NameCensus.

UK surname

Bruford

In the 1881 census there were 186 people recorded with the Bruford surname, ranking it #13,448 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 295, ranked #14,915, down from #13,448 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff, Bedminster and Tolland. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include West Somerset, Rhondda Cynon Taf and Wiltshire.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Bruford is 315 in 2009. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 58.6%.

1881 census count

186

Ranked #13,448

Modern count

295

2016, ranked #14,915

Peak year

2009

315 bearers

Map years

8

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Bruford had 186 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #13,448 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 295 in 2016, ranked #14,915.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 245 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Established but Challenged.

Bruford surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Bruford surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Bruford 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 124 #14,792
1861 historical 60 #26,313
1881 historical 186 #13,448
1891 historical 189 #15,547
1901 historical 217 #14,381
1911 historical 245 #13,084
1997 modern 288 #13,886
1998 modern 295 #14,029
1999 modern 301 #13,926
2000 modern 298 #13,981
2001 modern 303 #13,645
2002 modern 313 #13,615
2003 modern 299 #13,850
2004 modern 299 #13,904
2005 modern 295 #13,972
2006 modern 300 #13,911
2007 modern 297 #14,135
2008 modern 300 #14,135
2009 modern 315 #13,960
2010 modern 311 #14,345
2011 modern 305 #14,439
2012 modern 299 #14,537
2013 modern 311 #14,368
2014 modern 308 #14,571
2015 modern 299 #14,796
2016 modern 295 #14,915

Geography

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Where Brufords are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff, Bedminster, Tolland, St Decuman, Nettlecombe, Old Cleeve, Kilton, Lilstock, Dodington, Stringston, Holford 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 West Somerset, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wiltshire and Gateshead. 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 Bedminster Somerset
3 Tolland Somerset
4 St Decuman, Nettlecombe, Old Cleeve, Kilton, Lilstock, Dodington, Stringston, Holford Somerset
5 All Saints Poplar London (East Districts)

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 West Somerset 003 West Somerset
2 Rhondda Cynon Taf 012 Rhondda Cynon Taf
3 West Somerset 001 West Somerset
4 Wiltshire 045 Wiltshire
5 Gateshead 016 Gateshead

Forenames

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First names often paired with Bruford

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Bruford

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

Semi- and Un-Skilled Workforce

Group

Established but Challenged

Nationally, the Bruford surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Established but Challenged, within Semi- and Un-Skilled Workforce. This does not mean every Bruford household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

Many households in these neighbourhoods comprise separated or divorced single parents with dependent children. Residents are typically born in the UK, and these neighbourhoods have relatively few members of ethnic minorities. The prevalence of children, their parents and those at or above normal retirement age, suggests neighbourhood structures may be long-established. Levels of unpaid care are high, and long-term disability is more common than in the Supergroup as a whole. Use of the social rented sector is common, often in terraced houses. Levels of overcrowding are above the Supergroup average. Unemployment is high, while those in work are employed in elementary occupations such as caring, leisure and customer services. Many residents have low level qualifications. Neighbourhood concentrations of this Group are found in the South Wales Valleys, Belfast, Londonderry and the Central Lowlands of Scotland.

Wider pattern

Living in terraced or semi-detached houses, residents of these neighbourhoods typically lack high levels of education and work in elementary or routine service occupations. Unemployment is above average. Residents are predominantly born in the UK, and residents are also predominantly from ethnic minorities. Social (but not private sector) rented sector housing is common. This Supergroup is found throughout the UK’s conurbations and industrial regions but is also an integral part of smaller towns.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Young Families and Mainstream Employment

Group

Social Rented Sector and Diverse Origins

Within London, Bruford 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

Bruford is most concentrated in decile 3 for access to healthy assets and hazards. This places the surname towards the less healthy 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.

3
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Bruford falls in decile 3 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.

3
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Bruford 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.

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Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - British

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

1881 census detail

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Bruford families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Bruford 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 84 Brufords recorded in 1881 and an index of 28.46x.

