NameCensus.

UK surname

Briars

In the 1881 census there were 279 people recorded with the Briars surname, ranking it #10,230 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 341, ranked #13,425, down from #10,230 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to St Ives, Baldock, Willian, Weston, Clothall, Bygrave, Norton and Leicester St Margaret and Bishop's Fee, Leicester All Saints, Blackfriars. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Stevenage, Bedford and Trafford.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Briars is 404 in 2002. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 22.2%.

1881 census count

279

Ranked #10,230

Modern count

341

2016, ranked #13,425

Peak year

2002

404 bearers

Map years

8

1861 to 2016

Key insights

  • Briars had 279 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #10,230 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 341 in 2016, ranked #13,425.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 379 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Challenged Communities.

Briars surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Briars surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Briars 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 91 #18,187
1861 historical 114 #19,011
1881 historical 279 #10,230
1891 historical 300 #11,119
1901 historical 363 #10,145
1911 historical 379 #9,672
1997 modern 397 #11,068
1998 modern 403 #11,275
1999 modern 394 #11,579
2000 modern 391 #11,591
2001 modern 383 #11,580
2002 modern 404 #11,353
2003 modern 379 #11,714
2004 modern 384 #11,625
2005 modern 375 #11,752
2006 modern 372 #11,878
2007 modern 363 #12,255
2008 modern 361 #12,407
2009 modern 360 #12,688
2010 modern 364 #12,851
2011 modern 355 #12,963
2012 modern 342 #13,184
2013 modern 347 #13,260
2014 modern 345 #13,396
2015 modern 339 #13,493
2016 modern 341 #13,425

Geography

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Where Briars' are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around St Ives, Baldock, Willian, Weston, Clothall, Bygrave, Norton, Leicester St Margaret and Bishop's Fee, Leicester All Saints, Blackfriars, Stevenage and Luton. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Stevenage, Bedford, Trafford and Leicester. 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 St Ives Huntingdonshire
2 Baldock, Willian, Weston, Clothall, Bygrave, Norton Hertfordshire
3 Leicester St Margaret and Bishop's Fee, Leicester All Saints, Blackfriars Leicestershire
4 Stevenage Hertfordshire
5 Luton Bedfordshire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Stevenage 002 Stevenage
2 Bedford 014 Bedford
3 Stevenage 006 Stevenage
4 Trafford 015 Trafford
5 Leicester 036 Leicester

Forenames

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First names often paired with Briars

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Briars

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

Baseline UK

Group

Challenged Communities

Nationally, the Briars surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Challenged Communities, within Baseline UK. This does not mean every Briars household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

Residents of these neighbourhoods typically live in households with dependent children, and there are fewer-than-average residents of normal retirement age or over. Identification with ethnic minorities, particularly Black, or Mixed or Multiple ethnicities is common. The rate of Christian religious affiliation is low. Housing predominantly consists of semi-detached houses, along with a significant number of terraced properties and flats. Overcrowded social housing is common, and private renting occurs at average UK levels. Those in employment work mainly in caring leisure and other services; process, plant and machine operation; or elementary occupations. Unemployment is high, and few individuals have degree level qualifications. Many of these neighbourhoods occur in commuter towns or less accessible areas of larger towns and cities.

Wider pattern

This Supergroup exemplifies the broad base to the UK’s social structure, encompassing as it does the average or modal levels of many neighbourhood characteristics, including all housing tenures, a range of levels of educational attainment and religious affiliations, and a variety of pre-retirement age structures. Yet, in combination, these mixes are each distinctive of the parts of the UK. Overall, terraced houses and flats are the most prevalent, as is employment in intermediate or low-skilled occupations. However, this Supergroup is also characterised by above average levels of unemployment and lower levels of use of English as the main language. Many neighbourhoods occur in south London and the UK’s other major urban centres.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

The Greater London Mix

Group

Skilled Trades and Construction Workers

Within London, Briars is most associated with areas classed as Skilled Trades and Construction Workers, part of The Greater London Mix. 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 scattered, peripheral and often low residential density neighbourhoods house more workers in skilled trades and construction. Few households rent social housing and there are few students. Multiple car ownership is higher than the Supergroup average, perhaps because of poorer public transport connectivity. Incidence of mixed or multiple ethnicity is below the Supergroup average, and the absence of individuals identifying as Pakistani or Other Asian groups is also less pronounced. Flatted accommodation is less dominant than elsewhere in the Supergroup.

Wider London pattern

A Supergroup embodying London's diversity in many respects, apart from low numbers of residents identifying as of Bangladeshi, Indian, Pakistani or Other (non-Chinese) Asian ethnicity. There is lower than average prevalence of families with dependent children, while there are above average occurrences of never-married individuals and single-person households. The age distribution is skewed towards younger, single residents and couples without children, with many individuals identifying as of mixed or multiple ethnicity. Social rented or private rented housing is slightly more prevalent than average, and many residents live in flats. Individuals typically work in professional and associated roles in public administration, education or health rather than in elementary occupations in agriculture, energy, water, construction or manufacturing. Incidence of students is slightly below average. Individuals declaring no religion are more prevalent than average and non-use of English at home is below average.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Briars 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

Briars 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 Briars is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of 60-70 mbit/s.

