NameCensus.

UK surname

Chappell

An occupational surname referring to a clergyman or someone who worked in a chapel.

In the 1881 census there were 5,044 people recorded with the Chappell surname, ranking it #883 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 8,084, ranked #817, up from #883 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff, London parishes and Lenton, Radford, Papplewick, Nuthall, Greasley, Brewhouse Yard. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Doncaster, Stroud and South Holland.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Chappell is 8,694 in 1999. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 60.3%.

1881 census count

5,044

Ranked #883

Modern count

8,084

2016, ranked #817

Peak year

1999

8,694 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Chappell had 5,044 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #883 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 8,084 in 2016, ranked #817.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 8,405 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Rural Amenity.

Chappell surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Chappell surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Chappell 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 1,800 #1,602
1861 historical 2,508 #1,165
1881 historical 5,044 #883
1891 historical 5,917 #797
1901 historical 7,376 #732
1911 historical 8,405 #595
1997 modern 8,434 #752
1998 modern 8,682 #761
1999 modern 8,694 #767
2000 modern 8,586 #776
2001 modern 8,390 #772
2002 modern 8,570 #770
2003 modern 8,346 #778
2004 modern 8,323 #779
2005 modern 8,111 #789
2006 modern 8,075 #795
2007 modern 8,093 #802
2008 modern 8,089 #804
2009 modern 8,320 #800
2010 modern 8,410 #804
2011 modern 8,345 #802
2012 modern 8,197 #800
2013 modern 8,240 #807
2014 modern 8,275 #810
2015 modern 8,164 #812
2016 modern 8,084 #817

Geography

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Where Chappells are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff, London parishes, Lenton, Radford, Papplewick, Nuthall, Greasley, Brewhouse Yard and Manchester. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Doncaster, Stroud, South Holland, South Kesteven and West Lindsey. 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 Lenton, Radford, Papplewick, Nuthall, Greasley, Brewhouse Yard Nottinghamshire
5 Manchester Lancashire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Doncaster 003 Doncaster
2 Stroud 015 Stroud
3 South Holland 005 South Holland
4 South Kesteven 003 South Kesteven
5 West Lindsey 001 West Lindsey

Forenames

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First names often paired with Chappell

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Chappell

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

Chappell is most concentrated in decile 7 for access to healthy assets and hazards. This places the surname near the middle of the scale.

Lower deciles point towards weaker access to healthy assets or stronger exposure to local hazards. Higher deciles point towards stronger access and fewer hazards.

7
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Chappell falls in decile 7 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.

7
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

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

Meaning and origin of Chappell

The surname Chappell is believed to have originated in England during the medieval period. It is a locational name derived from various places named Chapel or Chapelle, which were named after chapels or small churches located in those areas. The name can be traced back to the Old French word "chapele," meaning a small church or sanctuary.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Chappell can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it is spelled as "Chapele." This historical record suggests that the name was already established in England by the late 11th century.

In the 13th century, the name appears in various forms, such as Chapell, Chappell, and Chapelle, in records from counties like Somerset, Gloucestershire, and Oxfordshire. This indicates that the name was well-established in different regions of England during this period.

One notable individual bearing the surname Chappell was John Chappell (c. 1570-1647), an English clergyman and author who served as the Archdeacon of Surrey and wrote several religious works.

Another prominent figure was Edward Chappell (1659-1724), an English churchman and academic who served as the Bishop of Cork and Ross in Ireland. He was also the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cambridge from 1717 to 1718.

In the 18th century, William Chappell (1708-1791) was a renowned English architect and surveyor who designed several notable buildings, including the Shire Hall in Shrewsbury.

The 19th century saw the rise of William Chappell (1809-1888), an English writer and musician who made significant contributions to the study of English folk music and popularized the works of early English composers.

Another notable figure was Sir Francis Leggatt Chantrey Chappell (1859-1935), a British civil engineer and academic who served as the Dean of the Faculty of Science at the University of Bristol.

Throughout its history, the surname Chappell has been associated with various place names, such as Chappel in Essex, Chapel-en-le-Frith in Derbyshire, and Chapeltown in Yorkshire, among others. These place names reflect the locational origin of the surname and its connection to chapels or small churches.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Chappell families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Chappell 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 857 Chappells recorded in 1881 and an index of 1.76x.

County Total Index
Yorkshire 857 1.76x
Middlesex 590 1.20x
Lancashire 425 0.73x
Somerset 279 3.52x
Gloucestershire 270 2.79x
Surrey 261 1.09x
Kent 240 1.43x
Nottinghamshire 200 3.01x
Cheshire 190 1.75x
Hertfordshire 156 4.59x
Lincolnshire 141 1.79x
Hampshire 132 1.31x
Cornwall 125 2.24x
Wiltshire 111 2.55x
Derbyshire 99 1.28x
Devon 97 0.95x
Glamorgan 94 1.10x
Monmouthshire 93 2.61x
Staffordshire 90 0.54x
Essex 81 0.83x
Northamptonshire 67 1.45x
Bedfordshire 54 2.12x
Sussex 46 0.55x
Warwickshire 41 0.33x
Buckinghamshire 37 1.24x
Norfolk 36 0.48x
Suffolk 33 0.55x
Dorset 29 0.90x
Rutland 29 8.02x
Durham 26 0.18x
Worcestershire 21 0.33x
Cambridgeshire 14 0.45x
Northumberland 14 0.19x
Leicestershire 10 0.18x
Shropshire 9 0.21x
Berkshire 8 0.22x
Pembrokeshire 8 0.51x
Royal Navy 8 1.36x
Carmarthenshire 7 0.34x
Aberdeenshire 6 0.13x
Brecknockshire 4 0.41x
Oxfordshire 4 0.13x
Channel Islands 2 0.14x
Herefordshire 2 0.10x
Kirkcudbrightshire 2 0.28x
Cumberland 1 0.02x
Denbighshire 1 0.05x

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 77 Chappells recorded in 1881 and an index of 1.94x.

