NameCensus.

UK surname

Cockcroft

A locative surname derived from an area with a croft or small enclosed field near a cock or woodcock habitat.

In the 1881 census there were 857 people recorded with the Cockcroft surname, ranking it #4,415 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 887, ranked #6,366, down from #4,415 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Rochdale, Bradford and Halifax. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Calderdale, Burnley and Bradford.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Cockcroft is 1,331 in 1911. Compared with 1881, the name has stayed broadly stable by 3.5%.

1881 census count

857

Ranked #4,415

Modern count

887

2016, ranked #6,366

Peak year

1911

1,331 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Cockcroft had 857 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #4,415 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 887 in 2016, ranked #6,366.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 1,331 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Inner Suburbs and Small Town Living.

Cockcroft surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Cockcroft surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Cockcroft 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 693 #3,765
1861 historical 745 #3,659
1881 historical 857 #4,415
1891 historical 1,134 #3,753
1901 historical 1,076 #4,491
1911 historical 1,331 #3,592
1997 modern 949 #5,725
1998 modern 987 #5,733
1999 modern 993 #5,745
2000 modern 976 #5,809
2001 modern 942 #5,860
2002 modern 945 #5,952
2003 modern 921 #5,975
2004 modern 913 #6,024
2005 modern 881 #6,115
2006 modern 875 #6,169
2007 modern 880 #6,198
2008 modern 889 #6,186
2009 modern 929 #6,096
2010 modern 940 #6,167
2011 modern 938 #6,131
2012 modern 908 #6,212
2013 modern 917 #6,261
2014 modern 926 #6,253
2015 modern 906 #6,302
2016 modern 887 #6,366

Geography

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Where Cockcrofts are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Rochdale, Bradford, Halifax and Prestwich. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Calderdale, Burnley, Bradford and Rochdale. 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 Rochdale Lancashire
2 Bradford Yorkshire, West Riding
3 Halifax Yorkshire, West Riding
4 Prestwich Lancashire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Calderdale 013 Calderdale
2 Burnley 009 Burnley
3 Bradford 032 Bradford
4 Bradford 059 Bradford
5 Rochdale 017 Rochdale

Forenames

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First names often paired with Cockcroft

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Cockcroft

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

Inner Suburbs and Small Town Living

Nationally, the Cockcroft surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Inner Suburbs and Small Town Living, within Suburbanites and Peri-Urbanities. This does not mean every Cockcroft household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

Families with resident dependent children (but not students) are common. Established family groups and White ethnicity predominate, as do individuals born in the UK. They are more likely than the Supergroup average to have been resident in their terraced, semi-detached, or detached houses for more than one year. Levels of multiple car ownership are high. Properties are owned and typically have surplus living space. Associate professionals and administrative occupations are prevalent, and parents are likely to be in middle age or approaching retirement. Educational attainment is above the Supergroup average. Scattered developments and concentrations are found in many small towns.

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

Professional Employment and Family Lifecycles

Group

Inner London Working Professionals

Within London, Cockcroft 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

Cockcroft is most concentrated in decile 2 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.

2
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Cockcroft falls in decile 1 for neighbourhood deprivation. This puts the surname towards the more deprived end of the index.

Decile 1 represents the more deprived end of the scale. Decile 10 represents the less deprived end.

1
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

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

Meaning and origin of Cockcroft

The surname Cockcroft is of English origin, derived from the Old English words "cocc" meaning a small hill or heap, and "croft" meaning a small enclosed field or meadow. It is believed to have originated as a place name referring to a small farm or dwelling located on a hillock or small hill.

The earliest recorded instances of the name can be traced back to the 13th century in various parts of England, particularly in Yorkshire and Lancashire. One of the earliest references is found in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire from 1285, where it appears as "de Cokcroft."

In the Domesday Book, a landmark record of land ownership in England compiled in 1086, there are no direct mentions of the surname Cockcroft. However, there are several entries that may have been precursors to the name, such as "Coccrinc" and "Cochesfeld."

The surname Cockcroft has been associated with several notable individuals throughout history. One of the earliest was Thomas Cockcroft (c. 1540-1610), an English clergyman and theologian who served as the rector of Nether Peover in Cheshire.

Another prominent figure was John Cockcroft (1833-1908), a British industrialist and philanthropist who founded Cockcroft's Lace Works in Nottingham. His grandson, Sir John Douglas Cockcroft (1897-1967), was a renowned physicist who shared the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1951 for his pioneering work on the splitting of the atomic nucleus.

In the 16th century, the surname was sometimes spelled as "Cokcraft" or "Cokcroft," as evidenced by records from the parish of Rochdale in Lancashire. Additionally, variations of the name existed, such as "Cockroft" and "Cockcroft," which were likely influenced by regional dialects and spelling preferences.

Other notable individuals with the surname Cockcroft include Sir Evan Cockcroft (1892-1967), a British civil servant and diplomat, and Jonathan Cockcroft (born 1976), a Canadian actor and screenwriter.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Cockcroft families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Cockcroft 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 475 Cockcrofts recorded in 1881 and an index of 5.73x.

