NameCensus.

UK surname

Clouston

A locational surname originating from a place name derived from the Gaelic word cluan, meaning "meadow" or "pasture."

In the 1881 census there were 400 people recorded with the Clouston surname, ranking it #7,974 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 402, ranked #11,837, down from #7,974 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Gateshead, Tynemouth (Chirton, Preston, Murton, Whitley, Monkseaton), Earsdon (Earsdon) and Stromness. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include West Mainland, Stromness, Sandwick and Stenness and New Town West.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Clouston is 475 in 1901. Compared with 1881, the name has stayed broadly stable by 0.5%.

1881 census count

400

Ranked #7,974

Modern count

402

2016, ranked #11,837

Peak year

1901

475 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Clouston had 400 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #7,974 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 402 in 2016, ranked #11,837.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 475 in 1901.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Spacious Rural Living.

Clouston surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Clouston surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Clouston 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 273 #8,212
1861 historical 330 #7,721
1881 historical 400 #7,974
1891 historical 438 #8,234
1901 historical 475 #8,373
1911 historical 192 #15,342
1997 modern 408 #10,844
1998 modern 415 #11,061
1999 modern 425 #10,954
2000 modern 418 #11,047
2001 modern 400 #11,229
2002 modern 404 #11,353
2003 modern 378 #11,741
2004 modern 372 #11,886
2005 modern 369 #11,901
2006 modern 366 #12,042
2007 modern 364 #12,237
2008 modern 379 #11,960
2009 modern 388 #12,000
2010 modern 399 #12,018
2011 modern 406 #11,730
2012 modern 392 #11,898
2013 modern 400 #11,915
2014 modern 400 #12,006
2015 modern 399 #11,928
2016 modern 402 #11,837

Geography

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Where Cloustons are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Gateshead, Tynemouth (Chirton, Preston, Murton, Whitley, Monkseaton), Earsdon (Earsdon), Stromness, Birsay and Harray and Firth and Stenness. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to West Mainland, Stromness, Sandwick and Stenness, New Town West, East Mainland and Drylaw. Treat these as concentration signals, not proof that every family line began there.

Top historical parishes

Rank Parish Area
1 Gateshead Durham
2 Tynemouth (Chirton, Preston, Murton, Whitley, Monkseaton), Earsdon (Earsdon) Northumberland
3 Stromness Orkney
4 Birsay and Harray Orkney
5 Firth and Stenness Orkney

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 West Mainland Orkney Islands
2 Stromness, Sandwick and Stenness Orkney Islands
3 New Town West City of Edinburgh
4 East Mainland Orkney Islands
5 Drylaw City of Edinburgh

Forenames

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First names often paired with Clouston

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Clouston

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Clouston, 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 Clouston surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Spacious Rural Living, within Retired Professionals. This does not mean every Clouston 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

Professional Employment and Family Lifecycles

Group

Inner London Working Professionals

Within London, Clouston 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

Clouston is most concentrated in decile 1 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.

1
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

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

Meaning and origin of Clouston

The surname Clouston has its origins in Scotland, with the earliest recorded instances dating back to the 16th century. The name is believed to be derived from the Scottish Gaelic word "cluaran," which means "little valley" or "meadow by a river." It is likely that the Cloustons were originally from a place name that incorporated this Gaelic word.

In the 16th century, the spelling of the name varied widely, with forms such as Clowstoune, Cloustoune, and Cloustoun appearing in historical records. One of the earliest documented instances of the name is in the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland, where a John Cloustoun is mentioned in 1538.

The Cloustons were a prominent family in the Scottish Borders region, particularly in the counties of Berwickshire and Roxburghshire. They held lands and estates in areas such as Crailing and Hownam, and their name can be found in various legal documents and charters from the 16th and 17th centuries.

One notable member of the Clouston family was Sir Thomas Clouston (1557-1624), a Scottish landowner and politician who served as the Lord of Session in the Court of Session. Another prominent figure was Reverend Charles Clouston (1800-1884), a Scottish minister and author who wrote extensively on religious topics.

