NameCensus.

UK surname

Brice

A French toponymic surname derived from several places in France named Brice, likely meaning "broken, craggy place."

In the 1881 census there were 2,446 people recorded with the Brice surname, ranking it #1,820 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 2,938, ranked #2,297, down from #1,820 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff, London parishes and Hawkinge, Folkestone. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Sedgemoor, Mid Devon and Taunton Deane.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Brice is 3,320 in 1911. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 20.1%.

1881 census count

2,446

Ranked #1,820

Modern count

2,938

2016, ranked #2,297

Peak year

1911

3,320 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Brice had 2,446 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #1,820 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 2,938 in 2016, ranked #2,297.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 3,320 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Rural Amenity.

Brice surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Brice surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Brice 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 1,855 #1,557
1861 historical 1,812 #1,601
1881 historical 2,446 #1,820
1891 historical 2,738 #1,723
1901 historical 3,043 #1,841
1911 historical 3,320 #1,571
1997 modern 3,101 #2,066
1998 modern 3,120 #2,150
1999 modern 3,107 #2,180
2000 modern 3,095 #2,176
2001 modern 3,019 #2,183
2002 modern 3,080 #2,186
2003 modern 2,980 #2,206
2004 modern 2,943 #2,228
2005 modern 2,888 #2,245
2006 modern 2,857 #2,273
2007 modern 2,902 #2,258
2008 modern 2,922 #2,251
2009 modern 2,963 #2,284
2010 modern 3,031 #2,279
2011 modern 3,011 #2,268
2012 modern 2,954 #2,269
2013 modern 2,991 #2,276
2014 modern 2,973 #2,304
2015 modern 2,940 #2,303
2016 modern 2,938 #2,297

Geography

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Where Brices are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff, London parishes, Hawkinge, Folkestone and Cardiff St John and St Mary. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Sedgemoor, Mid Devon, Taunton Deane, Forest of Dean and Bristol. 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 Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff Gloucestershire
2 London parishes London 1
3 London parishes London 3
4 Hawkinge, Folkestone Kent
5 Cardiff St John and St Mary Glamorganshire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Sedgemoor 001 Sedgemoor
2 Mid Devon 001 Mid Devon
3 Taunton Deane 009 Taunton Deane
4 Forest of Dean 009 Forest of Dean
5 Bristol 003 Bristol, City of

Forenames

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First names often paired with Brice

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Brice

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

Older Residents in Owner-Occupied Suburbs

Group

London Fringe

Within London, Brice is most associated with areas classed as London Fringe, 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

Predominantly located in neighbourhoods on the outskirts of Greater London, residents of these neighbourhoods typically have their highest qualifications below degree (Level 4) level, with those still in work engaged in skilled trades and occupations in distribution, hotels and restaurants. There is low ethnic diversity in these neighbourhoods and high levels of Christian religious affiliation. Detached or terraced houses predominate, often with spare rooms.

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

Brice 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

Brice falls in decile 5 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.

5
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

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

Meaning and origin of Brice

The surname Brice originated in France during the Middle Ages. It is derived from the Old French personal name Brice, which in turn comes from the Celtic name Bricius. This name is thought to be related to the Celtic root "brig" meaning "high" or "noble."

The earliest recorded instances of the surname Brice date back to the 12th century in various regions of northern France, such as Normandy and Picardy. In these regions, the name was often spelled as Briz or Bris before evolving to its modern form.

One of the earliest documented individuals with the surname Brice was Raoul Brice, a Norman nobleman who lived in the late 12th century. Records show that he held lands near the town of Caen in Normandy.

In the 13th century, the name Brice appeared in the Hundred Rolls, a census of landowners in England commissioned by King Edward I. This suggests that individuals bearing the surname had started to migrate from France to England during this period.

One notable figure with the surname Brice was Saint Brice, a 5th-century Bishop of Tours in present-day France. Although his name was likely a given name rather than a surname, he is an important historical figure associated with the name.