County Total Index
Somerset 84 28.46x
Middlesex 30 1.64x
Devon 17 4.45x
Gloucestershire 11 3.06x
Surrey 11 1.23x
Lancashire 10 0.46x
Dorset 9 7.48x
Glamorgan 3 0.94x
Kent 3 0.48x
Staffordshire 3 0.48x
Royal Navy 2 9.15x
Berkshire 1 0.73x
Hampshire 1 0.27x
Hertfordshire 1 0.79x
Monmouthshire 1 0.75x
Oxfordshire 1 0.88x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. St Decumans Watchet in Somerset leads with 23 Brufords recorded in 1881 and an index of 3066.67x.

Place Total Index
St Decumans Watchet 23 3066.67x
Cheddon Fitzpaine 13 6842.11x
Poplar London 12 34.67x
Tolland 11 13750.00x
Bedminster 9 32.44x
Plymouth St Andrew 9 30.61x
Wimborne Minster 9 461.54x
North Curry 8 800.00x
Williton 7 707.07x
Hackney London 6 5.84x
Ratcliffe London 6 59.23x
Bristol St George 5 30.07x
Broughton In Salford 5 25.13x
Bristol St James St Paul 4 33.36x
Exeter St Edmund 4 487.80x
Lambeth 4 2.50x
Mickleham 4 800.00x
Cranleigh 3 229.01x
Hillfarrance 3 1111.11x
Liverpool 3 2.27x
Roath 3 20.69x
Tettenhall 3 79.37x
Westminster St James 3 15.92x
Whitstable 3 97.72x
Clifton 2 11.00x
Egg Buckland 2 307.69x
Everton 2 2.88x
Kingston 2 338.98x
Paddington London 2 2.97x
Taunton St James 2 46.51x
Tormoham 2 12.38x
Wells St Cuthbert Out 2 84.03x
Bridgewater 1 12.48x
Chepstow 1 44.25x
Chipping Barnet 1 45.25x
Littlemore 1 322.58x
Milverton 1 91.74x
New Windsor 1 21.60x
Portsea 1 1.36x
Royal Navy 1 5.35x
St Dunstan In West London 1 175.44x
Wellington 1 25.00x
West Monkton 1 153.85x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 12
Elizabeth 6
Jane 6
Eliza 4
Ellen 4
Emma 4
Amelia 3
Charlotte 3
Emily 3
Fanny 3
Lucy 3
Sarah 3
Alice 2
Ann 2
Annie 2
Edith 2
Jessie 2
Kate 2
Mabel 2
Martha 2
Anne 1
Beatrice 1
Bessie 1
Blanche 1
Catherine 1
D. 1
Elizebeth 1
Elizth. 1
Elsie 1
Emmeline 1
Ethel 1
Florence 1
Grace 1
Harriet 1
Jemima 1
Joanna 1
Laura 1
Lilly 1
Lizzie 1
Louisa 1
Mable 1
Maria 1
Melita 1
Mildred 1
Nellie 1
Nora 1
Phoebe 1
Priscilla 1
Rosa 1
Thos. 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
George 10
John 9
William 9
Alfred 5
Henry 5
Charles 4
James 4
Albert 3
Edwin 3
Francis 3
Samuel 3
J. 2
Nicholas 2
Robert 2
Andrew 1
Arthur 1
Chas. 1
Edward 1
Ernest 1
Frank 1
Frederick 1
Fredk.J. 1
Fredk.Jno. 1
H. 1
I. 1
Jno. 1
Llwellyn 1
Richard 1
Thomas 1
Uriah 1
Valentine 1
Walter 1
Willm.G. 1
Wm. 1

FAQ

Bruford surname: questions and answers

How common was the Bruford surname in 1881?

In 1881, 186 people were recorded with the Bruford surname. That placed it at #13,448 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Bruford surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 295 in 2016. That gives Bruford a modern rank of #14,915.

What does the Bruford map show?

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