In the 19th century, the Clouston name spread beyond Scotland as members of the family emigrated to other parts of the British Empire. One such individual was Edward Seacome Clouston (1851-1936), a British physician and psychiatrist who made significant contributions to the field of mental health in Australia.

Sir Alexander Clouston (1829-1901) was a Scottish physician and medical writer who served as the Physician Superintendent of the Royal Edinburgh Asylum for the Insane. He was a pioneer in the humane treatment of mental illness and published several influential works on psychiatry.

Another notable bearer of the Clouston name was Sir Thomas Clouston (1840-1915), a Scottish lawyer and judge who served as the Lord Advocate of Scotland, the highest legal officer in the country.

While the Clouston surname has its roots in Scotland, it has since spread to other parts of the world through migration and immigration. However, its origins can be traced back to the Scottish Gaelic language and the historical presence of the Clouston family in the Scottish Borders region.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Clouston families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Clouston 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. Orkney leads with 286 Cloustons recorded in 1881 and an index of 667.91x.

County Total Index
Orkney 286 667.91x
Northumberland 43 7.43x
Midlothian 17 3.26x
Aberdeenshire 9 2.50x
Lanarkshire 9 0.72x
Middlesex 9 0.23x
Caithness 8 15.01x
Durham 6 0.52x
Surrey 5 0.26x
Cheshire 2 0.23x
Yorkshire 2 0.05x
Berkshire 1 0.34x
Kincardineshire 1 2.11x
Renfrewshire 1 0.33x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Stromness in Orkney leads with 76 Cloustons recorded in 1881 and an index of 2367.60x.

Place Total Index
Stromness 76 2367.60x
Firth Stenness 71 3858.70x
Birsay Harray 35 1125.40x
Orphir 31 2279.41x
Chirton 21 160.18x
St Andrews Deerness 19 844.44x
Hoy Graemsay 13 1625.00x
Sandwick 13 807.45x
North Shields 10 86.51x
Holm 9 629.37x
Aberdeen Old Machar 8 10.63x
Rousay Egilshay 8 536.91x
Thurso 7 84.24x
Chiswick 6 28.21x
Edinburgh St Cuthberts 6 2.86x
Kirkwall St Ola 6 93.60x
Westoe 6 9.14x
Camberwell 5 2.01x
North Leith 5 20.72x
Ratho 5 205.76x
Glasgow 4 1.79x
Barony 3 0.94x
Cross Burness N 3 133.93x
Jesmond 3 36.81x
Seaton Delaval 3 58.94x
Tynemouth 3 9.67x
Claughton With Grange 2 51.15x
Cramlington 2 26.14x
Govan 2 0.64x
Middlesbrough 2 3.98x
Poplar London 2 2.72x
South Ronaldshay 2 45.15x
Buscot 1 204.08x
Drumoak 1 80.65x
Edinburgh St Marys 1 9.86x
Hampstead London 1 1.65x
Nigg 1 25.51x
West Greenock 1 1.85x
Whitley 1 53.48x
Wick 1 5.81x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Emma 4
Mary 4
Isabella 3
Caroline 2
Elizabeth 2
Jane 2
Margaret 2
Ann 1
Catherine 1
Christina 1
Eliatha 1
Frances 1
Francis 1
Isabel 1
Janet 1
Jessie 1
Julia 1
Rebecca 1
Rose 1
Sarah 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
James 4
Joseph 4
Robert 4
William 4
Charles 3
John 3
George 2
Alfred 1
Angus 1
Edward 1
Frederick 1
Henry 1
Horatio 1
Isaac 1
Luke 1
Malcoln 1
Peter 1
Tom 1
Wilkie 1

FAQ

Clouston surname: questions and answers

How common was the Clouston surname in 1881?

In 1881, 400 people were recorded with the Clouston surname. That placed it at #7,974 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Clouston surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 402 in 2016. That gives Clouston a modern rank of #11,837.

What does the Clouston surname mean?

A locational surname originating from a place name derived from the Gaelic word cluan, meaning "meadow" or "pasture."

What does the Clouston map show?

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