NameCensus.

UK surname

Brownell

A surname derived from a place name meaning "brown hill" or referring to someone living near a brown hill.

In the 1881 census there were 123 people recorded with the Brownell surname, ranking it #17,506 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 293, ranked #14,981, up from #17,506 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Manchester, West Derby and Liverpool. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Liverpool, Sheffield and Horsham.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Brownell is 296 in 2010. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 138.2%.

1881 census count

123

Ranked #17,506

Modern count

293

2016, ranked #14,981

Peak year

2010

296 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Brownell had 123 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #17,506 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 293 in 2016, ranked #14,981.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 171 in 1901.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Challenged Communities.

Brownell surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Brownell surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Brownell 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 158 #12,461
1861 historical 115 #18,880
1881 historical 123 #17,506
1891 historical 161 #17,473
1901 historical 171 #16,689
1911 historical 170 #16,510
1997 modern 247 #15,399
1998 modern 255 #15,470
1999 modern 254 #15,638
2000 modern 247 #15,864
2001 modern 249 #15,573
2002 modern 268 #15,081
2003 modern 258 #15,293
2004 modern 263 #15,189
2005 modern 263 #15,139
2006 modern 271 #14,880
2007 modern 280 #14,694
2008 modern 290 #14,466
2009 modern 291 #14,742
2010 modern 296 #14,877
2011 modern 291 #14,903
2012 modern 278 #15,333
2013 modern 286 #15,259
2014 modern 286 #15,378
2015 modern 289 #15,153
2016 modern 293 #14,981

Geography

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Where Brownells are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Manchester, West Derby, Liverpool, Sheffield and Coppenhall. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Liverpool, Sheffield 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 Manchester Lancashire
2 West Derby Lancashire
3 Liverpool Lancashire
4 Sheffield Yorkshire, West Riding
5 Coppenhall Cheshire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Liverpool 003 Liverpool
2 Sheffield 026 Sheffield
3 Sheffield 060 Sheffield
4 Horsham 010 Horsham
5 Liverpool 059 Liverpool

Forenames

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First names often paired with Brownell

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Brownell

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Brownell, 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 Brownell surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Challenged Communities, within Baseline UK. This does not mean every Brownell 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

Professional Employment and Family Lifecycles

Group

Inner London Working Professionals

Within London, Brownell is most associated with areas classed as Inner London Working Professionals, part of Professional Employment and Family Lifecycles. 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 primarily Inner London neighbourhoods are more densely populated than the Supergroup average. Residents have a younger over-all age profile than the Supergroup as a whole, and are less likely to be owner occupiers. Full time employment is more common than elsewhere in the Supergroup and multiple car ownership is uncommon. Chinese and non-EU-born European migrants are less in evidence than elsewhere in the Supergroup.

Wider London pattern

These neighbourhoods house people of all ages, predominantly of White British or European extraction. Resident turnover is low. Religious affiliation is less common than average and tends to be Christian if expressed. Homeownership, typically of terraced houses, is common but use of the social rented sector is not. Employment is typically in professional, managerial and associate professional or technical occupations. There are few full-time students. Level 4 qualifications are common. More households lack dependent children than have them which, considered alongside low levels of crowding and over-all age structure, indicates that many households may be post child-rearing and in late middle age. Incidence of disability is low, as is residence in communal establishments.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Brownell 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

Brownell falls in decile 1 for neighbourhood deprivation. This puts the surname towards the more deprived end of the index.

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

1
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Brownell is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of 50-60 mbit/s.

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

8
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - British

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

Meaning and origin of Brownell

The surname Brownell is of English origin, derived from the Old English words "brun" meaning brown, and "hyl" meaning hill or ridge. It is believed to have originated in the 12th or 13th century as a descriptive name for someone who lived near or on a brown hill.

The earliest recorded instances of the name can be traced back to the Hundred Rolls of Lincolnshire in 1273, where it appears as "Brunhill" and "Brunhull". These early spellings reflect the name's origins as a place name before it became a hereditary surname.

