NameCensus.

UK surname

Conway

Derived from the Welsh place name meaning "holy water," likely referring to a stream or river near a church.

In the 1881 census there were 5,592 people recorded with the Conway surname, ranking it #792 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 14,085, ranked #448, up from #792 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to London parishes, Gateshead and Edinburgh. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Copeland, Darnley East and Northumberland.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Conway is 14,282 in 2010. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 151.9%.

1881 census count

5,592

Ranked #792

Modern count

14,085

2016, ranked #448

Peak year

2010

14,282 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Conway had 5,592 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #792 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 14,085 in 2016, ranked #448.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 6,797 in 1901.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Established but Challenged.

Conway surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Conway surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Conway 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 2,829 #1,031
1861 historical 3,275 #873
1881 historical 5,592 #792
1891 historical 5,796 #813
1901 historical 6,797 #813
1911 historical 6,094 #845
1997 modern 12,968 #467
1998 modern 13,453 #469
1999 modern 13,671 #465
2000 modern 13,544 #465
2001 modern 13,195 #466
2002 modern 13,492 #466
2003 modern 13,230 #464
2004 modern 13,293 #463
2005 modern 13,253 #457
2006 modern 13,293 #460
2007 modern 13,415 #458
2008 modern 13,505 #459
2009 modern 13,937 #454
2010 modern 14,282 #450
2011 modern 14,031 #453
2012 modern 13,721 #454
2013 modern 14,071 #454
2014 modern 14,168 #453
2015 modern 14,086 #451
2016 modern 14,085 #448

Geography

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Where Conways are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around London parishes, Gateshead, Edinburgh and Manchester. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Copeland, Darnley East, Northumberland, Bolton and Flintshire. 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 1
2 London parishes London 3
3 Gateshead Durham
4 Edinburgh Edinburgh
5 Manchester Lancashire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Copeland 006 Copeland
2 Darnley East Glasgow City
3 Northumberland 006 Northumberland
4 Bolton 033 Bolton
5 Flintshire 004 Flintshire

Forenames

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First names often paired with Conway

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Conway

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

Semi- and Un-Skilled Workforce

Group

Established but Challenged

Nationally, the Conway surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Established but Challenged, within Semi- and Un-Skilled Workforce. This does not mean every Conway household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

Many households in these neighbourhoods comprise separated or divorced single parents with dependent children. Residents are typically born in the UK, and these neighbourhoods have relatively few members of ethnic minorities. The prevalence of children, their parents and those at or above normal retirement age, suggests neighbourhood structures may be long-established. Levels of unpaid care are high, and long-term disability is more common than in the Supergroup as a whole. Use of the social rented sector is common, often in terraced houses. Levels of overcrowding are above the Supergroup average. Unemployment is high, while those in work are employed in elementary occupations such as caring, leisure and customer services. Many residents have low level qualifications. Neighbourhood concentrations of this Group are found in the South Wales Valleys, Belfast, Londonderry and the Central Lowlands of Scotland.

Wider pattern

Living in terraced or semi-detached houses, residents of these neighbourhoods typically lack high levels of education and work in elementary or routine service occupations. Unemployment is above average. Residents are predominantly born in the UK, and residents are also predominantly from ethnic minorities. Social (but not private sector) rented sector housing is common. This Supergroup is found throughout the UK’s conurbations and industrial regions but is also an integral part of smaller towns.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

The Greater London Mix

Group

Social Rented Sector Professional Support Workers

Within London, Conway 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

Conway is most concentrated in decile 10 for access to healthy assets and hazards. This places the surname towards the healthier 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.

10
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Conway 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 Conway 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 - Irish

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

Meaning and origin of Conway

The surname Conway has its origins in Wales, where it emerged in the 13th century. It is derived from the Welsh words "cwn" meaning hound or dog and "gwy" meaning a meadow or valley, thus together meaning "the meadow or valley of the hounds". The name likely referred to a specific geographical location or estate in Wales that was associated with hunting dogs.

The earliest recorded examples of the name can be found in medieval Welsh records and manuscripts. It appears in the "Book of Baglan" from the 14th century, which was a Welsh legal text. The name is also found in the "Extent of Neath" from 1262, which was a survey of landholdings in the region.

