NameCensus.

UK surname

Deakin

A surname derived from an English place name meaning "valley of the deer".

In the 1881 census there were 4,149 people recorded with the Deakin surname, ranking it #1,091 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 7,043, ranked #952, up from #1,091 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Birmingham Town: Birmingham, Birmingham Town: Aston and Sheffield. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Doncaster, Cannock Chase and Stoke-on-Trent.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Deakin is 7,304 in 1999. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 69.8%.

1881 census count

4,149

Ranked #1,091

Modern count

7,043

2016, ranked #952

Peak year

1999

7,304 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Deakin had 4,149 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #1,091 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 7,043 in 2016, ranked #952.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 6,009 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Young Families in Industrial Towns.

Deakin surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Deakin surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Deakin 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 2,261 #1,302
1861 historical 1,970 #1,483
1881 historical 4,149 #1,091
1891 historical 4,523 #1,037
1901 historical 5,459 #1,019
1911 historical 6,009 #861
1997 modern 6,697 #970
1998 modern 7,294 #928
1999 modern 7,304 #934
2000 modern 7,243 #936
2001 modern 7,104 #930
2002 modern 7,280 #927
2003 modern 7,058 #932
2004 modern 7,033 #933
2005 modern 6,991 #927
2006 modern 6,932 #937
2007 modern 6,987 #938
2008 modern 6,997 #944
2009 modern 7,147 #943
2010 modern 7,236 #953
2011 modern 7,224 #936
2012 modern 7,058 #940
2013 modern 7,188 #939
2014 modern 7,202 #945
2015 modern 7,082 #949
2016 modern 7,043 #952

Geography

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Where Deakins are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Birmingham Town: Birmingham, Birmingham Town: Aston, Sheffield and Stoke-on-Trent, Bucknell-cum-Bagnall, Caverswall. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Doncaster, Cannock Chase, Stoke-on-Trent and Barnsley. 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 Birmingham Town: Birmingham Warwickshire
2 Birmingham Town: Aston Warwickshire
3 Sheffield Yorkshire, West Riding
4 Stoke-on-Trent, Bucknell-cum-Bagnall, Caverswall Staffordshire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Doncaster 031 Doncaster
2 Cannock Chase 008 Cannock Chase
3 Stoke-on-Trent 003 Stoke-on-Trent
4 Barnsley 014 Barnsley
5 Stoke-on-Trent 024 Stoke-on-Trent

Forenames

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First names often paired with Deakin

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Deakin

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

Young Families in Industrial Towns

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

Read profile summary

Group profile

These neighbourhoods house predominantly young, UK-born individuals identifying with a White ethnic group with dependent children. Long-term disability and unpaid care are prevalent, and religious affiliations are uncommon. Housing is terraced or semi-detached and social rented sector housing is the norm. Unemployment is above the Supergroup average, and employment is principally in elementary occupations, as process plant and machine operatives, or in caring and leisure services. Educational attainment is low. The group is scattered throughout former industrial towns in the Midlands and the South Wales Valleys.

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

Professional Employment and Family Lifecycles

Group

Inner London Working Professionals

Within London, Deakin is most associated with areas classed as Inner London Working Professionals, part of Professional Employment and Family Lifecycles. 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 primarily Inner London neighbourhoods are more densely populated than the Supergroup average. Residents have a younger over-all age profile than the Supergroup as a whole, and are less likely to be owner occupiers. Full time employment is more common than elsewhere in the Supergroup and multiple car ownership is uncommon. Chinese and non-EU-born European migrants are less in evidence than elsewhere in the Supergroup.

Wider London pattern

These neighbourhoods house people of all ages, predominantly of White British or European extraction. Resident turnover is low. Religious affiliation is less common than average and tends to be Christian if expressed. Homeownership, typically of terraced houses, is common but use of the social rented sector is not. Employment is typically in professional, managerial and associate professional or technical occupations. There are few full-time students. Level 4 qualifications are common. More households lack dependent children than have them which, considered alongside low levels of crowding and over-all age structure, indicates that many households may be post child-rearing and in late middle age. Incidence of disability is low, as is residence in communal establishments.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Deakin is most concentrated in decile 7 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.

7
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Deakin 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 Deakin is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of 60-70 mbit/s.

The scale below places that band in context, from slower local download bands through to faster ones.

9
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - British

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

Meaning and origin of Deakin

The surname Deakin originated in England during the medieval period. It is a patronymic surname, derived from the given name Diak, a medieval diminutive of the personal name Dionysius. The earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in Yorkshire and Lincolnshire county records dating back to the 13th century.

The name has been spelled in various ways over the centuries, including Deacon, Deaken, Deakyn, and Deakine. These variations reflect the inconsistent spelling practices of the Middle Ages, as well as regional dialectal variations. Some sources suggest that the name may have also been influenced by the Old English word "deacon," referring to a minor cleric or church officer.

One of the earliest known bearers of the name was John Deakyn, recorded in the Subsidy Rolls of Lincolnshire in 1327. Another early mention of the name appears in the Yorkshire Poll Tax Returns of 1379, which lists a Thomas Deakyn.

During the 16th and 17th centuries, the name gained prominence in the Midlands region of England, particularly in the counties of Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire. Notable individuals from this period include William Deaken (1571-1629), a prominent lawyer and Member of Parliament for Derby, and Robert Deakin (1612-1662), a Presbyterian minister and author.