In the Domesday Book of 1086, there are several entries for places with similar names, such as "Brunhill" in Berkshire and "Brunehill" in Warwickshire, suggesting that the name may have originated from these or similar locations.

One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname was John Brownell, who was mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Northamptonshire in 1202. Another early bearer of the name was William Brownell, who was recorded in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire in 1327.

Over time, the name evolved into various spellings, including Brownell, Brownhill, and Brownhills. One notable bearer of the name was Sir Thomas Brownell (c. 1550-1628), an English politician and Member of Parliament for Maidstone in 1601.

Another significant figure was George Brownell (1688-1765), a British Army officer who served as the Governor of the Bahamas from 1753 to 1758. In the United States, one of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname was Thomas Brownell, who was born in Massachusetts in 1624.

Other notable individuals with the surname Brownell include:

1. Pardon Brownell (1791-1859), an American politician and Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from New York. 2. Henry Howard Brownell (1820-1872), an American poet and literary critic known for his Civil War poetry. 3. William Crary Brownell (1851-1928), an American literary critic and author of several books on Victorian literature. 4. Herbert Brownell Jr. (1904-1996), an American lawyer and politician who served as the Attorney General of the United States under President Dwight D. Eisenhower. 5. Mercein Brownell (1909-2003), an American writer and journalist best known for her travel books and articles.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Brownell families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Brownell 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 39 Brownells recorded in 1881 and an index of 2.65x.

County Total Index
Lancashire 39 2.65x
Yorkshire 33 2.69x
Cheshire 19 6.95x
Warwickshire 10 3.20x
Channel Islands 3 8.17x
Derbyshire 3 1.55x
Durham 3 0.81x
Montgomeryshire 3 10.57x
Shropshire 3 2.80x
Northumberland 2 1.09x
Somerset 2 1.00x
Sussex 2 0.96x
Berkshire 1 1.08x
Gloucestershire 1 0.41x
Leicestershire 1 0.73x
Middlesex 1 0.08x
Royal Navy 1 6.78x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Didsbury in Lancashire leads with 9 Brownells recorded in 1881 and an index of 461.54x.

Place Total Index
Didsbury 9 461.54x
Nether Hallam 9 54.18x
Everton 7 14.94x
Heeley 7 187.67x
Liverpool 7 7.84x
Monks Coppenhall 7 67.83x
Oxton 7 451.61x
West Derby 7 16.28x
Ormesby 6 181.82x
Polesworth 5 337.84x
Sheffield 5 12.79x
Aston 4 4.65x
Derby St Peter 3 48.54x
Ecclesall Bierlow 3 12.01x
Kerry 3 352.94x
Oswestry Rural 3 182.93x
St Helier 3 25.10x
Ackworth 2 212.77x
Bickerton 2 1428.57x
Brinnington 2 78.43x
Crossgate 2 124.22x
Heaton Norris 2 23.89x
Hove 2 21.83x
Salford 2 4.63x
Tottington Lower End 2 28.65x
Walcot 2 18.83x
Appleby 1 312.50x
Brancepeth 1 149.25x
Brightside Bierlow 1 4.15x
Cheadle 1 19.16x
Kensington London 1 1.45x
Manchester 1 1.51x
Milverton 1 108.70x
Newcastle On Tyne All Sts 1 9.08x
Newchurch 1 8.32x
Royal Navy 1 7.92x
Sandhurst 1 55.56x
Sherborne 1 416.67x
Toxteth Park 1 2.01x
Westgate 1 8.76x

Top female names

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

Name Count
John 7
William 7
Robert 5
George 4
Thomas 4
Charles 3
Edward 3
James 3
Arthur 2
Joseph 2
Peter 2
Walter 2
Henry 1
Jonathan 1
Michael 1
Ricd. 1
Thos. 1
Willm. 1

FAQ

Brownell surname: questions and answers

How common was the Brownell surname in 1881?

In 1881, 123 people were recorded with the Brownell surname. That placed it at #17,506 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Brownell surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 293 in 2016. That gives Brownell a modern rank of #14,981.

What does the Brownell surname mean?

A surname derived from a place name meaning "brown hill" or referring to someone living near a brown hill.

What does the Brownell map show?

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