NameCensus.

UK surname

Chambers

An English occupational surname referring to someone who worked in the private chambers of a nobleman or royal.

In the 1881 census there were 16,996 people recorded with the Chambers surname, ranking it #225 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 25,554, ranked #224, up from #225 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to London parishes, Lenton, Radford, Papplewick, Nuthall, Greasley, Brewhouse Yard and Gateshead. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Mid Suffolk, Copeland and Kettering.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Chambers is 26,390 in 2010. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 50.4%.

1881 census count

16,996

Ranked #225

Modern count

25,554

2016, ranked #224

Peak year

2010

26,390 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Chambers had 16,996 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #225 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 25,554 in 2016, ranked #224.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 21,798 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Rural Amenity.

Chambers surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Chambers surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Chambers 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 10,910 #227
1861 historical 10,616 #237
1881 historical 16,996 #225
1891 historical 17,461 #228
1901 historical 20,610 #234
1911 historical 21,798 #198
1997 modern 25,002 #218
1998 modern 25,913 #220
1999 modern 26,022 #220
2000 modern 25,899 #220
2001 modern 25,289 #219
2002 modern 25,781 #221
2003 modern 25,173 #221
2004 modern 25,236 #219
2005 modern 24,874 #218
2006 modern 24,826 #220
2007 modern 25,048 #219
2008 modern 25,127 #221
2009 modern 25,756 #222
2010 modern 26,390 #220
2011 modern 25,887 #222
2012 modern 25,341 #221
2013 modern 25,841 #223
2014 modern 25,937 #223
2015 modern 25,645 #223
2016 modern 25,554 #224

Geography

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Where Chambers' are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around London parishes, Lenton, Radford, Papplewick, Nuthall, Greasley, Brewhouse Yard, Gateshead and Leicester St Margaret and Bishop's Fee, Leicester All Saints, Blackfriars. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Mid Suffolk, Copeland, Kettering and Bassetlaw. 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 Lenton, Radford, Papplewick, Nuthall, Greasley, Brewhouse Yard Nottinghamshire
3 London parishes London 3
4 Gateshead Durham
5 Leicester St Margaret and Bishop's Fee, Leicester All Saints, Blackfriars Leicestershire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Mid Suffolk 003 Mid Suffolk
2 Copeland 005 Copeland
3 Kettering 002 Kettering
4 Kettering 003 Kettering
5 Bassetlaw 016 Bassetlaw

Forenames

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First names often paired with Chambers

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Chambers

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

Chambers is most concentrated in decile 9 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.

9
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Chambers 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 Chambers 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 Chambers, not the ethnicity of every person with the surname.

Meaning and origin of Chambers

The surname Chambers is derived from an Old French word "chambre," which means a room or chamber. It originated in England during the Middle Ages, with the earliest known records dating back to the late 12th century. The name was likely given to someone who worked or lived in a chamber or small room, perhaps as a servant or attendant in a noble household.

One of the earliest mentions of the name Chambers is found in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire, dated 1166, which refer to a person named William de la Chambre. The Hundred Rolls of 1273 also list a Robert de la Chaumbre in Oxfordshire. These early spellings reflect the French origins of the name and its evolution into the English language.

The Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of English landowners commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086, does not contain the surname Chambers. However, it does list several places with names derived from the Old English word "ciemer," meaning a chamber or room, such as Ciemere in Gloucestershire and Ciemereswrthe in Wiltshire. These place names may have contributed to the development of the surname Chambers in later centuries.

In the 14th century, the surname began to appear more frequently in various records and manuscripts. One notable example is Sir Robert Chambers, a knight who fought alongside King Edward III during the Hundred Years' War. He was born around 1320 and participated in the Battle of Crécy in 1346.

Another significant figure was Ephraim Chambers (1680-1740), an English writer and encyclopedist best known for publishing the "Cyclopaedia, or a Universal Dictionary of Arts and Sciences" in 1728. This work was one of the first comprehensive encyclopedias in the English language and a precursor to the Encyclopædia Britannica.

In the 18th century, Sir William Chambers (1723-1796) was a renowned Scottish architect who designed many notable buildings in London, including Somerset House and the Pagoda at Kew Gardens. He was highly influential in introducing the Neoclassical style to British architecture.

