NameCensus.

UK surname

Cowland

In the 1881 census there were 377 people recorded with the Cowland surname, ranking it #8,309 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 256, ranked #16,534, down from #8,309 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Greenwich, Southill and Bishop Stortford. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Chorley, Harlow and Havering.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Cowland is 499 in 1911. Compared with 1881, the name has fallen by 32.1%.

1881 census count

377

Ranked #8,309

Modern count

256

2016, ranked #16,534

Peak year

1911

499 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Cowland had 377 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #8,309 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 256 in 2016, ranked #16,534.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 499 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Challenged Communities.

Cowland surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Cowland surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Cowland 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 233 #9,272
1861 historical 329 #7,748
1881 historical 377 #8,309
1891 historical 484 #7,621
1901 historical 429 #9,018
1911 historical 499 #7,846
1997 modern 329 #12,734
1998 modern 334 #12,940
1999 modern 354 #12,497
2000 modern 349 #12,585
2001 modern 322 #13,098
2002 modern 324 #13,305
2003 modern 315 #13,384
2004 modern 299 #13,904
2005 modern 291 #14,105
2006 modern 285 #14,361
2007 modern 294 #14,241
2008 modern 289 #14,502
2009 modern 289 #14,809
2010 modern 274 #15,705
2011 modern 273 #15,606
2012 modern 263 #15,954
2013 modern 260 #16,350
2014 modern 265 #16,247
2015 modern 262 #16,278
2016 modern 256 #16,534

Geography

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Where Cowlands are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Greenwich, Southill, Bishop Stortford and London parishes. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Chorley, Harlow, Havering, Fenland and St Albans. 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 Greenwich London (South Districts)
2 Southill Bedfordshire
3 Bishop Stortford Hertfordshire
4 London parishes London 1
5 London parishes London 3

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Chorley 011 Chorley
2 Harlow 005 Harlow
3 Havering 014 Havering
4 Fenland 008 Fenland
5 St Albans 006 St Albans

Forenames

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First names often paired with Cowland

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Cowland

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

Baseline UK

Group

Challenged Communities

Nationally, the Cowland surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Challenged Communities, within Baseline UK. This does not mean every Cowland household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

Residents of these neighbourhoods typically live in households with dependent children, and there are fewer-than-average residents of normal retirement age or over. Identification with ethnic minorities, particularly Black, or Mixed or Multiple ethnicities is common. The rate of Christian religious affiliation is low. Housing predominantly consists of semi-detached houses, along with a significant number of terraced properties and flats. Overcrowded social housing is common, and private renting occurs at average UK levels. Those in employment work mainly in caring leisure and other services; process, plant and machine operation; or elementary occupations. Unemployment is high, and few individuals have degree level qualifications. Many of these neighbourhoods occur in commuter towns or less accessible areas of larger towns and cities.

Wider pattern

This Supergroup exemplifies the broad base to the UK’s social structure, encompassing as it does the average or modal levels of many neighbourhood characteristics, including all housing tenures, a range of levels of educational attainment and religious affiliations, and a variety of pre-retirement age structures. Yet, in combination, these mixes are each distinctive of the parts of the UK. Overall, terraced houses and flats are the most prevalent, as is employment in intermediate or low-skilled occupations. However, this Supergroup is also characterised by above average levels of unemployment and lower levels of use of English as the main language. Many neighbourhoods occur in south London and the UK’s other major urban centres.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Older Residents in Owner-Occupied Suburbs

Group

Professional Periphery

Within London, Cowland is most associated with areas classed as Professional Periphery, part of Older Residents in Owner-Occupied Suburbs. 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 neighbourhoods predominantly house residents aged 45+, with many aged 85+. Most employed residents work in senior roles, and relatively few work in unskilled jobs. Terraced housing is comparatively rare, but communal living is more common. More residents identify as of Indian ethnicity and more affiliate with non-Christian religions. Disability levels are below the Supergroup average.

Wider London pattern

The age distribution of these neighbourhoods is skewed towards the middle-aged and old, although few residents live alone or in communal establishments and numbers of dependent children are around average. Owner occupation is the norm, as is residence in detached or semi-detached houses. Residential densities are low and many households have spare rooms. Most residents were born in the UK and, aside from some identifying as members of Chinese or Indian ethnicities, identify as White. Mixed ethnicity households are rare. Incidence of married couples is higher than average and few individuals have never been married. A large proportion of individuals still in employment work in administrative and secretarial occupations, or in the construction industry. Few residents are students, and many households own more than one car.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Cowland 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

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

1881 census detail

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Cowland families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Cowland 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. Middlesex leads with 92 Cowlands recorded in 1881 and an index of 2.50x.

County Total Index
Middlesex 92 2.50x
Kent 67 5.34x
Surrey 67 3.74x
Essex 59 8.13x
Bedfordshire 34 17.86x
Hertfordshire 26 10.26x
Lancashire 8 0.18x
Sussex 8 1.29x
Warwickshire 5 0.54x
Durham 3 0.27x
Nottinghamshire 2 0.40x
Berkshire 1 0.36x
Caernarfonshire 1 0.67x
Devon 1 0.13x
Leicestershire 1 0.25x
Oxfordshire 1 0.44x
Yorkshire 1 0.03x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Deptford St Paul in Kent leads with 28 Cowlands recorded in 1881 and an index of 28.93x.

