NameCensus.

UK surname

Brodrick

A surname of English origin derived from a place name meaning "broad ridge."

In the 1881 census there were 377 people recorded with the Brodrick surname, ranking it #8,309 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 500, ranked #9,983, down from #8,309 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to London parishes, Kingston-on-Thames and Manchester. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include North Kesteven, Bath and North East Somerset and Wychavon.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Brodrick is 615 in 1911. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 32.6%.

1881 census count

377

Ranked #8,309

Modern count

500

2016, ranked #9,983

Peak year

1911

615 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Brodrick had 377 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #8,309 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 500 in 2016, ranked #9,983.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 615 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Rural Amenity.

Brodrick surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Brodrick surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Brodrick 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 267 #8,342
1861 historical 293 #8,589
1881 historical 377 #8,309
1891 historical 426 #8,412
1901 historical 571 #7,341
1911 historical 615 #6,712
1997 modern 522 #9,015
1998 modern 540 #9,058
1999 modern 539 #9,116
2000 modern 538 #9,103
2001 modern 533 #9,013
2002 modern 538 #9,132
2003 modern 511 #9,338
2004 modern 516 #9,302
2005 modern 517 #9,217
2006 modern 514 #9,291
2007 modern 493 #9,662
2008 modern 506 #9,548
2009 modern 514 #9,643
2010 modern 511 #9,882
2011 modern 508 #9,839
2012 modern 492 #9,989
2013 modern 512 #9,847
2014 modern 509 #9,961
2015 modern 505 #9,933
2016 modern 500 #9,983

Geography

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Where Brodricks are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around London parishes, Kingston-on-Thames, Manchester and St Marylebone. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to North Kesteven, Bath and North East Somerset, Wychavon, Middlesbrough and Horsham. 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 London parishes London 1
2 Kingston-on-Thames Surrey
3 London parishes London 3
4 Manchester Lancashire
5 St Marylebone London (North Districts)

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 North Kesteven 003 North Kesteven
2 Bath and North East Somerset 023 Bath and North East Somerset
3 Wychavon 006 Wychavon
4 Middlesbrough 004 Middlesbrough
5 Horsham 005 Horsham

Forenames

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First names often paired with Brodrick

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Brodrick

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

The Greater London Mix

Group

Social Rented Sector Professional Support Workers

Within London, Brodrick is most associated with areas classed as Social Rented Sector Professional Support 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

Mainly located in Inner London, these neighbourhoods retain a diverse employment structure, with some concentration in associated professional and technical occupations rather than skilled trades or construction. Social renting is more common and levels of homeownership are low. Many residents identify as Black. There is a lower than average rate of marriage or civil partnership, few that are very old (85 or over) and higher than average incidence of disability.

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

Brodrick is most concentrated in decile 10 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.

10
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Brodrick falls in decile 9 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.

9
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

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

Meaning and origin of Brodrick

The surname Brodrick is of English origin, originating in the 12th century. It is a locational name derived from the Old English words 'brad' meaning broad and 'ac' meaning oak, likely referring to a broad oak tree or a location where a broad oak tree grew.

The earliest recorded instance of the name dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appeared as 'Bradericus'. This suggests that the name had already been established in England before the Norman Conquest of 1066.

The name is believed to have originated in the counties of Warwickshire and Staffordshire, where there are several places called Brodrick or variations thereof, such as Brodrick Hill and Brodrick Farm.

One notable early bearer of the name was Sir Thomas Brodrick (1284-1347), a knight who fought in the Scottish Wars of Independence under King Edward I. He was granted lands in Gloucestershire for his service.

In the 16th century, a branch of the Brodrick family settled in Ireland, where the name was sometimes anglicized to Broderick. William Brodrick (1552-1624) was an Irish judge and landowner who served as Lord Chief Justice of Ireland.

Another prominent member of the family was Sir Alan Brodrick (1623-1680), an English soldier and politician who served as Governor of Portsmouth and represented Winchester in Parliament.

George Brodrick (1784-1859) was a prominent English historian and author, best known for his works on the history of England and France. He was a member of the Royal Society and served as Warden of Merton College, Oxford.

St. John Brodrick (1856-1942) was a British statesman and politician who served as Secretary of State for War and Leader of the House of Lords under Prime Minister Arthur Balfour. He was also a noted historian and writer.

Overall, the Brodrick surname has a long and distinguished history, with bearers of the name having made significant contributions in various fields across multiple centuries.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Brodrick families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Brodrick 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. Yorkshire leads with 78 Brodricks recorded in 1881 and an index of 2.15x.