The 19th century saw the rise of the Chambers publishing family in Edinburgh, Scotland. Robert Chambers (1802-1871) and his brother William Chambers (1800-1883) founded the publishing firm W. & R. Chambers, which produced educational books, encyclopedias, and literary works.

Another notable figure was Sir Neville Chambers (1859-1945), a British naval officer who served as the Director of Naval Construction and later as the Deputy Controller of the Royal Navy during World War I. He played a crucial role in the development of British warships and naval strategy.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Chambers families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Chambers 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 1,932 Chambers' recorded in 1881 and an index of 1.17x.

County Total Index
Yorkshire 1,932 1.17x
Middlesex 1,653 1.00x
Lancashire 1,318 0.67x
Nottinghamshire 993 4.43x
Kent 972 1.71x
Surrey 776 0.96x
Durham 770 1.56x
Lincolnshire 702 2.64x
Warwickshire 700 1.67x
Staffordshire 516 0.92x
Northamptonshire 491 3.14x
Derbyshire 487 1.87x
Hampshire 392 1.15x
Suffolk 388 1.92x
Northumberland 374 1.51x
Essex 346 1.06x
Leicestershire 314 1.70x
Lanarkshire 281 0.52x
Worcestershire 266 1.23x
Gloucestershire 250 0.77x
Sussex 227 0.81x
Devon 222 0.64x
Bedfordshire 221 2.57x
Norfolk 212 0.83x
Cumberland 188 1.31x
Cheshire 179 0.49x
Hertfordshire 161 1.41x
Somerset 131 0.49x
Cambridgeshire 107 1.02x
Huntingdonshire 96 2.91x
Berkshire 84 0.67x
Buckinghamshire 80 0.80x
Monmouthshire 79 0.66x
Ayrshire 77 0.62x
Midlothian 76 0.34x
Cornwall 61 0.32x
Wiltshire 61 0.42x
Renfrewshire 54 0.42x
Herefordshire 52 0.76x
Glamorgan 50 0.17x
Angus 45 0.29x
Anglesey 43 1.46x
Shropshire 42 0.29x
Westmorland 42 1.15x
East Lothian 41 1.86x
Dorset 40 0.37x
Brecknockshire 38 1.14x
West Lothian 33 1.32x
Wigtownshire 32 1.45x
Flintshire 29 0.65x
Fife 27 0.27x
Rutland 27 2.21x
Oxfordshire 24 0.23x
Denbighshire 20 0.32x
Dumfriesshire 17 0.46x
Perthshire 17 0.23x
Aberdeenshire 16 0.10x
Caernarfonshire 16 0.24x
Royal Navy 15 0.76x
Dunbartonshire 13 0.29x
Orkney 13 0.71x
Stirlingshire 11 0.18x
Banffshire 10 0.29x
Argyllshire 9 0.19x
Berwickshire 9 0.45x
Channel Islands 8 0.16x
Inverness-shire 7 0.14x
Ross-shire 7 0.15x
Isle of Man 6 0.19x
Selkirkshire 5 0.33x
Cardiganshire 4 0.10x
Morayshire 4 0.16x
Roxburghshire 4 0.13x
Caithness 3 0.13x
Kincardineshire 3 0.15x
Pembrokeshire 3 0.06x
Buteshire 2 0.20x
Clackmannanshire 2 0.15x
Montgomeryshire 2 0.05x
Kirkcudbrightshire 1 0.04x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Birmingham in Warwickshire leads with 248 Chambers' recorded in 1881 and an index of 1.78x.