In the 14th century, the surname Brice can be found in the records of the town of Brix, located in the Manche department of northern France. This place name may have influenced the spelling and distribution of the surname in the surrounding areas.

During the 16th and 17th centuries, several individuals with the surname Brice gained prominence in various fields. For example, Germain Brice (1538-1594) was a French Protestant theologian and author, while Stephen Brice (1543-1616) was an English composer and organist during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I.

In the 18th century, Jacques Brice (1707-1777) was a French architect who designed several notable buildings in Paris, including the Church of Saint-Philippe-du-Roule. Around the same time, John Brice (1705-1765) was an English clergyman and author who wrote extensively on the history of Norfolk county.

As the surname spread across Europe and eventually to other parts of the world, individuals with the name Brice made their mark in various fields, from academia and literature to politics and the arts.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Brice families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Brice 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. Somerset leads with 330 Brices recorded in 1881 and an index of 8.51x.

County Total Index
Somerset 330 8.51x
Middlesex 284 1.18x
Kent 274 3.33x
Surrey 161 1.37x
Gloucestershire 137 2.90x
Devon 135 2.69x
Northamptonshire 127 5.60x
Hampshire 118 2.39x
Glamorgan 92 2.19x
Lancashire 79 0.28x
Durham 71 0.99x
Yorkshire 61 0.26x
Staffordshire 51 0.63x
Leicestershire 37 1.38x
Hertfordshire 36 2.17x
Channel Islands 35 4.90x
Sussex 34 0.84x
Essex 33 0.69x
Oxfordshire 32 2.15x
Warwickshire 32 0.53x
Bedfordshire 27 2.16x
Shropshire 26 1.25x
Cheshire 23 0.43x
Lincolnshire 22 0.57x
Wiltshire 22 1.03x
Buckinghamshire 21 1.44x
Lanarkshire 21 0.27x
Nottinghamshire 18 0.55x
Northumberland 17 0.47x
Cornwall 14 0.51x
Dorset 14 0.89x
Worcestershire 12 0.38x
Cumberland 9 0.43x
Monmouthshire 8 0.46x
Royal Navy 8 2.79x
Derbyshire 7 0.19x
Berwickshire 6 2.06x
Herefordshire 5 0.51x
Suffolk 5 0.17x
Fife 3 0.21x
Midlothian 3 0.09x
Pembrokeshire 3 0.39x
Renfrewshire 3 0.16x
Stirlingshire 3 0.34x
Aberdeenshire 2 0.09x
Berkshire 2 0.11x
Huntingdonshire 2 0.42x
Montgomeryshire 2 0.36x
Caithness 1 0.30x
Merionethshire 1 0.23x
Norfolk 1 0.03x
Rutland 1 0.57x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Portsea in Hampshire leads with 49 Brices recorded in 1881 and an index of 5.06x.

