0.73x
Kent 11 0.49x
Angus 10 1.65x
Renfrewshire 10 1.97x
Northumberland 9 0.92x
Worcestershire 7 0.82x
Cumberland 6 1.06x
Leicestershire 6 0.83x
Shropshire 6 1.06x
Somerset 6 0.57x
Ayrshire 4 0.82x
Berkshire 4 0.81x
Lincolnshire 4 0.38x
Midlothian 4 0.46x
Dunbartonshire 3 1.70x
Glamorgan 3 0.26x
Hertfordshire 3 0.66x
Northamptonshire 3 0.49x
Cambridgeshire 2 0.48x
Channel Islands 2 1.03x
Dorset 2 0.46x
Norfolk 2 0.20x
Carmarthenshire 1 0.36x
East Lothian 1 1.15x
Kirkcudbrightshire 1 1.05x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Glasgow in Lanarkshire leads with 29 Bradlys recorded in 1881 and an index of 7.70x.

Place Total Index
Glasgow 29 7.70x
Manchester 16 4.57x
Barony 15 2.80x
Middlestone 14 358.06x
Newington 14 5.78x
Barrow In Furness 13 12.29x
Bethnal Green London 13 4.57x
Hedworth Monkton Jarrow 11 13.02x
Stockton On Tees 11 11.70x
Govan 10 1.91x
Berwick St John 9 1046.51x
Blackburn 9 4.35x
Longbenton 9 21.79x
Spotland 9 10.41x
Cobham 8 152.67x
Gainford 8 398.01x
Mile End Old Town London 8 5.73x
Nottingham St Mary 8 3.50x
Shirland 8 104.17x
West Ham 8 2.80x
Chelsea London 7 3.54x
Cockfield 7 257.35x
Ecclesall Bierlow 7 5.30x
Kirkdale 7 5.35x
Leeds 7 1.91x
Lockwood 7 29.95x
Mobberley 7 212.12x
Morley 7 20.73x
Oldham 7 2.79x
Quarnford 7 714.29x
St George In East London 7 11.35x
St Pancras London 7 1.33x
Bermondsey 6 3.07x
Blantyre 6 27.19x
Chorlton On Medlock 6 4.86x
Elton 6 3529.41x
Kilnwick Percy 6 2307.69x
Lambeth 6 1.05x
Southampton St Mary 6 7.10x
Swindon 6 13.34x
Ashton Under Lyne 5 2.94x
Aston 5 1.10x
Baildon 5 40.88x
Bedminster 5 5.04x
Birmingham 5 0.91x
Everton 5 2.02x
Frodesley 5 943.40x
Glossop Dale 5 10.40x
Leyton Low 5 19.01x
Sedgley 5 6.08x
Stranton 5 7.62x
Wanstead 5 22.07x
Wednesbury 5 9.04x
Workington 5 15.48x
Clapham 4 4.88x
Clerkenwell London 4 2.59x
Dagenham 4 51.95x
Dundee 4 1.76x
Holy Trinity 4 2.56x
Hugglescote 4 37.42x
Hunwick Helmington 4 85.47x
Islington London 4 0.63x
Rowley Regis 4 6.49x
Salisbury St Edmund 4 42.96x
Sheffield 4 1.93x
Twickenham 4 14.23x
Aberdare 3 3.83x
Girvan 3 24.37x
Liff Benvie 3 3.25x
Lye 3 21.05x
Milton In Gravesend 3 8.94x
Montrose 3 8.15x
North Bedburn 3 55.05x
Old Kilpatrick 3 14.41x
Peterborough 3 6.72x
Rotherham 3 8.19x
Ryde 3 10.40x
St Giles 3 24.65x
Stoke Newington London 3 5.88x
West Greenock 3 3.29x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 41
Sarah 31
Elizabeth 28
Alice 14
Jane 14
Eliza 11
Hannah 10
Charlotte 9
Ann 8
Margaret 6
Martha 6
Annie 5
Ellen 5
Agnes 4
Emma 4
Maria 4
Selina 4
Florence 3
Frances 3
Louisa 3
Minnie 3
Ada 2
Amelia 2
Caroline 2
Catherine 2
Clara 2
Emily 2
Esther 2
Fanny 2
Georgina 2
Margret 2
Maude 2
Rose 2
Alicia 1
Anne 1
Beatrice 1
Betsey 1
Dinah 1
Dorothea 1
Easter 1
Edith 1
Eleanor 1
Elinda 1
Eliz. 1
G. 1
Grace 1
Harriet 1
Harriett 1
Henzey 1
Unity 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
John 37
William 29
Thomas 20
James 19
George 17
Joseph 16
Charles 8
Richard 8
Arthur 6
David 6
Edward 6
Henry 6
Robert 6
Alfred 5
Samuel 5
Frederick 4
Patrick 4
Edmund 3
Francis 3
Jas. 3
Peter 3
Thos. 3
Wm. 3
Albert 2
Denis 2
Domnick 2
Frank 2
Harry 2
Matthew 2
Michael 2
Walter 2
Augustus 1
Ben 1
Bertie 1
Cassius 1
Demosthenes 1
Edwin 1
Ernest 1
F. 1
Fred 1
Fredrk. 1
H. 1
Hary 1
Jobes 1
Leonard 1
Lewis 1
Micheal 1
Morgan 1
P. 1
Wm.James 1

FAQ

Bradly surname: questions and answers

How common was the Bradly surname in 1881?

In 1881, 679 people were recorded with the Bradly surname. That placed it at #5,302 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Bradly surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 167 in 2016. That gives Bradly a modern rank of #22,055.

What does the Bradly surname mean?

Derived from a broad meadow or clearing in the woods.

What does the Bradly map show?

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