Place Total Index
Birmingham 248 1.78x
Aston 219 1.90x
Lambeth 172 1.19x
Greasley 164 32.46x
Nottingham St Mary 142 2.45x
Islington London 132 0.82x
Hackney London 128 1.37x
Nuthall 104 123.82x
Everton 102 1.62x
Kensington London 102 1.10x
Leeds 101 1.09x
West Ham 98 1.35x
Maidstone 95 5.63x
Hammersmith London 93 2.27x
Leicester St Margaret 90 2.00x
Newington 90 1.47x
Shoreditch London 90 1.25x
Portsea 87 1.30x
Brighton 84 1.49x
Camberwell 84 0.79x
Gateshead 84 2.27x
Barony 83 0.61x
Liverpool 81 0.68x
St Pancras London 81 0.61x
Hedworth Monkton Jarrow 78 3.64x
Blackburn 69 1.32x
Bethnal Green London 68 0.94x
Mile End Old Town London 68 1.92x
Wallsend 67 8.55x
St Marylebone London 65 0.73x
Westoe 62 2.21x
Halifax 59 2.44x
Limehouse London 59 3.24x
Dudley 58 2.20x
Sheffield 57 1.09x
Paddington London 56 0.92x
Derby St Werburgh 55 3.66x
West Derby 55 0.95x
Oswaldtwistle 54 7.75x
Basford 53 5.14x
Eastwood 53 26.47x
Wolverhampton 52 1.21x
Ecclesall Bierlow 51 1.52x
Salford 51 0.88x
Sculcoates 51 1.95x
Attercliffe Cum Darnall 50 3.26x
Kingswinford 50 2.46x
Croydon 49 1.09x
Manchester 48 0.54x
Bromley London 47 1.29x
Stoke Upon Trent 46 0.77x
Tynemouth 46 3.48x
Brading 45 9.94x
Stranton 45 2.70x
Bulwell 44 9.04x
Byker 44 3.60x
Faversham 44 8.14x
Bermondsey 42 0.85x
Clerkenwell London 42 1.07x
Glasgow 42 0.44x
Grantham 42 12.13x
Hulme 42 1.02x
Preston 41 0.78x
Scarborough 41 2.74x
Southill 41 58.81x
Chorlton On Medlock 40 1.28x
Over Darwen 40 2.54x
Poplar London 40 1.28x
Toxteth Park 40 0.60x
Battersea 39 0.64x
Chelsea London 39 0.78x
Cheltenham 39 1.55x
Harborne 39 2.17x
Barnsley 38 2.24x
Ecclesfield 38 3.15x
Eye 38 29.07x
Oldham 38 0.60x
Hunslet 37 1.44x
West Bromwich 37 1.15x
Radford 36 3.16x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 1,082
Sarah 590
Elizabeth 571
Ann 348
Jane 279
Eliza 263
Annie 252
Emma 251
Ellen 236
Alice 212
Hannah 184
Emily 182
Margaret 169
Martha 126
Harriet 111
Louisa 108
Florence 103
Edith 97
Maria 96
Ada 94
Charlotte 92
Fanny 87
Catherine 81
Caroline 80
Kate 80
Clara 78
Frances 74
Isabella 74
Lucy 72
Agnes 70
Harriett 63
Anne 50
Susan 50
Rose 46
Eleanor 45
Rebecca 44
Julia 43
Amelia 42
Elizth. 37
Esther 36
Amy 35
Matilda 32
Gertrude 31
Minnie 30
Laura 29
Sophia 29
Lydia 28
Susannah 28
Beatrice 26
Bertha 26

Top male names

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

Name Count
John 981
William 973
George 606
Thomas 572
James 424
Charles 329
Henry 313
Joseph 272
Robert 259
Alfred 170
Arthur 155
Edward 151
Frederick 150
Samuel 130
Richard 123
Walter 117
Frank 99
Harry 98
Herbert 90
Albert 87
Ernest 65
David 60
Benjamin 52
Francis 52
Wm. 46
Thos. 45
Fred 35
Isaac 34
Tom 31
Edwin 29
Michael 26
Geo. 25
Fredk. 22
Matthew 21
Daniel 20
Christopher 18
Edmund 18
Stephen 18
Alexander 17
Willm. 17
Lewis 16
Peter 16
Chas. 15
Edgar 15
Fredrick 15
Mark 15
Ralph 15
Andrew 14
Reuben 14
Sydney 13

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 Chambers households.

FAQ

Chambers surname: questions and answers

How common was the Chambers surname in 1881?

In 1881, 16,996 people were recorded with the Chambers surname. That placed it at #225 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Chambers surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 25,554 in 2016. That gives Chambers a modern rank of #224.

What does the Chambers surname mean?

An English occupational surname referring to someone who worked in the private chambers of a nobleman or royal.

What does the Chambers map show?

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