NameCensus.

UK surname

Churchyard

In the 1881 census there were 426 people recorded with the Churchyard surname, ranking it #7,620 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 347, ranked #13,259, down from #7,620 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Hoxne, London parishes and Lambeth. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Suffolk Coastal.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Churchyard is 478 in 1901. Compared with 1881, the name has fallen by 18.5%.

1881 census count

426

Ranked #7,620

Modern count

347

2016, ranked #13,259

Peak year

1901

478 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Churchyard had 426 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #7,620 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 347 in 2016, ranked #13,259.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 478 in 1901.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Spacious Rural Living.

Churchyard surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Churchyard surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Churchyard 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 348 #6,765
1861 historical 332 #7,673
1881 historical 426 #7,620
1891 historical 472 #7,778
1901 historical 478 #8,329
1911 historical 471 #8,201
1997 modern 388 #11,255
1998 modern 385 #11,698
1999 modern 385 #11,771
2000 modern 385 #11,738
2001 modern 377 #11,723
2002 modern 391 #11,627
2003 modern 378 #11,741
2004 modern 385 #11,607
2005 modern 378 #11,692
2006 modern 372 #11,878
2007 modern 377 #11,900
2008 modern 374 #12,086
2009 modern 366 #12,534
2010 modern 360 #12,953
2011 modern 366 #12,667
2012 modern 350 #12,965
2013 modern 355 #13,045
2014 modern 360 #13,006
2015 modern 356 #13,009
2016 modern 347 #13,259

Geography

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Where Churchyards are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Hoxne, London parishes, Lambeth, Bruisyard and Lakenham , Eaton St Andrew, Town Close, St Stephen, St Peter Mancroft, St Giles, St Andrew, St John. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Suffolk Coastal. 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 Hoxne Suffolk
2 London parishes London 3
3 Lambeth London (South Districts)
4 Bruisyard Suffolk
5 Lakenham , Eaton St Andrew, Town Close, St Stephen, St Peter Mancroft, St Giles, St Andrew, St John Norfolk

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Suffolk Coastal 004 Suffolk Coastal
2 Suffolk Coastal 003 Suffolk Coastal
3 Suffolk Coastal 005 Suffolk Coastal
4 Suffolk Coastal 007 Suffolk Coastal
5 Suffolk Coastal 012 Suffolk Coastal

Forenames

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First names often paired with Churchyard

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Churchyard

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

Retired Professionals

Group

Spacious Rural Living

Nationally, the Churchyard surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Spacious Rural Living, within Retired Professionals. This does not mean every Churchyard household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

These predominantly ageing households typically have no resident dependent children. Most are owner-occupiers and live in detached houses in low density residential developments (although renting is more common than in the rest of the Supergroup). White ethnicity predominates. Residents are typically beyond retirement age but those still in work have managerial, professional or skilled trade occupations. White ethnicity and Christian religious affiliation predominate. Neighbourhoods are located throughout rural UK.

Wider pattern

Typically married but no longer with resident dependent children, these well-educated households either remain working in their managerial, professional, administrative or other skilled occupations, or are retired from them – the modal individual age is beyond normal retirement age. Underoccupied detached and semi-detached properties predominate, and unpaid care is more prevalent than reported disability. The prevalence of this Supergroup outside most urban conurbations indicates that rural lifestyles prevail, typically sustained by using two or more cars per household.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Young Families and Mainstream Employment

Group

Terraced and Semi-Detached Suburbs

Within London, Churchyard is most associated with areas classed as Terraced and Semi-Detached Suburbs, part of Young Families and Mainstream Employment. 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 concentrated in suburban areas, these terraced and semi-detached developments are less overcrowded than the Supergroup average, and resident households are more likely to own two or more cars. There are fewer residents aged 25-44, and a larger share of residents employed in administrative and secretarial occupations. Residents are more likely to have been born in the UK, less likely to have been born in the EU or Africa, and much less likely to self-identify as Bangladeshi.

Wider London pattern

Many families in these neighbourhoods have young children. Housing is principally in the social rented sector, in terraced or semi-detached units. While over-all residential densities are low, overcrowding is also prevalent locally. Residents are drawn from a range of ethnic minorities, with many identifying as Black and above average numbers born in Africa. Numbers identifying as of Chinese, Indian or White ethnicity are below average. Levels of proficiency in English are below average. Levels of separation or divorce and incidence of disability are both above average. Education is typically limited to Level 1, 2, or apprenticeship qualifications. Few residents work in professional or managerial occupations but the employment structure is otherwise diverse: it includes skilled trades, caring, leisure and other service occupations, sales and customer service occupations, construction, and work as process, plant, and machine operatives.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Churchyard 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

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

1881 census detail

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Churchyard families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Churchyard 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. Suffolk leads with 213 Churchyards recorded in 1881 and an index of 42.08x.