One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Sir John Conway, who lived in the late 15th century and was a prominent Welsh landowner. He served as High Sheriff of Caernarvonshire in 1496. Another notable figure was Edward Conway, 1st Viscount Conway, who lived from 1594 to 1655 and was a prominent English politician and military leader during the English Civil War.

In the 17th century, the Conway family established themselves as influential landowners and politicians in Ireland. Edward Conway, 2nd Viscount Conway, born in 1623, was a member of the Irish House of Lords and served as Lord Lieutenant of Antrim. His son, Edward Conway, 3rd Viscount Conway, lived from 1655 to 1683 and was also a member of the Irish House of Lords.

Another notable bearer of the name was Henry Seymour Conway, who lived from 1721 to 1795. He was a British army officer and statesman who served as Secretary of State for the Northern Department and was a prominent figure in the Whig party.

In the literary world, Anne Conway, who lived from 1631 to 1679, was an English philosopher and writer who was one of the first English women to write on the subject of metaphysics. Her work, "The Principles of the Most Ancient and Modern Philosophy", was influential in the development of philosophical thought in the 17th century.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Conway families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Conway 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. Lancashire leads with 1,235 Conways recorded in 1881 and an index of 1.90x.

County Total Index
Lancashire 1,235 1.90x
Middlesex 612 1.12x
Yorkshire 526 0.97x
Lanarkshire 309 1.75x
Durham 277 1.70x
Staffordshire 191 1.03x
Surrey 189 0.71x
Cheshire 182 1.51x
Northumberland 176 2.16x
Kent 126 0.67x
Hampshire 121 1.08x
Renfrewshire 121 2.85x
Dorset 120 3.34x
Angus 105 2.07x
Warwickshire 105 0.76x
Flintshire 86 5.85x
Essex 84 0.78x
Midlothian 84 1.15x
Devon 81 0.71x
Derbyshire 78 0.91x
Glamorgan 76 0.80x
Cumberland 64 1.36x
Somerset 62 0.70x
Nottinghamshire 60 0.81x
Gloucestershire 42 0.39x
Ayrshire 41 1.00x
Shropshire 39 0.82x
Stirlingshire 39 1.93x
Dunbartonshire 30 2.04x
Caernarfonshire 28 1.27x
Sussex 25 0.27x
Leicestershire 22 0.36x
Denbighshire 21 1.02x
Worcestershire 21 0.29x
Fife 20 0.62x
Monmouthshire 18 0.45x
Channel Islands 16 0.99x
Lincolnshire 16 0.18x
Perthshire 13 0.53x
Brecknockshire 12 1.10x
Wiltshire 12 0.25x
Clackmannanshire 11 2.43x
Royal Navy 10 1.53x
Oxfordshire 9 0.27x
Wigtownshire 8 1.10x
Cornwall 7 0.11x
Kirkcudbrightshire 7 0.88x
Westmorland 7 0.58x
East Lothian 6 0.83x
Suffolk 6 0.09x
Argyllshire 5 0.33x
Cambridgeshire 5 0.14x
Inverness-shire 5 0.31x
West Lothian 5 0.61x
Bedfordshire 4 0.14x
Hertfordshire 4 0.11x
Huntingdonshire 4 0.37x
Herefordshire 3 0.13x
Northamptonshire 3 0.06x
Pembrokeshire 3 0.17x
Radnorshire 3 0.68x
Berkshire 2 0.05x
Berwickshire 2 0.30x
Isle of Man 2 0.20x
Aberdeenshire 1 0.02x
Buckinghamshire 1 0.03x
Carmarthenshire 1 0.04x
Dumfriesshire 1 0.08x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Liverpool in Lancashire leads with 158 Conways recorded in 1881 and an index of 4.01x.

