NameCensus.

UK surname

Darlington

A locational surname derived from the market town of Darlington in County Durham, England.

In the 1881 census there were 2,036 people recorded with the Darlington surname, ranking it #2,162 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 3,002, ranked #2,237, down from #2,162 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Wolstanton, Chester St Oswald, Little St John, Cathedral Church, St Peter, St Bridget, St Martin, Holy Trinity and Manchester. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Wrexham, Cheshire East and Halton.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Darlington is 3,085 in 2000. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 47.4%.

1881 census count

2,036

Ranked #2,162

Modern count

3,002

2016, ranked #2,237

Peak year

2000

3,085 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Darlington had 2,036 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #2,162 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 3,002 in 2016, ranked #2,237.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 2,815 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Spacious Rural Living.

Darlington surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Darlington surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Darlington 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 1,290 #2,222
1861 historical 1,414 #2,018
1881 historical 2,036 #2,162
1891 historical 2,326 #2,020
1901 historical 2,665 #2,073
1911 historical 2,815 #1,848
1997 modern 2,848 #2,271
1998 modern 3,053 #2,204
1999 modern 3,082 #2,198
2000 modern 3,085 #2,185
2001 modern 3,021 #2,180
2002 modern 3,039 #2,217
2003 modern 3,007 #2,183
2004 modern 3,024 #2,168
2005 modern 2,993 #2,163
2006 modern 2,968 #2,182
2007 modern 2,973 #2,192
2008 modern 2,977 #2,204
2009 modern 3,036 #2,219
2010 modern 3,059 #2,258
2011 modern 3,045 #2,233
2012 modern 2,976 #2,245
2013 modern 3,052 #2,230
2014 modern 3,064 #2,230
2015 modern 3,039 #2,225
2016 modern 3,002 #2,237

Geography

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Where Darlingtons are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Wolstanton, Chester St Oswald, Little St John, Cathedral Church, St Peter, St Bridget, St Martin, Holy Trinity, Manchester, Dean and Liverpool. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Wrexham, Cheshire East, Halton, Plymouth and Newcastle-under-Lyme. 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 Wolstanton Staffordshire
2 Chester St Oswald, Little St John, Cathedral Church, St Peter, St Bridget, St Martin, Holy Trinity Cheshire
3 Manchester Lancashire
4 Dean Lancashire
5 Liverpool Lancashire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Wrexham 016 Wrexham
2 Cheshire East 049 Cheshire East
3 Halton 012 Halton
4 Plymouth 026 Plymouth
5 Newcastle-under-Lyme 005 Newcastle-under-Lyme

Forenames

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First names often paired with Darlington

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Darlington

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

Retired Professionals

Group

Spacious Rural Living

Nationally, the Darlington surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Spacious Rural Living, within Retired Professionals. This does not mean every Darlington household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

These predominantly ageing households typically have no resident dependent children. Most are owner-occupiers and live in detached houses in low density residential developments (although renting is more common than in the rest of the Supergroup). White ethnicity predominates. Residents are typically beyond retirement age but those still in work have managerial, professional or skilled trade occupations. White ethnicity and Christian religious affiliation predominate. Neighbourhoods are located throughout rural UK.

Wider pattern

Typically married but no longer with resident dependent children, these well-educated households either remain working in their managerial, professional, administrative or other skilled occupations, or are retired from them – the modal individual age is beyond normal retirement age. Underoccupied detached and semi-detached properties predominate, and unpaid care is more prevalent than reported disability. The prevalence of this Supergroup outside most urban conurbations indicates that rural lifestyles prevail, typically sustained by using two or more cars per household.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

The Greater London Mix

Group

Social Rented Sector Professional Support Workers

Within London, Darlington 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

Darlington is most concentrated in decile 4 for access to healthy assets and hazards. This places the surname near the middle of the scale.

Lower deciles point towards weaker access to healthy assets or stronger exposure to local hazards. Higher deciles point towards stronger access and fewer hazards.

4
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Darlington falls in decile 8 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.

8
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

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

Meaning and origin of Darlington

The surname Darlington originated in England and can be traced back to the early 12th century. It is a locational name derived from the town of Darlington in County Durham, which itself took its name from the Old English words 'deor' meaning deer and 'inga' meaning people or the people of the deer.

The earliest known record of the Darlington surname appears in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire from 1166, where one Robert de Derlingtona is listed. This suggests that the name was already well-established by the late 12th century.

In the Domesday Book of 1086, the town of Darlington is referred to as 'Derinctun', an earlier spelling that reflects the Old English origins of the name. Other early variations of the surname include Derlington, Derlingtone, and Derlyngton.

One of the earliest recorded individuals with the Darlington surname was Sir Ralph Darlington, a knight who was born around 1290 and served under King Edward III in the Scottish Wars of Independence. In 1335, he was appointed Constable of Bamburgh Castle in Northumberland.

Another notable figure was Thomas Darlington, born in 1457, who was a prominent merchant and alderman in the city of Newcastle upon Tyne during the late 15th century.

In the 17th century, William Darlington (1589-1654) was an English clergyman and author, best known for his work 'The Honour of Lady-Eminence', published in 1642.

The 18th century saw the birth of Abraham Darlington (1711-1777), an English botanist and physician who made significant contributions to the study of plant life in Pennsylvania, USA.

Finally, in the 19th century, Ralph Darlington (1824-1903) was a prominent English railway engineer and inventor, known for his work on the development of the steam locomotive and his patented designs for railway track components.