Place Total Index
St Pancras London 77 1.94x
Lambeth 75 1.75x
Barnsley 63 12.51x
Manchester 61 2.32x
Deptford St Paul 57 4.40x
Islington London 55 1.15x
Hawkesbury 48 145.94x
Horbury 43 50.35x
Ossett Cum Gawthorpe 40 22.93x
Leeds 39 1.41x
Brightside Bierlow 38 3.97x
Hoyland Swaine 38 300.40x
Hackney London 37 1.34x
Stockport 36 6.43x
Camberwell 34 1.08x
Bristol St George 33 7.38x
Salford 33 1.92x
Bermondsey 32 2.18x
Hornsey 32 5.14x
Paddington London 32 1.77x
Stoke Damerel 32 4.46x
Walcot 32 7.58x
Newington 31 1.70x
St Marylebone London 31 1.18x
St Woollos 31 7.80x
Lyncombe Widcombe 30 14.45x
Mile End Old Town London 30 2.86x
Shoreditch London 30 1.40x
Ecclesfield 29 8.10x
Pinchbeck 29 57.43x
Lee 28 11.47x
Ware 28 28.76x
Portsea 27 1.36x
Macclesfield 26 5.38x
Stoke Upon Trent 26 1.47x
Huddersfield 25 3.51x
Sawbridgeworth 25 48.62x
Cardiff St Mary 24 5.08x
Ecclesall Bierlow 24 2.42x
Hulme 24 1.97x
Bethnal Green London 23 1.07x
Buxton 23 35.23x
Doncaster 23 6.45x
Nottingham St Mary 23 1.34x
Westport St Mary 22 69.69x
Bedminster 21 2.82x
Glossop Dale 21 5.81x
Heaton Norris 21 6.31x
Malmesbury St Paul 21 56.03x
Aston 20 0.58x
Batley 20 4.31x
Bridgewater 20 9.29x
Clifton 20 4.09x
Ashton Under Lyne 19 1.49x
Enfield 19 5.88x
Greenwich 19 2.42x
Sutton In Macclesfield 19 16.83x
Edmonton 18 4.53x
Keynsham 18 31.60x
Pendleton In Salford 18 2.58x
Sheffield 18 1.16x
Newcastle Higher 17 29.18x
Radford 17 5.04x
Stogumber 17 81.15x
Binsted 16 41.55x
Brighton 16 0.95x
Cheetham 16 3.67x
Hollinsclough 16 271.65x
Kimberworth 16 5.90x
Rame 16 111.34x
South Kelsey 16 154.29x
St George Hanover Square 16 1.84x
Bristol St James In 15 10.56x
Chesterfield 15 5.19x
Disley Stanley 15 26.79x
Gawsworth 15 151.21x
Little Bolton 15 2.00x
Redenhall 15 50.97x
Swindon 15 4.44x
Teynham 15 49.49x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 318
Sarah 198
Elizabeth 191
Ann 110
Eliza 94
Annie 88
Emma 87
Alice 77
Emily 76
Ellen 67
Jane 67
Martha 58
Hannah 57
Clara 42
Louisa 40
Fanny 37
Edith 36
Harriet 35
Charlotte 34
Florence 34
Ada 32
Lucy 31
Susan 30
Caroline 29
Kate 28
Margaret 23
Catherine 22
Maria 22
Agnes 19
Anne 18
Frances 18
Matilda 16
Elizth. 15
Jessie 15
Rose 15
Minnie 14
Rachel 14
Rebecca 14
Isabella 12
Amelia 11
Harriett 11
Lydia 11
Susannah 10
Ethel 9
Gertrude 9
Lilly 9
Mabel 9
Selina 9
Beatrice 8
Henrietta 8

Top male names

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

Name Count
William 289
John 275
George 207
James 137
Thomas 122
Joseph 108
Charles 107
Henry 94
Alfred 71
Arthur 55
Frederick 53
Albert 51
Edward 50
Samuel 47
Walter 41
Richard 37
Robert 37
Herbert 33
Frank 30
Ernest 28
Fred 23
Edwin 22
Harry 20
Geo. 17
Benjamin 16
Tom 15
Isaac 14
Wm. 14
Daniel 11
David 11
Francis 11
Percy 10
Fredk. 9
Thos. 8
Chas. 7
Fredrick 7
Mark 7
Matthew 7
Sidney 7
Amos 5
Christopher 5
Infant 5
Joe 5
Jonathan 5
Lewis 5
Moses 5
Stephen 5
Sydney 5
Willm. 5
Andrew 4

FAQ

Chappell surname: questions and answers

How common was the Chappell surname in 1881?

In 1881, 5,044 people were recorded with the Chappell surname. That placed it at #883 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Chappell surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 8,084 in 2016. That gives Chappell a modern rank of #817.

What does the Chappell surname mean?

An occupational surname referring to a clergyman or someone who worked in a chapel.

What does the Chappell map show?

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