NameCensus.

UK surname

Creak

In the 1881 census there were 155 people recorded with the Creak surname, ranking it #15,174 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 186, ranked #20,575, down from #15,174 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Coveney, Manea, Mepal, Downham, Witcham, Witchford, Wentworth, Ely Trinity and Toxteth Park. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Harlow, Broadland and West Oxfordshire.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Creak is 208 in 2005. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 20.0%.

1881 census count

155

Ranked #15,174

Modern count

186

2016, ranked #20,575

Peak year

2005

208 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Creak had 155 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #15,174 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 186 in 2016, ranked #20,575.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 190 in 1891.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Rural Amenity.

Creak surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Creak surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Creak 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 143 #13,343
1861 historical 109 #19,693
1881 historical 155 #15,174
1891 historical 190 #15,486
1901 historical 154 #17,775
1911 historical 175 #16,246
1997 modern 199 #17,668
1998 modern 202 #17,991
1999 modern 204 #18,021
2000 modern 198 #18,330
2001 modern 196 #18,146
2002 modern 200 #18,294
2003 modern 202 #18,032
2004 modern 198 #18,308
2005 modern 208 #17,687
2006 modern 201 #18,226
2007 modern 207 #18,080
2008 modern 206 #18,300
2009 modern 193 #19,463
2010 modern 195 #19,762
2011 modern 191 #19,871
2012 modern 188 #20,018
2013 modern 189 #20,273
2014 modern 193 #20,159
2015 modern 187 #20,502
2016 modern 186 #20,575

Geography

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Where Creaks are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Coveney, Manea, Mepal, Downham, Witcham, Witchford, Wentworth, Ely Trinity, Toxteth Park, London parishes and Brighton. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Harlow, Broadland, West Oxfordshire and East Cambridgeshire. 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 Coveney, Manea, Mepal, Downham, Witcham, Witchford, Wentworth Cambridgeshire
2 Ely Trinity Cambridgeshire
3 Toxteth Park Lancashire
4 London parishes London 3
5 Brighton Sussex

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Harlow 004 Harlow
2 Broadland 018 Broadland
3 West Oxfordshire 004 West Oxfordshire
4 East Cambridgeshire 004 East Cambridgeshire
5 Harlow 008 Harlow

Forenames

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First names often paired with Creak

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Creak

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

Young Families and Mainstream Employment

Group

Social Rented Sector and Diverse Origins

Within London, Creak is most associated with areas classed as Social Rented Sector and Diverse Origins, part of Young Families and Mainstream Employment. 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

Scattered across London’s Inner and Outer suburbs, residents of these neighbourhoods are typically housed in the social rented sector. Although terraced and semi-detached houses predominate, more residents live in flats than elsewhere in the Supergroup. Neighbourhoods are more ethnically diverse than the Supergroup average. Those identifying as of Bangladeshi, Pakistani and some Black ethnicities are more prevalent. Europeans born in a overseas non-EU countries make up more of the lower proportion of residents identifying as White. Few residents are very old (85+). Employment in distribution, hotels and restaurants is more common than elsewhere in the Supergroup.

Wider London pattern

Many families in these neighbourhoods have young children. Housing is principally in the social rented sector, in terraced or semi-detached units. While over-all residential densities are low, overcrowding is also prevalent locally. Residents are drawn from a range of ethnic minorities, with many identifying as Black and above average numbers born in Africa. Numbers identifying as of Chinese, Indian or White ethnicity are below average. Levels of proficiency in English are below average. Levels of separation or divorce and incidence of disability are both above average. Education is typically limited to Level 1, 2, or apprenticeship qualifications. Few residents work in professional or managerial occupations but the employment structure is otherwise diverse: it includes skilled trades, caring, leisure and other service occupations, sales and customer service occupations, construction, and work as process, plant, and machine operatives.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Creak is most concentrated in decile 8 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.

8
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Creak falls in decile 5 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.

5
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

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

1881 census detail

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Creak families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Creak 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 25 Creaks recorded in 1881 and an index of 1.69x.

County Total Index
Middlesex 25 1.69x
Cambridgeshire 20 21.30x
Lincolnshire 16 6.75x
Norfolk 16 7.02x
Bedfordshire 11 14.33x
Lancashire 11 0.63x
Suffolk 11 6.09x
Surrey 10 1.38x
Kent 7 1.38x
Hampshire 5 1.65x
Leicestershire 5 3.04x
Sussex 4 1.60x
Hertfordshire 3 2.94x
Nottinghamshire 2 1.00x
Berkshire 1 0.90x
Durham 1 0.23x
Essex 1 0.34x
Huntingdonshire 1 3.40x
Northamptonshire 1 0.72x
Yorkshire 1 0.07x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Ely Holy Trinity St Mary in Cambridgeshire leads with 13 Creaks recorded in 1881 and an index of 317.07x.

Place Total Index
Ely Holy Trinity St Mary 13 317.07x
Toxteth Park 11 18.47x
Dunstable 8 338.98x
Charlton Next Woolwich 7 132.58x
Islington London 7 4.87x
Shadwell London 7 168.67x
Sutton St Mary 7 312.50x
Great Yarmouth 6 31.78x
Little Welnetham 6 7500.00x
North Wootton 6 3750.00x
Aldershot 5 49.12x
Clerkenwell London 5 14.29x
Brighton 4 7.93x
Lambeth 4 3.09x
Leicester St Mary 4 30.12x
Broxbourne 3 147.78x
Caddington 3 267.86x
Croydon 3 7.48x
Skegness 3 441.18x
Boston 2 27.82x
Burnham Westgate 2 408.16x
Gedney Hill 2 1176.47x
Ipswich St Mary Stoke 2 119.05x
Newington 2 3.65x
Newmarket All Sts 2 289.86x
Nottingham St Nicholas 2 73.53x
Offton 2 1111.11x
St George Hanover Square 2 7.66x
Wisbech St Peter 2 42.46x
Ardleigh 1 123.46x
Bluntisham 1 181.82x
Chelsea London 1 2.24x
Clapham 1 5.40x
Coltishall 1 208.33x
Dry Drayton 1 526.32x
Great Grimsby 1 6.64x
Hornsey 1 5.33x
Kings Lynn St Margaret 1 14.62x
Lowestoft 1 11.72x
Nether Hallam 1 5.03x
New Windsor 1 26.74x
Poplar London 1 3.57x
Quadring 1 217.39x
St Faith Under St Pauls 1 833.33x
Stockton On Tees 1 4.70x
Stretham 1 149.25x
Sutton 1 128.21x
Syston 1 64.94x
Wicken 1 476.19x

Top female names

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

Top male names

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

Name Count
James 8
William 8
George 5
Henry 5
John 5
Arthur 4
Frederick 4
Ettrick 3
Edwin 2
Herbert 2
Walter 2
Alexander 1
Alfred 1
Charles 1
Cuttriss 1
Edward 1
Elijah 1
Ernest 1
Evan 1
Francis 1
Frank 1
Fred 1
Fredk.T. 1
Fredk.W. 1
Harold 1
Jonathan 1
Joseph 1
Luke 1
Michael 1
Percy 1
Reginald 1
Rice 1
Richard 1
Robert 1
Samuel 1
Sidney 1
Squire 1
St 1
Thomas 1

FAQ

Creak surname: questions and answers

How common was the Creak surname in 1881?

In 1881, 155 people were recorded with the Creak surname. That placed it at #15,174 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Creak surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 186 in 2016. That gives Creak a modern rank of #20,575.

What does the Creak map show?

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