Throughout its history, the Darlington surname has been closely associated with the town of Darlington and the surrounding regions of northern England, though bearers of the name can now be found worldwide.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Darlington families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Darlington 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. Cheshire leads with 617 Darlingtons recorded in 1881 and an index of 14.08x.

County Total Index
Cheshire 617 14.08x
Lancashire 600 2.55x
Staffordshire 220 3.28x
Shropshire 137 7.99x
Middlesex 77 0.39x
Yorkshire 57 0.29x
Cornwall 51 2.27x
Devon 39 0.94x
Warwickshire 34 0.68x
Denbighshire 29 3.87x
Northumberland 29 0.98x
Kent 24 0.35x
Derbyshire 18 0.58x
Surrey 17 0.18x
Worcestershire 15 0.58x
Flintshire 14 2.62x
Midlothian 8 0.30x
Gloucestershire 7 0.18x
Wiltshire 7 0.40x
Montgomeryshire 5 1.10x
Lanarkshire 4 0.06x
Sussex 4 0.12x
Buckinghamshire 3 0.25x
Suffolk 3 0.12x
Leicestershire 2 0.09x
Lincolnshire 2 0.06x
Radnorshire 2 1.25x
Westmorland 2 0.46x
Aberdeenshire 1 0.05x
Cambridgeshire 1 0.08x
Channel Islands 1 0.17x
Durham 1 0.02x
Glamorgan 1 0.03x
Herefordshire 1 0.12x
Selkirkshire 1 0.56x
Wigtownshire 1 0.38x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Manchester in Lancashire leads with 55 Darlingtons recorded in 1881 and an index of 5.19x.

Place Total Index
Manchester 55 5.19x
Chester St Oswald 48 60.49x
Audley 47 70.89x
Little Hulton 45 115.38x
Wolstanton 34 16.71x
Stockport 33 14.63x
Frodsham 29 170.89x
Preston 28 4.44x
Ruabon 28 27.16x
Witton Cum Twambrooks 28 71.79x
Haslington 27 218.98x
Runcorn 27 26.72x
Middlewich 24 266.08x
Prees 24 114.89x
Stoke Upon Trent 24 3.38x
Ashton Under Lyne 23 4.47x
Everton 23 3.06x
Gwennap 23 54.26x
Plymouth St Andrew 23 7.23x
Knutsford Nether 22 83.05x
Hexham 21 45.94x
Tyldesley Cum Shakerley 21 30.97x
West Derby 20 2.90x
Dukinfield 19 9.38x
Liverpool 19 1.33x
Barugh 18 108.37x
Whitchurch 18 54.09x
Windle 18 13.58x
Farnworth 17 12.05x
Shrewsbury St Julian 17 40.07x
St Austell 17 22.13x
St Pancras London 17 1.06x
Gorton 16 7.23x
Barrow 15 304.88x
Monks Coppenhall 15 9.07x
Salford 15 2.17x
Wigan 15 4.56x
Birmingham 14 0.84x
Broughton In Salford 14 6.50x
Wednesbury 14 8.36x
Bedford 13 26.39x
Burslem 13 6.77x
Ditton 13 134.99x
Shavington Cum Gresty 13 179.31x
Westleigh 13 24.30x
Great Little Saughall 12 248.45x
Plymouth Charles The 12 6.59x
West Bromwich 12 3.13x
Widnes 12 7.06x
Wolstanton Chesterton 12 35.04x
Appleton 11 110.78x
Chatham 11 5.90x
Chester St Mary On Hill 11 29.26x
Hindley 11 10.95x
Upton In Chester 11 224.03x
Caldecott 10 2702.70x
Edmonton 10 6.25x
Ince 10 440.53x
Shrewsbury Holy Cross 10 52.80x
Aston 9 0.65x
Atherton 9 10.50x
Church Minshull 9 351.56x
Garston 9 12.95x
Tipton 9 4.39x
Wem 9 35.28x
Worsley 9 6.20x
Ardwick 8 3.77x
Birkenhead 8 2.29x
Bury 8 2.97x
Hampton Bickley 8 157.17x
Handsworth 8 4.84x
Hulme 8 1.63x
Macclesfield 8 4.11x
Meriden 8 140.60x
Wendron 8 25.64x
Whitechapel London 8 4.09x
Wincham 8 99.01x
Bootle Cum Linacre 7 3.74x
Ightfield 7 299.15x
Tarporley 7 76.34x

Top female names

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

Name Count
John 157
William 130
Thomas 102
George 72
Joseph 62
James 45
Henry 29
Richard 29
Peter 26
Edward 23
Charles 19
Robert 18
Samuel 18
Alfred 17
Abraham 11
Albert 10
Edwin 10
Frederick 10
Harry 10
Arthur 9
Wm. 9
Matthew 8
Walter 8
Daniel 7
Mathew 7
Ralph 7
Benjamin 6
Frank 6
Job 6
Abel 5
Ernest 4
Francis 4
Fred 4
Thos. 4
Chas. 3
Enoch 3
Herbert 3
Hugh 3
Hy. 3
Isaac 3
Jno. 3
Percy 3
Adam 2
Alexander 2
David 2
Gregory 2
Leonard 2
Mark 2
Philip 2
Saml. 2

FAQ

Darlington surname: questions and answers

How common was the Darlington surname in 1881?

In 1881, 2,036 people were recorded with the Darlington surname. That placed it at #2,162 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Darlington surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 3,002 in 2016. That gives Darlington a modern rank of #2,237.

What does the Darlington surname mean?

A locational surname derived from the market town of Darlington in County Durham, England.

What does the Darlington map show?

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