NameCensus.

UK surname

Brinkman

An occupational surname referring to someone who lived near or worked on the edge of a town or village.

In the 1881 census there were 143 people recorded with the Brinkman surname, ranking it #15,955 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 248, ranked #16,910, down from #15,955 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to St Leonard Shoreditch, London parishes and Watford. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Largs North, Daventry and Huntingdonshire.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Brinkman is 269 in 1999. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 73.4%.

1881 census count

143

Ranked #15,955

Modern count

248

2016, ranked #16,910

Peak year

1999

269 bearers

Map years

7

1881 to 2016

Key insights

  • Brinkman had 143 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #15,955 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 248 in 2016, ranked #16,910.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 238 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Ageing Communities.

Brinkman surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Brinkman surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Brinkman 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 44 #25,328
1861 historical 59 #26,466
1881 historical 143 #15,955
1891 historical 138 #19,411
1901 historical 202 #15,010
1911 historical 238 #13,356
1997 modern 242 #15,597
1998 modern 263 #15,161
1999 modern 269 #15,040
2000 modern 255 #15,538
2001 modern 254 #15,363
2002 modern 255 #15,599
2003 modern 251 #15,563
2004 modern 251 #15,655
2005 modern 248 #15,721
2006 modern 258 #15,402
2007 modern 257 #15,606
2008 modern 257 #15,777
2009 modern 264 #15,798
2010 modern 266 #16,067
2011 modern 262 #16,098
2012 modern 251 #16,467
2013 modern 249 #16,825
2014 modern 248 #16,991
2015 modern 244 #17,090
2016 modern 248 #16,910

Geography

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Where Brinkmans are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around St Leonard Shoreditch, London parishes, Watford, St Leonard Bromley and All Saints Poplar. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Largs North, Daventry, Huntingdonshire, West Somerset and Greenwich. 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 Leonard Shoreditch London (East Districts)
2 London parishes London 3
3 Watford Hertfordshire
4 St Leonard Bromley London (East Districts)
5 All Saints Poplar London (East Districts)

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Largs North North Ayrshire
2 Daventry 003 Daventry
3 Huntingdonshire 018 Huntingdonshire
4 West Somerset 001 West Somerset
5 Greenwich 001 Greenwich

Forenames

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First names often paired with Brinkman

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Brinkman

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

Ageing Communities

Nationally, the Brinkman surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Ageing Communities, within Suburbanites and Peri-Urbanities. This does not mean every Brinkman household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

Many residents are of normal retirement age or above and live in communal establishments, and there are few dependent children. The dominant property type is a mix of retirement flats and detached houses. Those in work are likely to be employed in managerial and professional occupations, and many residents are educated to degree level. Levels of owner occupation are high, but the private rental sector is also present. Rural locations predominate.

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, Brinkman 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

Brinkman 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

Brinkman 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 Brinkman 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 Brinkman, not the ethnicity of every person with the surname.

Meaning and origin of Brinkman

The surname Brinkman originated in the northern regions of Germany and the Netherlands during the late medieval period. It is derived from the Old German words "brink" meaning a grassy edge or border, and "man" meaning a person. The name likely referred to someone who lived near the edge of a village or settlement.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Brinkman can be found in the Bremisches Urkundenbuch, a collection of historical documents from the city of Bremen, dating back to the 14th century. In this record, a certain "Hinricus Brinkman" is mentioned as a landowner in the year 1372.

The Brinkman name also appears in several Dutch records from the 16th and 17th centuries, such as the Lidmaten Register, a register of church members. This suggests that the name had spread to the neighboring Netherlands during this time period.

A notable early bearer of the Brinkman surname was Dirck Brinkman, a Dutch merchant and explorer who sailed with the Dutch East India Company in the early 17th century. He was involved in the establishment of Dutch settlements in present-day Indonesia and is mentioned in several historical accounts of the time.