County Total Index
Yorkshire 78 2.15x
Middlesex 66 1.80x
Lancashire 55 1.26x
Surrey 25 1.40x
Cheshire 21 2.59x
Durham 20 1.83x
Wiltshire 18 5.55x
Gloucestershire 11 1.53x
Monmouthshire 10 3.77x
Norfolk 8 1.42x
Oxfordshire 8 3.53x
Staffordshire 7 0.57x
Hampshire 6 0.80x
Lincolnshire 6 1.02x
Glamorgan 5 0.78x
Sussex 5 0.81x
Kent 4 0.32x
Berkshire 3 1.09x
Midlothian 3 0.61x
Northumberland 3 0.55x
Channel Islands 2 1.84x
Denbighshire 2 1.44x
Devon 2 0.26x
Shropshire 2 0.63x
Dorset 1 0.42x
Essex 1 0.14x
Nottinghamshire 1 0.20x
Somerset 1 0.17x
Warwickshire 1 0.11x
Worcestershire 1 0.21x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Manchester in Lancashire leads with 13 Brodricks recorded in 1881 and an index of 6.64x.

Place Total Index
Manchester 13 6.64x
Birkenhead 12 18.59x
Broughton Gifford 11 1428.57x
Middlesbrough 11 23.24x
St Marylebone London 11 5.62x
Westminster St John 10 22.39x
Cottingham 8 102.17x
Great Yarmouth 8 17.13x
Houghton Le Spring 8 106.10x
Ugglebarnby 8 1632.65x
Churchill 7 1111.11x
Aberystruth 6 25.67x
Camberwell 6 2.56x
Dewsbury 6 16.09x
Godalming 6 53.33x
Hedworth Monkton Jarrow 6 12.70x
Holy Trinity 6 6.86x
Islington London 6 1.69x
St Andrew Holborn London 6 37.78x
St George In East London 6 17.39x
Stoke Upon Trent 6 4.57x
Blackburn 5 4.32x
Carisbrooke 5 47.89x
Eastleach Turville 5 909.09x
Fulham London 5 9.40x
Kirkby La Thorpe 5 1562.50x
Liverpool 5 1.89x
Sutton Stoneferry 5 48.08x
Bedwellty 4 8.55x
Beeford 4 449.44x
Everton 4 2.88x
Hackney London 4 1.95x
Linthorpe 4 18.44x
Salisbury The Close 4 500.00x
Sculcoates 4 6.94x
Upton In Chester 4 439.56x
Bristol St Philip Jacob 3 4.43x
Great Bolton 3 5.20x
Hunmanby 3 176.47x
Leeds 3 1.46x
Limehouse London 3 7.45x
Macclesfield 3 8.34x
Manningham 3 6.70x
Monkwearmouth Shore 3 14.08x
Reading St Mary 3 13.61x
Shoreditch London 3 1.89x
Sneaton 3 1034.48x
South Leith 3 5.43x
Southwark St George Martyr 3 4.06x
Bethnal Green London 2 1.26x
Bristol St James St Paul 2 8.34x
Carshalton 2 29.24x
Chudleigh 2 82.30x
Crayford 2 36.56x
Fulwood 2 42.55x
Gelligaer 2 13.71x
Gorton 2 4.89x
Hastings St Mary 2 13.00x
Heaton Norris 2 8.07x
Hornsea 2 86.58x
Kensington London 2 0.98x
Lambeth 2 0.63x
Little Bolton 2 3.57x
Michaelstone Super Avon 2 28.94x
North Meols 2 4.69x
Paddington London 2 1.48x
Peasmarsh 2 190.48x
Southwark St Saviour 2 10.61x
Spotland 2 4.13x
St Helier 2 5.65x
St Martin 2 56.50x
Sutton 2 48.31x
Thornhill 2 18.85x
Tottington Lower End 2 9.67x
Withington 2 14.27x
Wrexham Regis 2 19.44x
Newbottle 1 16.78x
Putney 1 5.98x
Tonbridge 1 2.22x
Walton On Hill 1 4.24x

Top female names

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

Top male names

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

Name Count
John 29
William 20
George 12
James 12
Thomas 8
Edward 7
Patrick 6
Arthur 5
Michael 5
Richard 5
Alan 4
Henry 4
Charles 3
Dennis 3
Frank 3
Harry 3
Robert 3
Andrew 2
Francis 2
Frederick 2
Hugh 2
Joel 2
Micheal 2
T. 2
Augustus 1
Bartholemew 1
Chas. 1
Cornelius 1
D. 1
David 1
Edmund 1
Garton 1
Geo. 1
Harold 1
Herbert 1
Hubert 1
Jas. 1
Joseph 1
Laurance 1
Martin 1
P. 1
Pat 1
Patr. 1
Perceval 1
Percy 1
Peter 1
Reginald 1
Richd. 1
Stephen 1
Wm. 1

FAQ

Brodrick surname: questions and answers

How common was the Brodrick surname in 1881?

In 1881, 377 people were recorded with the Brodrick surname. That placed it at #8,309 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Brodrick surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 500 in 2016. That gives Brodrick a modern rank of #9,983.

What does the Brodrick surname mean?

A surname of English origin derived from a place name meaning "broad ridge."

What does the Brodrick map show?

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