Place Total Index
Deptford St Paul 28 28.93x
Rotherhithe 18 39.61x
Greenwich 15 25.62x
West Ham 14 8.74x
Southill 13 844.16x
Biggleswade 12 192.31x
Bromley 11 57.53x
Romford 11 95.82x
Shoreditch London 11 6.90x
Islington London 10 2.81x
Southwark St George Martyr 10 13.51x
Leyton 9 72.00x
Tottenham 9 15.37x
Ashton Under Lyne 8 8.39x
Kempston 8 185.19x
Limpsfield 8 467.84x
Paddington London 8 5.92x
Battersea 7 5.17x
Chertsey 7 60.45x
Cuckfield 7 111.82x
Edmonton 7 23.62x
Kensington London 7 3.42x
South Mimms 7 138.89x
St Albans St Peter 7 81.87x
Aldenham 6 259.74x
Bishop Stortford 6 70.84x
Maldon St Marys 6 344.83x
Chelmsford 5 40.16x
Enfield 5 20.72x
Shepperton 5 308.64x
St Pancras London 5 1.69x
Barnes 4 52.77x
Bow London 4 8.54x
Croydon 4 4.02x
Lambeth 4 1.25x
Walthamstow 4 15.31x
Chipping Barnet 3 67.72x
Colchester St Giles 3 41.84x
Hornsey 3 6.45x
Milverton 3 110.29x
Penge 3 12.77x
West Rainton 3 88.50x
Wilmington 3 171.43x
Chingford 2 114.29x
Dunkirk 2 215.05x
Hampstead London 2 3.49x
Lewisham 2 2.99x
Shenley 2 119.76x
Southwark St Saviour 2 10.58x
St George Bloomsbury 2 9.48x
Upper Broughton 2 487.80x
Westminster St Margaret 2 11.27x
Barking 1 4.71x
Bexley 1 9.02x
Brighton 1 0.80x
Cardington 1 64.52x
Charlton Next Woolwich 1 7.64x
Chigwell 1 14.60x
East Ham 1 7.42x
Exeter Heavitree 1 17.51x
Goole 1 16.37x
Hackney London 1 0.49x
Henley On Thames 1 21.51x
Leamington Priors 1 4.38x
Leicester St Margaret 1 1.01x
Leyton Low 1 6.78x
Llandudno 1 18.87x
Margate St John Baptist 1 4.35x
New Windsor 1 10.78x
Ramsgate 1 4.88x
Sawbridgeworth 1 26.04x
Speldhurst 1 15.65x
St Albans St Stephen 1 45.05x
St Clement Danes London 1 13.14x
St Lawrence 1 11.59x
St Marylebone London 1 0.51x
Stoke Newington London 1 3.49x
Warwick St Nicholas 1 14.71x
Willesden 1 2.89x
Woodford 1 12.17x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 16
Elizabeth 12
Alice 11
Jane 11
Annie 8
Ellen 8
Emma 8
Eliza 7
Sarah 7
Ada 6
Caroline 6
Ann 5
Clara 5
Florence 5
Emily 4
Maria 4
Amelia 3
Amy 3
Edith 3
Lucy 3
Minnie 3
Rosa 3
Agnes 2
Esther 2
Harriet 2
Harriett 2
Laura 2
Louisa 2
Martha 2
Philadelphia 2
Susan 2
Blanche 1
Charity 1
Charlotte 1
Dorcas 1
Estellia 1
Eva 1
Grace 1
Hannah 1
Henrietta 1
Kate 1
Lilian 1
Lilly 1
Lydia 1
Mabel 1
Margaret 1
Marian 1
Matilda 1
Mercy 1
Susannah 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
John 22
George 14
James 14
William 14
Henry 11
Charles 9
Joseph 9
Frederick 7
Arthur 6
Thomas 6
Alfred 5
Richard 5
Walter 5
Albert 4
Edmund 4
Harry 3
Herbert 3
Josiah 3
Chas. 2
Edward 2
Edwd. 2
Ernest 2
Frank 2
J. 2
Samuel 2
Stephen 2
Alexander 1
Alfd 1
Arscott 1
Arthr 1
Benny 1
C.D. 1
David 1
Edwd.Evan 1
Ephriam 1
Frd. 1
Fredk.George 1
Fredrick 1
J.W. 1
Jas. 1
Jas.Saml. 1
Jessie 1
Joshua 1
Leonard 1
Lewis 1
Oswald 1
Sidney 1
Sydney 1
Wm. 1

FAQ

Cowland surname: questions and answers

How common was the Cowland surname in 1881?

In 1881, 377 people were recorded with the Cowland surname. That placed it at #8,309 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Cowland surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 256 in 2016. That gives Cowland a modern rank of #16,534.

What does the Cowland map show?

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