Place Total Index
Liverpool 158 4.01x
Manchester 97 3.32x
Glasgow 82 2.61x
Islington London 73 1.38x
Lambeth 73 1.53x
Dundee 71 3.75x
Barony 63 1.41x
Blackburn 62 3.59x
Oldham 62 2.96x
Shoreditch London 61 2.57x
Everton 54 2.61x
Govan 54 1.23x
Toxteth Park 53 2.41x
Birmingham 51 1.11x
St Marylebone London 50 1.71x
Birkenhead 45 4.67x
Leeds 45 1.47x
Great Bolton 44 5.11x
St Pancras London 44 1.00x
Bradford 42 3.20x
West Derby 42 2.21x
Salford 39 2.04x
St Luke London 38 4.33x
Armitage 37 153.78x
Linthorpe 37 11.43x
Maidstone 36 6.47x
Warrington 35 4.55x
Wigan 34 3.75x
Gateshead 33 2.71x
West Greenock 33 4.33x
Wirksworth 32 41.08x
Chorlton On Medlock 31 3.00x
West Ham 31 1.30x
Hulme 30 2.21x
Stoke Upon Trent 30 1.53x
Flint 29 34.72x
Yeovil 29 16.20x
Keighley 28 4.84x
Paisley Middle Church 28 11.34x
Westgate 28 5.55x
Stockport 26 4.18x
Newington 25 1.24x
Hackney London 24 0.78x
North Meols 24 3.78x
Edinburgh Canongate 23 12.33x
Wallsend 23 8.91x
Liff Benvie 22 2.86x
Deptford St Paul 21 1.46x
Halifax 21 2.64x
Iveston 21 27.99x
Longbenton 21 6.09x
Mile End Old Town London 21 1.80x
St George Hanover Square 21 2.18x
Chelsea London 20 1.21x
Farnworth 20 5.14x
Mansfield 20 7.83x
Portsea 20 0.91x
Haslingden 19 7.06x
Holywell 19 10.28x
Kensington London 19 0.62x
Paddington London 19 0.94x
Plymouth St Andrew 19 2.16x
Stirling 19 7.46x
Stockton On Tees 19 2.42x
Beith 18 14.73x
Bethnal Green London 18 0.76x
Clerkenwell London 18 1.39x
Holy Trinity 18 1.38x
Neilston 18 8.45x
New Monkland 18 3.44x
Nottingham St Mary 18 0.94x
Shotts 18 8.50x
Workington 18 6.67x
Dunfermline 17 3.41x
Widnes 17 3.63x
Camberwell 16 0.46x
Edinburgh St Cuthberts 16 0.54x
Newcastle On Tyne St 16 3.79x
Newchurch 16 3.01x
Sunderland 16 5.56x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 436
Elizabeth 171
Sarah 146
Margaret 130
Ellen 118
Catherine 95
Ann 91
Jane 84
Bridget 68
Annie 63
Alice 53
Eliza 49
Kate 42
Emma 40
Hannah 35
Emily 34
Harriet 27
Maria 27
Anne 23
Agnes 20
Florence 20
Charlotte 19
Louisa 19
Martha 19
Rose 19
Ada 17
Caroline 13
Julia 13
Edith 12
Susan 12
Clara 11
Fanny 11
Isabella 10
Matilda 10
Anna 9
Frances 9
Lucy 9
Sophia 9
Elizth. 8
Harriett 8
Rebecca 8
Amelia 7
Cathrine 7
Phoebe 7
Rachel 7
Winifred 7
Catharine 6
Jessie 6
Margret 6
Margt. 6

Top male names

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

Name Count
John 378
James 224
William 197
Thomas 192
Patrick 107
Michael 104
Joseph 87
George 82
Charles 80
Edward 71
Henry 65
Robert 47
Richard 33
Peter 31
Alfred 30
Arthur 29
Martin 26
David 24
Samuel 23
Daniel 21
Francis 19
Walter 18
Frank 17
Frederick 16
Thos. 15
Albert 14
Andrew 14
Harry 13
Edwin 12
Herbert 12
Bernard 11
Wm. 11
Timothy 10
Hugh 9
Isaac 9
Owen 9
Ernest 8
Geo. 7
Mathew 7
Tom 7
Stephen 6
Benjamin 5
Christopher 5
Jas. 5
Matthew 5
Cornelius 4
Elijah 4
Fred 4
Horace 4
Percy 4

FAQ

Conway surname: questions and answers

How common was the Conway surname in 1881?

In 1881, 5,592 people were recorded with the Conway surname. That placed it at #792 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Conway surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 14,085 in 2016. That gives Conway a modern rank of #448.

What does the Conway surname mean?

Derived from the Welsh place name meaning "holy water," likely referring to a stream or river near a church.

What does the Conway map show?

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