Place Total Index
Portsea 49 5.06x
Islington London 48 2.05x
Lambeth 41 1.95x
Towcester 31 132.59x
Bristol St Philip Jacob 30 6.74x
Folkestone 25 15.67x
Hedworth Monkton Jarrow 25 8.05x
Bedminster 24 6.58x
Hammersmith London 23 3.87x
Leicester St Margaret 23 3.53x
Wellington 23 19.65x
St Pancras London 22 1.13x
Bristol St Augustine 21 27.53x
Hackney London 21 1.55x
Newton Toney 20 727.27x
Wiveliscombe 20 92.46x
Paddington London 19 2.14x
Shoreditch London 19 1.82x
Gelligaer 17 17.74x
Herne 17 46.69x
Waltham 17 406.70x
Wellingborough 17 14.91x
West Ham 17 1.62x
Cheddar 16 81.97x
Margate St John Baptist 16 10.62x
Peterborough 16 9.75x
Cardiff St John 15 10.94x
Kensington London 15 1.12x
Rainham 15 66.37x
Wellington 15 28.51x
Bristol St Paul In 14 11.12x
Wye 14 109.98x
Battersea 13 1.47x
Bristol St James St Paul 13 8.25x
Hitchin 13 17.34x
Kingstone 13 691.49x
Lee 13 10.89x
Mile End Old Town London 13 2.53x
Southampton St Mary 13 4.18x
Wandsworth 13 5.60x
Wansford 13 1092.44x
Weston Super Mare 13 13.27x
Wolverhampton 13 2.08x
Camberwell 12 0.78x
North Crawley 12 207.97x
Petham 12 211.27x
St Peter Port 12 9.08x
Cardiff St Mary 11 4.76x
Exeter St Sidwell 11 9.57x
Hampstead London 11 2.93x
Hartwell 11 266.34x
Houghton 11 308.12x
Newington 11 1.24x
Newland 11 27.69x
Spalding 11 14.38x
St Sampson 11 34.17x
Charlbury 10 59.84x
Deptford St Paul 10 1.58x
Everton 10 1.10x
Exeter Holy Trinity 10 50.86x
Eynsford 10 70.92x
Faversham 10 12.75x
Kingswinford 10 3.39x
Oldham 10 1.08x
Southwick 10 14.73x
Swansea Town 10 2.91x
Bampton 9 58.59x
Barton St David 9 322.58x
Bermondsey 9 1.25x
Birmingham 9 0.44x
Broadwater 9 9.65x
Clifton 9 3.77x
Dowlish Wake 9 315.79x
Edgbaston 9 4.78x
Fulham London 9 2.57x
Hatfield Broad Oak 9 56.04x
Merton 9 43.80x
Penarth 9 21.94x
Rusholme 9 11.80x
Tiverton 9 10.41x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 179
Elizabeth 95
Sarah 89
Eliza 58
Jane 56
Ann 42
Ellen 41
Alice 37
Emma 35
Emily 32
Annie 26
Louisa 25
Harriet 21
Martha 19
Florence 17
Margaret 17
Maria 17
Kate 16
Clara 15
Charlotte 14
Ada 13
Hannah 13
Lucy 13
Caroline 11
Anne 10
Edith 10
Fanny 10
Frances 10
Susan 10
Agnes 9
Matilda 8
Rose 8
Amelia 7
Eva 7
Rosa 7
Adelaide 6
Catherine 6
Esther 6
Ethel 6
Flora 6
Julia 6
Lilly 6
Minnie 6
Anna 5
Bessie 5
Gertrude 5
Grace 5
Harriett 5
Mabel 5
Selina 5

Top male names

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

Name Count
William 151
John 126
George 86
Henry 63
James 62
Charles 60
Thomas 60
Edward 35
Robert 35
Alfred 30
Richard 27
Joseph 26
Arthur 24
Frederick 20
Samuel 20
Harry 19
Ernest 18
Walter 18
Francis 13
Edwin 11
Albert 10
Wm. 10
Daniel 9
Alexander 8
Herbert 8
Frank 7
Fredk. 7
Benjamin 6
Solomon 5
Willie 5
Earnest 4
Percy 4
Sydney 4
Tom 4
Andrew 3
Christopher 3
David 3
Jacob 3
Matthew 3
Sidney 3
Chas. 2
Horace 2
Jas. 2
Jesse 2
Jno. 2
Leopold 2
Levi 2
Mark 2
Philip 2
Reuben 2

FAQ

Brice surname: questions and answers

How common was the Brice surname in 1881?

In 1881, 2,446 people were recorded with the Brice surname. That placed it at #1,820 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Brice surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 2,938 in 2016. That gives Brice a modern rank of #2,297.

What does the Brice surname mean?

A French toponymic surname derived from several places in France named Brice, likely meaning "broken, craggy place."

What does the Brice map show?

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