NameCensus.

UK surname

Checkley

A locational surname derived from a place named Checkley, likely in England.

In the 1881 census there were 551 people recorded with the Checkley surname, ranking it #6,263 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 867, ranked #6,471, down from #6,263 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to London parishes, Northampton St Giles, Northampton St Sepulchre, Northampton Priory and Napton-on-the-Hill. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Cherwell, Newark and Sherwood and Coventry.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Checkley is 984 in 1998. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 57.4%.

1881 census count

551

Ranked #6,263

Modern count

867

2016, ranked #6,471

Peak year

1998

984 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Checkley had 551 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #6,263 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 867 in 2016, ranked #6,471.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 844 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Challenged Communities.

Checkley surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Checkley surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Checkley 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 487 #5,127
1861 historical 398 #6,441
1881 historical 551 #6,263
1891 historical 582 #6,560
1901 historical 756 #5,902
1911 historical 844 #5,255
1997 modern 939 #5,771
1998 modern 984 #5,747
1999 modern 978 #5,807
2000 modern 961 #5,878
2001 modern 932 #5,905
2002 modern 941 #5,977
2003 modern 896 #6,110
2004 modern 896 #6,107
2005 modern 865 #6,220
2006 modern 880 #6,138
2007 modern 871 #6,253
2008 modern 877 #6,258
2009 modern 903 #6,247
2010 modern 914 #6,316
2011 modern 908 #6,281
2012 modern 874 #6,391
2013 modern 883 #6,442
2014 modern 896 #6,394
2015 modern 873 #6,463
2016 modern 867 #6,471

Geography

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Where Checkleys are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around London parishes, Northampton St Giles, Northampton St Sepulchre, Northampton Priory, Napton-on-the-Hill, Cropredy and Leamington Priors. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Cherwell, Newark and Sherwood, Coventry and Rugby. 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 3
2 Northampton St Giles, Northampton St Sepulchre, Northampton Priory Northamptonshire
3 Napton-on-the-Hill Warwickshire
4 Cropredy Oxfordshire
5 Leamington Priors Warwickshire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Cherwell 009 Cherwell
2 Newark and Sherwood 009 Newark and Sherwood
3 Coventry 007 Coventry
4 Newark and Sherwood 011 Newark and Sherwood
5 Rugby 002 Rugby

Forenames

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First names often paired with Checkley

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Checkley

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

Baseline UK

Group

Challenged Communities

Nationally, the Checkley surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Challenged Communities, within Baseline UK. This does not mean every Checkley household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

Residents of these neighbourhoods typically live in households with dependent children, and there are fewer-than-average residents of normal retirement age or over. Identification with ethnic minorities, particularly Black, or Mixed or Multiple ethnicities is common. The rate of Christian religious affiliation is low. Housing predominantly consists of semi-detached houses, along with a significant number of terraced properties and flats. Overcrowded social housing is common, and private renting occurs at average UK levels. Those in employment work mainly in caring leisure and other services; process, plant and machine operation; or elementary occupations. Unemployment is high, and few individuals have degree level qualifications. Many of these neighbourhoods occur in commuter towns or less accessible areas of larger towns and cities.

Wider pattern

This Supergroup exemplifies the broad base to the UK’s social structure, encompassing as it does the average or modal levels of many neighbourhood characteristics, including all housing tenures, a range of levels of educational attainment and religious affiliations, and a variety of pre-retirement age structures. Yet, in combination, these mixes are each distinctive of the parts of the UK. Overall, terraced houses and flats are the most prevalent, as is employment in intermediate or low-skilled occupations. However, this Supergroup is also characterised by above average levels of unemployment and lower levels of use of English as the main language. Many neighbourhoods occur in south London and the UK’s other major urban centres.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Professional Employment and Family Lifecycles

Group

Inner London Working Professionals

Within London, Checkley is most associated with areas classed as Inner London Working Professionals, part of Professional Employment and Family Lifecycles. 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 primarily Inner London neighbourhoods are more densely populated than the Supergroup average. Residents have a younger over-all age profile than the Supergroup as a whole, and are less likely to be owner occupiers. Full time employment is more common than elsewhere in the Supergroup and multiple car ownership is uncommon. Chinese and non-EU-born European migrants are less in evidence than elsewhere in the Supergroup.

