NameCensus.

UK surname

Bush

An English topographic surname referring to someone who lived by a bush or thicket.

In the 1881 census there were 7,400 people recorded with the Bush surname, ranking it #578 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 8,673, ranked #759, down from #578 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff, London parishes and St Pancras. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include South Gloucestershire, King's Lynn and West Norfolk and Wiltshire.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Bush is 9,789 in 1911. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 17.2%.

1881 census count

7,400

Ranked #578

Modern count

8,673

2016, ranked #759

Peak year

1911

9,789 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Bush had 7,400 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #578 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 8,673 in 2016, ranked #759.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 9,789 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Rural Amenity.

Bush surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Bush surname density by area, 1881 census.

Loading map
Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Bush 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 4,630 #600
1861 historical 5,041 #559
1881 historical 7,400 #578
1891 historical 7,794 #569
1901 historical 8,933 #591
1911 historical 9,789 #504
1997 modern 9,042 #694
1998 modern 9,384 #697
1999 modern 9,379 #706
2000 modern 9,332 #704
2001 modern 9,105 #706
2002 modern 9,286 #711
2003 modern 8,983 #716
2004 modern 8,975 #716
2005 modern 8,695 #732
2006 modern 8,658 #738
2007 modern 8,652 #743
2008 modern 8,724 #740
2009 modern 8,881 #746
2010 modern 8,992 #752
2011 modern 8,894 #750
2012 modern 8,713 #748
2013 modern 8,850 #749
2014 modern 8,873 #750
2015 modern 8,750 #752
2016 modern 8,673 #759

Geography

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Where Bushs are most common

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

The modern local-area list points to South Gloucestershire, King's Lynn and West Norfolk, Wiltshire and Ross and Cromarty North West. 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 St Pancras London (North Districts)
5 Lambeth London (South Districts)

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 South Gloucestershire 032 South Gloucestershire
2 South Gloucestershire 024 South Gloucestershire
3 King's Lynn and West Norfolk 015 King's Lynn and West Norfolk
4 Wiltshire 040 Wiltshire
5 Ross and Cromarty North West Highland

Forenames

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First names often paired with Bush

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Bush

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

Bush 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

Bush falls in decile 6 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.

6
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

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

Meaning and origin of Bush

The surname Bush is of English origin, derived from the Old English word "busc" or "bysc," which means a bush or shrub. It was originally a topographic name, given to someone who lived near a prominent bush or shrubby area.

The earliest recorded instance of the surname Bush can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "de Busc" or "atte Busche." This suggests that the name was already in use in England before the Norman Conquest of 1066.

During the Middle Ages, the surname Bush was particularly prevalent in the counties of Lincolnshire, Yorkshire, and Norfolk. It was often associated with place names like Bushby, Bushbury, and Bushley, which further reinforced its connection to areas with significant shrubbery.

One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Bush was John atte Busche, who was mentioned in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire in 1327. In the 15th century, a prominent figure bearing the name was Paul Bush, a renowned printer and cartographer who worked in Germany and Switzerland.

In the 16th century, the surname Bush gained prominence with the life of Paul Bush (c. 1490-1558), a Catholic bishop and diplomat who served as a tutor to the future King Edward VI of England. Another notable figure was Gabriel Bush (1546-1615), an English churchman and academic who served as the Master of the Savoy Hospital in London.

The 17th century saw the rise of Sir John Bush (1606-1676), an English merchant and politician who served as the Lord Mayor of London in 1648. During the same period, James Bush (1608-1688) was a prominent English-born Quaker settler in colonial America.

In the 18th century, the name Bush was associated with individuals like Lewis Bush (1766-1848), a British naval officer who served during the American Revolutionary War and the Napoleonic Wars. Another notable figure was Paul Bush (1718-1805), an English clergyman and botanist who made significant contributions to the study of plant life in the West Indies.

As the surname Bush continued to spread throughout the English-speaking world, it became associated with various notable individuals, including the 41st President of the United States, George H.W. Bush (1924-2018), and his son, the 43rd President, George W. Bush (born 1946).

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Bush families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Bush 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 1,314 Bushs recorded in 1881 and an index of 1.82x.

County Total Index
Middlesex 1,314 1.82x
Essex 783 5.50x
Surrey 585 1.66x
Norfolk 549 4.95x
Somerset 436 3.76x
Gloucestershire 375 2.65x
Kent 348 1.41x
Yorkshire 332 0.46x
Lancashire 284 0.33x
Wiltshire 271 4.25x
Lincolnshire 221 1.92x
Hampshire 220 1.49x
Nottinghamshire 201 2.07x
Warwickshire 149 0.82x
Hertfordshire 148 2.98x
Suffolk 114 1.30x
Dorset 109 2.30x
Durham 83 0.39x
Glamorgan 77 0.61x
Berkshire 70 1.29x
Derbyshire 67 0.59x
Sussex 64 0.53x
Westmorland 58 3.66x
Northamptonshire 56 0.83x
Staffordshire 55 0.23x
Monmouthshire 44 0.84x
Brecknockshire 36 2.50x
Devon 34 0.23x
Cambridgeshire 29 0.63x
Northumberland 28 0.26x
Bedfordshire 25 0.67x
Cornwall 21 0.26x
Cheshire 20 0.13x
Worcestershire 20 0.21x
Buckinghamshire 19 0.44x
Lanarkshire 19 0.08x
Oxfordshire 15 0.34x
Angus 14 0.21x
Carmarthenshire 13 0.43x
Huntingdonshire 12 0.84x
Herefordshire 10 0.34x
Leicestershire 10 0.13x
Channel Islands 9 0.42x
Midlothian 8 0.08x
Royal Navy 6 0.70x
Cumberland 5 0.08x
Isle of Man 4 0.30x
Perthshire 4 0.12x
Shropshire 4 0.06x
West Lothian 3 0.28x
Ayrshire 2 0.04x
Caernarfonshire 2 0.07x
Inverness-shire 2 0.09x
Denbighshire 1 0.04x
Kincardineshire 1 0.11x
Montgomeryshire 1 0.06x
Pembrokeshire 1 0.04x
Radnorshire 1 0.17x
Renfrewshire 1 0.02x
Roxburghshire 1 0.08x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. St Pancras London in Middlesex leads with 150 Bushs recorded in 1881 and an index of 2.58x.