County Total Index
Suffolk 213 42.08x
Middlesex 60 1.44x
Norfolk 56 8.76x
Surrey 30 1.48x
Essex 21 2.56x
Staffordshire 10 0.71x
Yorkshire 7 0.17x
Monmouthshire 5 1.66x
Worcestershire 5 0.92x
Brecknockshire 4 4.81x
Sussex 4 0.57x
Cambridgeshire 3 1.14x
Northumberland 3 0.49x
Bedfordshire 1 0.46x
Gloucestershire 1 0.12x
Kent 1 0.07x
Lanarkshire 1 0.07x
Somerset 1 0.15x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Ipswich St Margaret in Suffolk leads with 20 Churchyards recorded in 1881 and an index of 116.48x.

Place Total Index
Ipswich St Margaret 20 116.48x
Bruisyard 18 5294.12x
Aldeburgh 15 500.00x
Hoxne 15 1041.67x
Heigham 14 40.83x
Lambeth 13 3.59x
Wortham 12 888.89x
West Ham 11 6.07x
Eye 10 305.81x
Fulham London 10 16.59x
Ipswich St Mathew 10 70.52x
Islington London 10 2.48x
St Pancras London 10 2.99x
Thetford St Peter 10 595.24x
Harborne 9 20.02x
Eyke 8 1481.48x
Thrandeston 8 2000.00x
Benhall 7 786.52x
Norwich St Clement 7 94.47x
Oakley 7 1794.87x
Wickham Market 7 334.93x
Wimbledon 7 30.80x
Clapham 6 11.55x
Woodbridge 6 92.74x
Yoxford 6 397.35x
Barnham Broom 5 793.65x
Chelsea London 5 3.99x
Ipswich St Lawrence 5 724.64x
Itton 5 2173.91x
Kensington London 5 2.16x
Kings Norton 5 10.28x
Acomb 4 186.05x
Cromer 4 176.21x
Debenham 4 238.10x
Friston 4 714.29x
Knodishall 4 625.00x
Llanelly 4 40.24x
Ramsey 4 370.37x
Thorndon All Sts 4 439.56x
Tunstall 4 454.55x
Wapping London 4 126.18x
Yaxley 4 754.72x
Kirton 3 333.33x
Leigh 3 105.26x
Long Melford 3 63.83x
Longbenton 3 11.45x
Melbourn 3 117.19x
Norwich St Andrew 3 275.23x
Norwich St George Colegate 3 129.31x
Southowram 3 23.87x
St Marylebone London 3 1.35x
Stradbroke 3 175.44x
Trimley St Mary 3 500.00x
Colchester St Botolph 2 28.65x
Diss 2 36.50x
Enfield 2 7.34x
Felsham 2 425.53x
Holton 2 307.69x
Horsted Keynes 2 122.70x
Mile End Old Town London 2 2.26x
Norwich St Augustine 2 77.52x
Orford 2 122.70x
Palgrave 2 188.68x
Preston 2 16.35x
Pulham St Mary Magdalen 2 125.00x
Shelfanger 2 408.16x
St George Hanover Square 2 2.73x
Streatham 2 6.49x
Syleham 2 500.00x
Thetford St Cuthbert 2 86.58x
Wetheringsett Cum 2 136.05x
Blythburgh 1 85.47x
Bow London 1 1.89x
Framlingham 1 27.86x
Halesworth 1 27.86x
Hampstead London 1 1.55x
Hampton London 1 14.64x
Shire Hall Yard 1 232.56x
Stotfold 1 24.27x
Tidenham 1 79.37x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 31
Elizabeth 13
Emma 11
Ellen 10
Sarah 10
Anna 7
Jane 7
Caroline 6
Eliza 6
Florence 6
Louisa 6
Hannah 5
Maria 5
Agnes 4
Alice 4
Annie 4
Edith 4
Harriet 4
Susan 4
Charlotte 3
Emily 3
Ethel 3
Gertrude 3
Julia 3
Allice 2
Ann 2
Catherine 2
Fanny 2
Laura 2
Minnie 2
Rachel 2
Ruth 2
Sivia 2
Sophia 2
Amelia 1
Bessie 1
Betsey 1
Blanch 1
Carrie 1
Elenor 1
Elisabeth 1
Emiline 1
Eugenia 1
Evelyn 1
Harriett 1
Helen 1
Honor 1
Jemima 1
Kate 1
Katherine 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
William 23
George 21
James 17
Henry 16
John 14
Charles 12
Walter 7
Robert 6
Thomas 6
Alfred 5
Arthur 5
Frederick 5
Harry 5
Isaac 5
Albert 4
David 4
Ernest 4
Frederic 3
Edgar 2
Edward 2
Fredk. 2
Leonard 2
Oliver 2
Alexander 1
Archibald 1
Artur 1
Austin 1
Benjamin 1
Bernard 1
Chas. 1
Daniel 1
Frank 1
Fred 1
Fredrick 1
Geo. 1
Harold 1
Horace 1
Hy. 1
Jonas 1
Joseph 1
Lenoard 1
Lewis 1
Mark 1
Matthew 1
Philip 1
Robt. 1
Saml. 1
Samuel 1
Wallace 1

FAQ

Churchyard surname: questions and answers

How common was the Churchyard surname in 1881?

In 1881, 426 people were recorded with the Churchyard surname. That placed it at #7,620 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Churchyard surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 347 in 2016. That gives Churchyard a modern rank of #13,259.

What does the Churchyard map show?

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