NameCensus.

UK surname

Bustard

A surname derived from the Old French word "bistarde", referring to a large, heavy bird.

In the 1881 census there were 124 people recorded with the Bustard surname, ranking it #17,429 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 197, ranked #19,777, down from #17,429 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to London parishes, St Pancras and Manchester. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Ashfield, Knightswood Park East and Cornwall.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Bustard is 230 in 1998. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 58.9%.

1881 census count

124

Ranked #17,429

Modern count

197

2016, ranked #19,777

Peak year

1998

230 bearers

Map years

8

1861 to 2016

Key insights

  • Bustard had 124 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #17,429 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 197 in 2016, ranked #19,777.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 189 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Established but Challenged.

Bustard surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Bustard surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Bustard 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 94 #17,837
1861 historical 131 #17,052
1881 historical 124 #17,429
1891 historical 152 #18,163
1901 historical 173 #16,579
1911 historical 189 #15,488
1997 modern 216 #16,802
1998 modern 230 #16,607
1999 modern 226 #16,884
2000 modern 221 #17,089
2001 modern 202 #17,834
2002 modern 223 #17,099
2003 modern 207 #17,746
2004 modern 209 #17,706
2005 modern 190 #18,753
2006 modern 192 #18,753
2007 modern 184 #19,485
2008 modern 193 #19,077
2009 modern 193 #19,463
2010 modern 201 #19,387
2011 modern 192 #19,797
2012 modern 191 #19,802
2013 modern 191 #20,124
2014 modern 199 #19,775
2015 modern 199 #19,640
2016 modern 197 #19,777

Geography

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Where Bustards are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around London parishes, St Pancras, Manchester and Childwall. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Ashfield, Knightswood Park East, Cornwall, Renfrew West and Drumpellier and Langloan. 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 London parishes London 3
3 St Pancras London (North Districts)
4 Manchester Lancashire
5 Childwall Lancashire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Ashfield 012 Ashfield
2 Knightswood Park East Glasgow City
3 Cornwall 050 Cornwall
4 Renfrew West Renfrewshire
5 Drumpellier and Langloan North Lanarkshire

Forenames

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First names often paired with Bustard

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Bustard

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Bustard, 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 Bustard surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Established but Challenged, within Semi- and Un-Skilled Workforce. This does not mean every Bustard 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

The Greater London Mix

Group

Skilled Trades and Construction Workers

Within London, Bustard is most associated with areas classed as Skilled Trades and Construction 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

These scattered, peripheral and often low residential density neighbourhoods house more workers in skilled trades and construction. Few households rent social housing and there are few students. Multiple car ownership is higher than the Supergroup average, perhaps because of poorer public transport connectivity. Incidence of mixed or multiple ethnicity is below the Supergroup average, and the absence of individuals identifying as Pakistani or Other Asian groups is also less pronounced. Flatted accommodation is less dominant than elsewhere in the Supergroup.

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

Bustard is most concentrated in decile 2 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.

2
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Bustard falls in decile 4 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.

4
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

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

Meaning and origin of Bustard

The surname Bustard is believed to have originated in England, with the earliest known records dating back to the late 13th century. It is derived from the Old English word "butorr," which referred to a type of bird known as the great bustard. This large, ground-dwelling bird was once common in certain parts of England, particularly in areas such as Wiltshire and Dorset.

One of the earliest known references to the surname Bustard can be found in the Hundred Rolls of Wiltshire, a record of landholders and their properties compiled in 1273. The name is also mentioned in the Subsidy Rolls of Dorset in 1327, suggesting that families bearing this surname were present in both counties during the medieval period.

In the 14th century, a prominent individual named John Bustard was recorded as holding lands in the parish of Mere, Wiltshire. His descendants continued to hold these lands for several generations, and the name appears in various local records throughout the 15th and 16th centuries.

During the reign of King Edward III (1312-1377), a man named Roger Bustard served as a member of the King's household. He is mentioned in the Household Accounts of the sovereign, indicating his position as a servant or attendant to the royal court.

In the 16th century, a notable figure named William Bustard (1516-1591) was a prominent landowner and justice of the peace in Wiltshire. He was instrumental in the suppression of the Wyatt Rebellion, a failed uprising against Queen Mary I in 1554.

Another individual of note was Sir Charles Bustard (1687-1754), a British military officer who served in the War of the Spanish Succession and later became a Member of Parliament for Shaftesbury in Dorset. He was also appointed as the Governor of the Isle of Wight in 1746.

In the 19th century, a renowned naturalist and ornithologist named Thomas Littleton Powys, 4th Baron Lilford (1833-1896), was also known by his birth name of Thomas Littleton Powys Bustard. He made significant contributions to the study of birds and was a passionate advocate for their conservation.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Bustard families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Bustard 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 29 Bustards recorded in 1881 and an index of 2.02x.

County Total Index
Lancashire 29 2.02x
Middlesex 28 2.31x
Surrey 15 2.55x
Lanarkshire 9 2.30x
Renfrewshire 9 9.60x
Yorkshire 9 0.75x
Warwickshire 7 2.29x
Cheshire 5 1.87x
Devon 3 1.19x
Essex 2 0.84x
Hampshire 2 0.81x
Sussex 2 0.98x
Gloucestershire 1 0.42x
Kent 1 0.24x
Rutland 1 11.26x
Staffordshire 1 0.24x

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 18 Bustards recorded in 1881 and an index of 18.49x.

Place Total Index
St Pancras London 18 18.49x
Wavertree 13 283.22x
Abbey 9 62.94x
Garston 7 165.09x
Leamington 7 346.53x
Hornsey 6 39.24x
Barnsley 5 40.45x
Bradford 5 74.40x
Govan 5 5.17x
Liscard 5 103.95x
Southwark St George Martyr 5 20.54x
Camberwell 3 3.88x
Exeter St Sidwell 3 51.99x
Halewood 3 389.61x
Merrow 3 1200.00x
Croydon 2 6.11x
Glasgow 2 2.88x
Lambeth 2 1.90x
Maryhill 2 26.11x
South Shoebury 2 208.33x
St Andrew Holborn London 2 38.17x
St George Martyr London 2 81.63x
Alverstoke 1 11.15x
Bossall Claxton 1 833.33x
Brighton 1 2.43x
Cheltenham 1 5.46x
Clifton In York 1 39.84x
Exton 1 370.37x
Hougham 1 40.82x
Lewes St Ann 1 144.93x
Pickering 1 66.23x
Swinton Broughton In 1 526.32x
Toxteth Park 1 2.06x
Wolverhampton 1 3.19x
Wymering 1 243.90x

Top female names

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

FAQ

Bustard surname: questions and answers

How common was the Bustard surname in 1881?

In 1881, 124 people were recorded with the Bustard surname. That placed it at #17,429 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Bustard surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 197 in 2016. That gives Bustard a modern rank of #19,777.

What does the Bustard surname mean?

A surname derived from the Old French word "bistarde", referring to a large, heavy bird.

What does the Bustard map show?

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