Place Total Index
St Pancras London 150 2.58x
West Ham 146 4.64x
Lambeth 141 2.24x
Islington London 123 1.76x
Nottingham St Mary 99 3.94x
Hackney London 97 2.40x
St Marylebone London 78 2.03x
Bristol St George 72 11.01x
Kensington London 67 1.67x
Bitton 63 51.17x
Camberwell 62 1.35x
Bristol St Philip Jacob 57 4.28x
Heigham 57 9.58x
Walcot 56 9.06x
Bedminster 53 4.86x
Croydon 52 2.67x
Bromley London 50 3.15x
Shoreditch London 49 1.57x
Bishop Stortford 47 28.30x
Battersea 46 1.73x
Hammersmith London 46 2.59x
Paddington London 44 1.66x
Warminster 44 31.48x
Manuden 41 230.34x
Aston 40 0.80x
Bethnal Green London 40 1.28x
Ecclesall Bierlow 40 2.75x
Newington 40 1.50x
Fordingbridge 39 48.51x
St George In East London 39 5.75x
Calne 38 28.94x
Clerkenwell London 38 2.23x
Hampstead London 36 3.20x
St Luke London 35 3.03x
Woolwich 35 3.85x
Barking 33 7.92x
Chelsea London 33 1.52x
Clifton 33 4.61x
Limehouse London 32 4.04x
East Dereham 31 22.13x
West Derby 31 1.24x
Wymondham 31 27.34x
Wimbish 30 142.79x
Sheffield 29 1.27x
Baltonsborough 28 161.29x
Mile End Old Town London 27 1.76x
Henham 26 128.40x
Bermondsey 25 1.16x
Birmingham 25 0.41x
Greenwich 25 2.18x
Poplar London 25 1.84x
Welton In The Marsh 25 269.98x
Everton 24 0.88x
Lewisham 24 1.83x
Tottenham 24 2.09x
Coventry Holy Trinity 23 4.23x
Westbury On Trym 23 4.80x
Bitton Oldland 22 15.21x
Clapham 22 2.44x
Ecclesfield 22 4.20x
Portsea 22 0.76x
Southwark St George Martyr 22 1.52x
St George Hanover Square 22 1.73x
Brighton 21 0.86x
Great Grimsby 21 2.87x
Rotherhithe 21 2.36x
Rockbourne 20 177.62x
Clarborough 19 26.13x
Frome 19 6.84x
Prittlewell 19 9.63x
South Stoneham 19 5.92x
St Giles In Fields London 19 5.37x
Cardiff St Mary 18 2.60x
Pebmarsh 18 140.73x
Salisbury St Edmund 18 17.58x
Southwark St Saviour 18 4.86x
Dagenham 17 20.06x
Great Dunmow 17 22.91x
Llanelly 17 9.85x
Salford 17 0.68x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 440
Elizabeth 281
Sarah 252
Eliza 138
Emma 125
Ann 119
Ellen 117
Emily 110
Jane 109
Alice 105
Annie 94
Harriet 72
Martha 65
Hannah 64
Louisa 56
Caroline 55
Maria 55
Fanny 49
Charlotte 45
Florence 42
Margaret 41
Susan 38
Edith 37
Lucy 37
Clara 36
Ada 35
Kate 34
Anne 33
Agnes 28
Frances 27
Rebecca 26
Rose 25
Amelia 24
Esther 23
Susannah 23
Harriett 22
Catherine 21
Anna 20
Matilda 20
Julia 19
Elizth. 17
Gertrude 16
Lydia 16
Isabella 15
Ethel 14
Jessie 14
Amy 13
Selina 13
Sophia 13
Betsy 12

Top male names

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

Name Count
William 448
John 372
George 316
Thomas 240
James 223
Henry 183
Charles 164
Robert 104
Alfred 100
Frederick 95
Joseph 94
Arthur 85
Edward 77
Samuel 61
Walter 59
Albert 55
Richard 47
Harry 45
Frank 42
Herbert 41
Ernest 35
Francis 23
Wm. 23
Edwin 19
Stephen 17
Benjamin 16
Isaac 16
David 15
Fredk. 13
Daniel 12
Fred 12
Jonathan 11
Sidney 11
Abraham 10
Geo. 10
Thos. 10
Percy 9
Timothy 8
Chas. 7
Fredrick 7
Martin 7
Oliver 7
Philip 7
Tom 7
Josiah 6
Leonard 6
Richd. 6
Jas. 5
Michael 5
Paul 5

Top occupations

Occupational titles are kept as recorded and later transcribed, so related jobs, spelling variants and mistakes stay separate. Scholar was the census term for a child in education. That means the other rows often tell you more about adult work in Bush households.

FAQ

Bush surname: questions and answers

How common was the Bush surname in 1881?

In 1881, 7,400 people were recorded with the Bush surname. That placed it at #578 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Bush surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 8,673 in 2016. That gives Bush a modern rank of #759.

What does the Bush surname mean?

An English topographic surname referring to someone who lived by a bush or thicket.

What does the Bush map show?

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