Wider London pattern

These neighbourhoods house people of all ages, predominantly of White British or European extraction. Resident turnover is low. Religious affiliation is less common than average and tends to be Christian if expressed. Homeownership, typically of terraced houses, is common but use of the social rented sector is not. Employment is typically in professional, managerial and associate professional or technical occupations. There are few full-time students. Level 4 qualifications are common. More households lack dependent children than have them which, considered alongside low levels of crowding and over-all age structure, indicates that many households may be post child-rearing and in late middle age. Incidence of disability is low, as is residence in communal establishments.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Checkley is most concentrated in decile 5 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.

5
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Checkley 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 Checkley is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of 50-60 mbit/s.

The scale below places that band in context, from slower local download bands through to faster ones.

8
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - British

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

Meaning and origin of Checkley

The surname Checkley has its origins in England, where it first emerged in the late 12th century. The name is derived from the Old English words "cec," meaning oak, and "leah," meaning a clearing or meadow, indicating that the original bearers of the name lived near an oak meadow or clearing.

One of the earliest known references to the surname Checkley can be found in the Hundred Rolls of 1273, a census-like record compiled during the reign of King Edward I. The Hundred Rolls mention a Richard de Chekkeleye, who resided in Staffordshire.

By the 14th century, the name had evolved to its more modern spelling of Checkley. In the Lay Subsidy Rolls of 1327, a tax record from the reign of King Edward III, there is an entry for a John de Chekeley in Staffordshire.

The Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of landholdings compiled in 1086 under the orders of William the Conqueror, does not contain any direct references to the surname Checkley. However, it does mention several places with similar names, such as Checkley in Staffordshire and Checkley Wood in Cheshire, suggesting that the name had its roots in these locations.

During the 14th and 15th centuries, the Checkley name was predominantly concentrated in the counties of Staffordshire, Cheshire, and Shropshire, with various branches of the family owning estates and lands in these areas.

Notable individuals with the surname Checkley include:

1. Thomas Checkley (1675-1744), a British colonial clergyman and polemicist who was involved in controversies related to religious freedom and freedom of the press in Massachusetts.

2. John Checkley (1649-1720), an English theologian and author who served as the rector of Fittleton in Wiltshire.

3. Sir Ralph Checkley (1540-1608), an English landowner and Member of Parliament for Staffordshire in 1586.

4. John Checkley (1662-1738), a wealthy merchant and landowner from Staffordshire who served as the High Sheriff of Staffordshire in 1716.

5. William Checkley (1598-1670), an English lawyer and judge who served as a Justice of the Court of Common Pleas from 1654 to 1660.

While the surname Checkley has its roots in England, particularly in the Midlands and surrounding counties, it has since spread to other parts of the world through emigration and migration patterns.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Checkley families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Checkley 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. Warwickshire leads with 177 Checkleys recorded in 1881 and an index of 13.03x.

County Total Index
Warwickshire 177 13.03x
Northamptonshire 77 15.20x
Oxfordshire 59 17.74x
Middlesex 50 0.93x
Lincolnshire 26 3.02x
Nottinghamshire 23 3.17x
Yorkshire 20 0.37x
Derbyshire 18 2.14x
Leicestershire 18 3.01x
Buckinghamshire 17 5.22x
Staffordshire 15 0.83x
Kent 13 0.71x
Worcestershire 12 1.71x
Bedfordshire 9 3.23x
Surrey 7 0.27x
Berkshire 3 0.74x
Dorset 3 0.85x
Lancashire 3 0.05x
Cheshire 2 0.17x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Aston in Warwickshire leads with 31 Checkleys recorded in 1881 and an index of 8.29x.

