NameCensus.

UK surname

Colenso

In the 1881 census there were 129 people recorded with the Colenso surname, ranking it #17,013 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 135, ranked #25,505, down from #17,013 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Wolverhampton, Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff and Illogan. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Cornwall, Cheshire East and South Gloucestershire.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Colenso is 189 in 1901. Compared with 1881, the name has stayed broadly stable by 4.7%.

1881 census count

129

Ranked #17,013

Modern count

135

2016, ranked #25,505

Peak year

1901

189 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Colenso had 129 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #17,013 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 135 in 2016, ranked #25,505.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 189 in 1901.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Rural Amenity.

Colenso surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Colenso surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Colenso 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 114 #15,716
1861 historical 132 #16,957
1881 historical 129 #17,013
1891 historical 138 #19,411
1901 historical 189 #15,684
1911 historical 185 #15,686
1997 modern 136 #22,398
1998 modern 132 #23,394
1999 modern 130 #23,805
2000 modern 130 #23,785
2001 modern 128 #23,665
2002 modern 128 #24,150
2003 modern 137 #22,939
2004 modern 135 #23,326
2005 modern 139 #22,887
2006 modern 130 #24,053
2007 modern 131 #24,282
2008 modern 129 #24,790
2009 modern 128 #25,427
2010 modern 133 #25,379
2011 modern 120 #26,930
2012 modern 131 #25,439
2013 modern 137 #25,149
2014 modern 138 #25,218
2015 modern 134 #25,607
2016 modern 135 #25,505

Geography

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Where Colensos are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Wolverhampton, Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff, Illogan, Breage and Wendron. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Cornwall, Cheshire East, South Gloucestershire and Cheshire West and Chester. 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 Wolverhampton Staffordshire
2 Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff Gloucestershire
3 Illogan Cornwall
4 Breage Cornwall
5 Wendron Cornwall

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Cornwall 067 Cornwall
2 Cheshire East 046 Cheshire East
3 Cornwall 068 Cornwall
4 South Gloucestershire 018 South Gloucestershire
5 Cheshire West and Chester 030 Cheshire West and Chester

Forenames

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First names often paired with Colenso

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Colenso

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

The Greater London Mix

Group

Social Rented Sector Professional Support Workers

Within London, Colenso is most associated with areas classed as Social Rented Sector Professional Support Workers, part of The Greater London Mix. 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 located in Inner London, these neighbourhoods retain a diverse employment structure, with some concentration in associated professional and technical occupations rather than skilled trades or construction. Social renting is more common and levels of homeownership are low. Many residents identify as Black. There is a lower than average rate of marriage or civil partnership, few that are very old (85 or over) and higher than average incidence of disability.

Wider London pattern

A Supergroup embodying London's diversity in many respects, apart from low numbers of residents identifying as of Bangladeshi, Indian, Pakistani or Other (non-Chinese) Asian ethnicity. There is lower than average prevalence of families with dependent children, while there are above average occurrences of never-married individuals and single-person households. The age distribution is skewed towards younger, single residents and couples without children, with many individuals identifying as of mixed or multiple ethnicity. Social rented or private rented housing is slightly more prevalent than average, and many residents live in flats. Individuals typically work in professional and associated roles in public administration, education or health rather than in elementary occupations in agriculture, energy, water, construction or manufacturing. Incidence of students is slightly below average. Individuals declaring no religion are more prevalent than average and non-use of English at home is below average.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Colenso 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

Colenso falls in decile 10 for neighbourhood deprivation. This puts the surname towards the less deprived end of the index.

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

10
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

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

1881 census detail

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Colenso families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Colenso 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. Cornwall leads with 83 Colensos recorded in 1881 and an index of 58.27x.

County Total Index
Cornwall 83 58.27x
Gloucestershire 13 5.27x
Lancashire 6 0.40x
Middlesex 6 0.48x
Devon 5 1.91x
Staffordshire 5 1.18x
Glamorgan 4 1.83x
Hampshire 3 1.16x
Norfolk 2 1.03x
Dorset 1 1.21x
Somerset 1 0.49x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Madron Penzance in Cornwall leads with 29 Colensos recorded in 1881 and an index of 559.85x.

Place Total Index
Madron Penzance 29 559.85x
Bristol St James In 11 303.03x
Helston 10 675.68x
Illogan 8 212.20x
Phillack 8 434.78x
St Clement 7 469.80x
Liverpool 6 6.62x
Bodmin 5 211.86x
Wolverhampton 5 15.31x
Falmouth 4 79.37x
Ystradyfodwg 4 20.81x
Dawlish 3 153.85x
Kensington London 3 4.29x
Ventnor 3 122.45x
Bristol St James St Paul 2 24.30x
Callington 2 240.96x
Cardinham 2 1538.46x
Norwich St Mary In Marsh 2 909.09x
Redruth 2 49.63x
Bideford 1 35.59x
Bridgewater 1 18.18x
Camborne 1 17.04x
Devonport 1 33.22x
Liskeard 1 42.02x
Madron 1 86.96x
Mawgan In Meneage 1 270.27x
Melcombe Regis 1 29.24x
Paddington London 1 2.16x
Paul 1 38.61x
St Gluvias Penryn 1 87.72x
St Mary Magdalen Old Fish 1 2000.00x
St Marylebone London 1 1.49x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Elizabeth 8
Mary 8
Jane 4
Sarah 4
Emily 3
Caroline 2
Clara 2
Eliza 2
Fanny 2
Florence 2
Grace 2
Lydia 2
Margaret 2
Maud 2
Adeline 1
Amanda 1
Ann 1
Annie 1
Beatrice 1
Bessie 1
Elizath. 1
Elizth.J. 1
Ellen 1
Evelina 1
Hannah 1
Honor 1
Isabella 1
Kate 1
Letty 1
Louisa 1
Maria 1
May 1
Rosina 1
Sophia 1
Susan 1
Ursala 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
William 11
John 7
George 5
Edward 4
Richard 4
Thomas 4
Charles 3
Joseph 3
Albert 2
James 2
Samuel 2
Andrew 1
Edwin 1
Ernest 1
Frances 1
Frank 1
Frederick 1
Henry 1
Hugh 1
Ridley 1
Saml. 1
Stephen 1
Thos.Hy. 1
Tom 1
Walter 1
Wm.J. 1

FAQ

Colenso surname: questions and answers

How common was the Colenso surname in 1881?

In 1881, 129 people were recorded with the Colenso surname. That placed it at #17,013 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Colenso surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 135 in 2016. That gives Colenso a modern rank of #25,505.

What does the Colenso map show?

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