County Total Index
Yorkshire 475 5.73x
Lancashire 314 3.17x
Durham 17 0.68x
Cheshire 10 0.54x
Bedfordshire 8 1.85x
Westmorland 6 3.27x
Middlesex 5 0.06x
Lincolnshire 4 0.30x
Sussex 4 0.28x
Derbyshire 3 0.23x
Northumberland 3 0.24x
Surrey 3 0.07x
Cornwall 2 0.21x
Dorset 1 0.18x
Leicestershire 1 0.11x
Warwickshire 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. Allerton in Yorkshire leads with 98 Cockcrofts recorded in 1881 and an index of 928.03x.

Place Total Index
Allerton 98 928.03x
Castleton 53 53.50x
Wadsworth 40 296.74x
Stansfield 33 108.27x
Heptonstall 26 223.75x
Langfield 24 165.63x
Spotland 24 21.76x
Manningham 22 21.56x
Oldham 21 6.56x
Bradford 19 9.47x
Northowram 16 27.54x
Wardleworth 16 28.22x
Keighley 15 16.99x
Newchurch 15 18.48x
Blatchinworth 13 57.55x
Chorlton On Medlock 12 7.61x
Gorton 12 12.87x
Manchester 12 2.69x
Butterworth 11 45.51x
Colne 11 37.23x
Sowerby In Halifax 11 40.61x
Clayton 10 49.33x
Crompton 10 35.40x
Leeds 10 2.14x
Hunslet 9 6.97x
Thornton In Bradford 9 32.63x
Todmorden Walsden 9 33.86x
Bedford St Peter 8 71.17x
Haslingden 8 19.47x
Hulme 8 3.86x
Marton 8 121.21x
Bowling 7 8.53x
Bradford 7 15.08x
Chadderton 7 14.43x
Longwood 7 52.43x
Midgley 7 79.28x
Mirfield 7 15.39x
North Bierley 7 15.65x
Pontefract 7 39.24x
Barrow In Furness 6 4.45x
Elland Cum Greetland 6 16.08x
Ferry Fryston 6 185.76x
Glass Houghton 6 200.00x
Heap 6 11.40x
Kirkland 6 153.06x
Rishworth 6 188.68x
Ashton Under Lyne 5 2.31x
Carnforth 5 91.74x
Cornforth 5 68.31x
Dringhouses 5 373.13x
Huddersfield 5 4.14x
Masham 5 163.40x
Methley 5 42.88x
Norland 5 87.87x
Pendlebury 5 23.88x
Sheraton With Hulam 5 943.40x
Bowdon 4 54.64x
Bramley In Bramley 4 12.61x
Brighton 4 1.41x
Eston 4 22.17x
Salford 4 1.37x
Ardwick 3 3.35x
Bingley 3 5.69x
Calverley Cum Farsley 3 12.76x
Camberwell 3 0.56x
Clee With Weelsby 3 10.25x
Farnworth 3 5.05x
Halifax 3 2.47x
Hipperholme Cum 3 8.24x
Hurworth 3 68.81x
Jesmond 3 17.14x
Lancaster 3 5.08x
Mickleover 3 74.26x
Normanton 3 12.05x
Runcorn 3 7.05x
Skelmanthorpe 3 33.56x
Catterick 2 107.53x
Cowpe Lench Newhall Hey 2 18.87x
Middleham 2 85.47x
St Pancras London 2 0.30x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 69
Sarah 48
Annie 24
Elizabeth 21
Alice 19
Hannah 19
Ann 14
Jane 13
Emily 12
Martha 12
Emma 9
Clara 8
Eliza 8
Margaret 6
Ada 5
Betty 4
Ellen 4
Grace 4
Harriet 4
Lavinia 4
Maria 4
Bertha 3
Betsy 3
Catherine 3
Elizth. 3
Fanny 3
Florence 3
Matilda 3
Nancy 3
Susannah 3
Susey 3
Amy 2
Edith 2
Ethel 2
Lilly 2
Lily 2
Louisa 2
Lucy 2
Margery 2
Margt. 2
Maud 2
Minnie 2
Ruth 2
Caroline 1
Carry 1
Cate 1
Elizth.Ann 1
Ella 1
Emmaline 1
Zillah 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
John 57
William 50
James 32
Thomas 22
Henry 20
George 15
Joseph 14
Herbert 12
Charles 11
Albert 9
Samuel 9
Walter 9
Frank 8
Harry 8
Wm. 7
Edwin 6
Abraham 5
Arthur 5
Fred 5
Alfred 4
Benjamin 4
Jonas 4
Oliver 4
Richard 4
David 3
Edward 3
Fredrick 3
Sam 3
Smith 3
Bethel 2
Crossley 2
Daniel 2
Frederick 2
Harold 2
Isaac 2
Jesse 2
Jim 2
Job 2
Macleod 2
Percy 2
Robert 2
Aquila 1
Burdett 1
Ebenezer 1
Eber 1
Edgar 1
Eli 1
Ely 1
Gregory 1
Wright 1

FAQ

Cockcroft surname: questions and answers

How common was the Cockcroft surname in 1881?

In 1881, 857 people were recorded with the Cockcroft surname. That placed it at #4,415 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Cockcroft surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 887 in 2016. That gives Cockcroft a modern rank of #6,366.

What does the Cockcroft surname mean?

A locative surname derived from an area with a croft or small enclosed field near a cock or woodcock habitat.

What does the Cockcroft map show?

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