Place Total Index
Aston 31 8.29x
Birmingham 24 5.30x
Kenilworth 16 209.15x
Napton On Hill 15 920.25x
St Pancras London 15 3.46x
Foleshill 14 97.97x
Warwick St Nicholas 14 140.56x
Northampton Priory St 13 42.78x
Derby St Werburgh 10 20.54x
Kings Norton 10 15.86x
Mollington 10 1960.78x
Charwelton 8 2352.94x
Daventry 8 111.73x
Farnborough 8 298.51x
Leamington 8 88.89x
Lubenham 8 733.95x
Morton Pinkney 8 975.61x
Paddington London 8 4.04x
St Swithin Lincoln 8 59.08x
Bicester Market End 7 114.57x
Bilton Cum Harrogate 7 38.36x
Coventry Holy Trinity 7 17.26x
Finedon 7 157.66x
Handsworth 7 15.63x
Leicester St Margaret 7 4.81x
Newark Upon Trent 7 26.83x
Northampton St Sepulchre 7 27.16x
Aspley Guise 6 224.72x
Cropredy 6 594.06x
Fulbeck 6 504.20x
Kidlington 6 233.46x
Neithrop 6 53.67x
South Newington 6 1000.00x
St Luke London 6 6.95x
Stockton 6 472.44x
Upper Boddington 6 1090.91x
Brightside Bierlow 5 4.78x
Claverdon 5 471.70x
Frankton 5 1250.00x
Hanslope 5 170.65x
Solihull 5 51.23x
St Marylebone London 5 1.74x
Woodford Cum Membris 5 462.96x
Biddlesdon 4 1739.13x
Bolsover 4 94.56x
Farnsfield 4 208.33x
Gedling 4 333.33x
Harbury 4 181.82x
Louth 4 20.27x
Mile End Old Town London 4 3.49x
Rushall 4 37.38x
Sheffield 4 2.35x
Tyringham 4 1176.47x
Barkby 3 258.62x
Boston 3 11.49x
Bourton 3 326.09x
Bromley 3 10.71x
Butlers Marston 3 612.24x
Chapel Ascote 3 30000.00x
Cubbington 3 165.75x
Ecclesfield 3 7.67x
Fledborough 3 1500.00x
Islington London 3 0.57x
Moulton 3 106.38x
Ormskirk 3 24.53x
Oxford St Thomas 3 19.33x
Portland 3 15.79x
Radstone 3 1428.57x
Reigate Foreign 3 10.56x
Unstone 3 90.63x
Allesley 2 111.73x
Burton Upon Trent 2 4.70x
Coddington 2 208.33x
Enstone 2 98.52x
Girton 2 714.29x
Hook Norton 2 87.72x
Husborne Crawley 2 227.27x
Leamington Priors 2 5.99x
Roade 2 150.38x
White Waltham 2 132.45x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 34
Elizabeth 31
Sarah 25
Ann 20
Annie 12
Emma 9
Hannah 8
Fanny 7
Louisa 7
Alice 6
Clara 6
Eliza 6
Jane 6
Ada 5
Catherine 5
Ellen 5
Rebecca 5
Caroline 4
Emily 4
Florence 4
Harriet 4
Agnes 3
Amy 3
Edith 3
Kate 3
Susan 3
Susanna 3
Anne 2
Charlotte 2
Harriett 2
Lillian 2
Lizzie 2
Lydia 2
Maria 2
Rose 2
Selina 2
Anna 1
Carloine 1
Eleanor 1
Elisa 1
Elizebath 1
Eva 1
Katey 1
Katherine 1
Kezia 1
Laura 1
Letitia 1
Lilli 1
Lucy 1
Susannah 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
William 41
John 38
George 28
Thomas 27
Charles 14
Henry 11
Alfred 9
James 8
Richard 8
Edward 7
Joseph 7
Frederick 5
Walter 5
Albert 4
Frank 4
Harry 4
Jonas 4
Francis 3
Hawtin 3
Arthur 2
Benjamin 2
Daniel 2
Herbert 2
Samuel 2
Alfd. 1
Clement 1
Edwd. 1
Enderby 1
Ernest 1
Fred. 1
Hattil 1
Hawlin 1
Hawten 1
Infant 1
Jno. 1
Job 1
Jonathan 1
Mark 1
Oliver 1
Ralph 1
Raymond 1
Reuben 1
Richd. 1
Robert 1
Sam 1
Silas 1
Stephen 1
Thos. 1
Tom 1
Willm.Ed. 1

FAQ

Checkley surname: questions and answers

How common was the Checkley surname in 1881?

In 1881, 551 people were recorded with the Checkley surname. That placed it at #6,263 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Checkley surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 867 in 2016. That gives Checkley a modern rank of #6,471.

What does the Checkley surname mean?

A locational surname derived from a place named Checkley, likely in England.

What does the Checkley map show?

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