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

9
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - British

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

1881 census detail

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Briars families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Briars 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. Leicestershire leads with 61 Briars' recorded in 1881 and an index of 20.14x.

County Total Index
Leicestershire 61 20.14x
Lancashire 54 1.67x
Hertfordshire 47 24.97x
Middlesex 36 1.32x
Yorkshire 26 0.96x
Buckinghamshire 20 12.11x
Bedfordshire 12 8.49x
Huntingdonshire 6 11.06x
Surrey 5 0.38x
Nottinghamshire 4 1.09x
Kent 2 0.21x
Lincolnshire 2 0.46x
Cambridgeshire 1 0.58x
Dorset 1 0.56x
Midlothian 1 0.27x
Oxfordshire 1 0.59x
Warwickshire 1 0.15x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Leicester St Margaret in Leicestershire leads with 27 Briars' recorded in 1881 and an index of 36.56x.

Place Total Index
Leicester St Margaret 27 36.56x
Stevenage 27 924.66x
Baldock 17 960.45x
Monks Risborough 15 1898.73x
Leicester St Mary 12 49.04x
Luton 11 44.93x
Whitwick 10 259.74x
Farnworth 9 46.34x
Warrington 9 23.43x
Preston 8 9.23x
Windle 8 43.86x
Sculcoates 7 16.31x
Hornsey 6 17.37x
Parr 6 51.77x
Quorndon 6 352.94x
St Ives 6 213.52x
Bradford 5 7.63x
Keighley 5 17.33x
Kensington London 5 3.29x
Staines 5 115.74x
Eccleston In Prescot 4 24.59x
Enfield 4 22.32x
Hucknall Torkard 4 42.87x
Rotherhithe 4 11.85x
Selby 4 70.67x
Sutton 4 36.80x
Belgrave 3 43.92x
Finchley 3 28.65x
Princes Risborough 3 135.75x
Salford 3 3.15x
Westleigh 3 40.76x
Wigston Magna 3 74.63x
Bygrave 2 909.09x
Chelsea London 2 2.43x
Chipping Barnet 2 277.78x
Shoreditch London 2 1.69x
Acton 1 6.25x
Aylesbury 1 13.66x
Bingley 1 5.80x
Bletsoe 1 322.58x
Brightside Bierlow 1 1.88x
Burton Upon Stather 1 178.57x
Camberwell 1 0.57x
Doncaster 1 5.06x
Edgbaston 1 4.68x
Elland Cum Greetland 1 8.20x
Gainsborough 1 9.71x
Greenwich 1 2.30x
Hampstead London 1 2.35x
Islington London 1 0.38x
Kirknewton 1 95.24x
Lee 1 7.39x
Norton 1 322.58x
Paddington London 1 1.00x
Pannal 1 38.46x
Portland 1 10.37x
St George Hanover Square 1 2.08x
St Giles In Fields London 1 7.46x
St Pancras London 1 0.45x
Stone 1 78.13x
Thame 1 32.57x
Thorney 1 52.08x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 18
Sarah 14
Elizabeth 10
Emma 9
Alice 8
Ann 6
Emily 6
Ellen 5
Jane 5
Ada 4
Annie 4
Eliza 4
Margaret 4
Clara 3
Hannah 3
Kate 3
Martha 3
Priscilla 3
Charlotte 2
Edith 2
Frances 2
Harriet 2
Louisa 2
Maria 2
Agnes 1
Amy 1
Anne 1
Dorothy 1
Eleanor 1
Elisabeth 1
Elizth. 1
Florry 1
Infant 1
Isaline 1
Julia 1
Leah 1
Lucy 1
M. 1
Maggie 1
Marian 1
Polly 1
Rebecca 1
Rosetta 1
Rosey 1
Sophia 1
Susanah 1
Zilpah 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
William 19
John 13
Thomas 10
Charles 9
George 9
Joseph 9
James 6
Edward 5
Henry 4
Richard 4
Alfred 3
Arthur 3
Daniel 3
Albert 2
Frederick 2
Harry 2
Robert 2
Samuel 2
Abel 1
Allen 1
Amos 1
Andrew 1
Benjamin 1
Bertie 1
Edwin 1
Eli 1
Fred 1
G. 1
Geo. 1
Goodwin 1
Herbert 1
Infant 1
Jesse 1
Josh.A. 1
Oliver 1
Peter 1
Saml. 1
Sidney 1
Tom 1
Walter 1
Willie 1
Willm. 1

FAQ

Briars surname: questions and answers

How common was the Briars surname in 1881?

In 1881, 279 people were recorded with the Briars surname. That placed it at #10,230 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Briars surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 341 in 2016. That gives Briars a modern rank of #13,425.

What does the Briars map show?

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