Another prominent figure was Johann Brinkman, a German theologian and philosopher who lived from 1630 to 1703. He was a professor at the University of Jena and authored several influential works on theology and metaphysics.

In the 18th century, a certain Johann Brinkman (1707-1781) was a well-known German architect who designed several notable buildings in the baroque style, including the Fridericianum in Kassel.

During the 19th century, the Brinkman name gained prominence in the field of science. Carl Gustav Brinkman (1809-1889) was a Swedish botanist and taxonomist who made significant contributions to the classification of plants.

Additionally, Arnold Brinkman (1834-1897) was a Dutch painter and printmaker who specialized in landscape and genre scenes, and is considered a part of the Hague School of artists.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Brinkman families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Brinkman 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. Middlesex leads with 74 Brinkmans recorded in 1881 and an index of 5.27x.

County Total Index
Middlesex 74 5.27x
Hertfordshire 20 20.66x
Lancashire 15 0.90x
Surrey 10 1.46x
Yorkshire 6 0.43x
Nottinghamshire 5 2.64x
Cheshire 4 1.29x
Kent 4 0.83x
Cumberland 2 1.65x
Stirlingshire 2 3.86x
Lincolnshire 1 0.45x
Sussex 1 0.42x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Poplar London in Middlesex leads with 18 Brinkmans recorded in 1881 and an index of 67.90x.

Place Total Index
Poplar London 18 67.90x
Islington London 9 6.61x
Clerkenwell London 8 24.13x
Shoreditch London 8 13.14x
Berkhampstead 7 321.10x
St Pancras London 7 6.19x
Bromley London 6 19.42x
Hackney London 6 7.62x
Lambeth 6 4.90x
Linthorpe 6 72.20x
St Albans 6 303.03x
Aspull 5 127.55x
Nottingham St Mary 5 10.21x
Watford 5 66.58x
Gillingham 4 40.49x
Lower Bebington 4 217.39x
Spotland 4 21.59x
St Sepulchre London 4 194.17x
Tottenham 4 17.88x
Camberwell 3 3.34x
Everton 3 5.65x
Bothkennar 2 129.03x
Bushey 2 86.96x
St Luke London 2 8.88x
Whitehaven 2 31.01x
Withington 2 37.24x
Chorlton On Medlock 1 3.78x
Crowland 1 70.92x
Horsham 1 21.74x
St Gregory By St Pauls 1 285.71x
Stoke Newington London 1 9.14x
Sutton 1 20.20x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Elizabeth 11
Eliza 4
Emma 4
Ellen 3
Louisa 3
Alice 2
Emily 2
Georgiana 2
Jane 2
Maria 2
Mary 2
Matilda 2
Sarah 2
Amelia 1
Clara 1
Dinah 1
E. 1
Edith 1
Eliz.A. 1
Hannah 1
Helena 1
Henriette 1
Jessie 1
Kate 1
Lilian 1
Lydia 1
M. 1
Martha 1
Rebecca 1
Rosa 1
Selmor 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
John 9
James 8
William 7
Frederick 6
Arthur 5
Alfred 4
Charles 4
George 3
Henry 3
Albert 2
F.G. 2
Joseph 2
Philip 2
Robert 2
Thomas 2
Alexander 1
Benjamin 1
Bertram 1
Delley 1
Denis 1
Ernest 1
F.H. 1
Francis 1
H.I. 1
Jno.Henry 1
Leonard 1
Leopold 1
Max 1
Percival 1
Richard 1
Stephen 1
Thos. 1
Wallis 1
Willm. 1

FAQ

Brinkman surname: questions and answers

How common was the Brinkman surname in 1881?

In 1881, 143 people were recorded with the Brinkman surname. That placed it at #15,955 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Brinkman surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 248 in 2016. That gives Brinkman a modern rank of #16,910.

What does the Brinkman surname mean?

An occupational surname referring to someone who lived near or worked on the edge of a town or village.

What does the Brinkman map show?

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