In the 18th century, the Deakin surname was well-established in the West Midlands, with many bearers residing in the city of Birmingham and its surrounding areas. One notable figure from this time was Thomas Deakin (1744-1825), a successful industrialist and entrepreneur who founded the Deakin Brass Works in Birmingham.

Moving into the 19th century, the Deakin family continued to play a significant role in the industrial development of the Midlands region. Alfred Deakin (1856-1919) was a prominent Australian politician and lawyer who served as the second Prime Minister of Australia from 1903 to 1904, and again from 1905 to 1908. He was born in Melbourne to English parents and was a descendant of the Deakin family from Derbyshire.

Other notable individuals with the Deakin surname include Sir William Deakin (1838-1923), a British civil engineer and architect responsible for designing several notable buildings in Birmingham, and Walter Deakin (1863-1925), a British painter and illustrator known for his depictions of countryside scenes.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Deakin families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Deakin 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. Staffordshire leads with 1,006 Deakins recorded in 1881 and an index of 7.38x.

County Total Index
Staffordshire 1,006 7.38x
Lancashire 691 1.44x
Yorkshire 538 1.34x
Warwickshire 522 5.13x
Cheshire 343 3.85x
Shropshire 254 7.28x
Worcestershire 253 4.80x
Derbyshire 108 1.71x
Middlesex 74 0.18x
Kent 32 0.23x
Leicestershire 30 0.67x
Herefordshire 26 1.57x
Gloucestershire 23 0.29x
Surrey 21 0.11x
Monmouthshire 20 0.69x
Nottinghamshire 20 0.37x
Northumberland 19 0.32x
Lincolnshire 16 0.25x
Hampshire 13 0.16x
Lanarkshire 13 0.10x
Norfolk 12 0.19x
Brecknockshire 9 1.11x
Wiltshire 8 0.22x
Cambridgeshire 7 0.27x
Cumberland 7 0.20x
Midlothian 7 0.13x
Durham 6 0.05x
Merionethshire 6 0.81x
Sussex 6 0.09x
Cornwall 5 0.11x
Devon 5 0.06x
Oxfordshire 5 0.20x
Radnorshire 5 1.53x
Renfrewshire 4 0.13x
Buckinghamshire 3 0.12x
Dorset 3 0.11x
Essex 3 0.04x
Cardiganshire 2 0.20x
Montgomeryshire 2 0.22x
Anglesey 1 0.14x
Bedfordshire 1 0.05x
Caernarfonshire 1 0.06x
Denbighshire 1 0.07x
Flintshire 1 0.09x
Glamorgan 1 0.01x
Hertfordshire 1 0.04x
Isle of Man 1 0.13x
Northamptonshire 1 0.03x
Royal Navy 1 0.21x
Somerset 1 0.02x
Suffolk 1 0.02x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Birmingham in Warwickshire leads with 187 Deakins recorded in 1881 and an index of 5.51x.

Place Total Index
Birmingham 187 5.51x
Aston 181 6.46x
Stoke Upon Trent 101 6.99x
Ecclesall Bierlow 88 10.81x
Sheffield 77 6.05x
Wellington 70 35.71x
Brightside Bierlow 64 8.16x
Harborne 56 12.82x
Dawley 50 39.39x
Stockport 49 10.68x
Wolstanton 49 11.84x
Bromsgrove 47 26.48x
Walsall Foreign 47 6.68x
Manchester 46 2.14x
Hulme 45 4.50x
Nether Hallam 43 7.94x
Salford 43 3.05x
Wednesfield 43 21.44x
Wolverhampton 42 4.01x
Newcastle Under Lyme 41 17.00x
Bilston 40 15.14x
Castle Northwich 40 135.64x
Cannock 36 15.14x
Great Bolton 33 5.20x
Ince In Makerfield 32 14.35x
Trentham 31 26.74x
Broughton In Salford 30 6.85x
Tipton 30 7.19x
Whittington 29 104.02x
Stone 28 16.06x
Burslem 27 6.92x
Normanton 27 22.46x
Rugeley 27 27.61x
Liverpool 25 0.86x
Shrewsbury St Mary 25 18.16x
Wigan 25 3.73x
Bolehall Glascote 24 55.65x
Chorlton On Medlock 24 3.15x
Polesworth 24 49.65x
Kings Norton 23 4.86x
Sutton Coldfield 23 21.49x
Ashton Under Lyne 22 2.10x
Leicester St Margaret 22 2.02x
Runcorn 22 10.71x
Toxteth Park 22 1.36x
Ecclesfield 21 7.16x
Stafford St Mary 21 10.89x
Ardwick 20 4.63x
Leftwich 19 48.00x
Over 19 20.98x
Poulton Cum Seacombe 19 18.53x
Witton Cum Twambrooks 19 23.95x
Warrington 18 3.17x
Willenhall 18 7.05x
Worcester Blockhouse 18 62.18x
Worsbrough 18 15.35x
Aston Cantlow 17 111.62x
Attercliffe Cum Darnall 17 4.56x
Church Gresley 17 16.90x
Wales 17 53.78x
West Derby 17 1.21x
Pendleton In Salford 16 2.80x
Wolstanton Oldcott 16 32.41x
Altofts 15 33.97x
Cheetham 15 4.20x
Everton 15 0.98x
Fazeley 15 60.53x
Handsworth 15 4.47x
Latchford 15 25.33x
Monks Coppenhall 15 4.46x
Inkberrow 14 65.70x
Leek Lowe 14 7.72x
Marchington Woodlands 14 317.46x
Temple Grafton 14 244.76x
Tickhill 14 54.88x
Worcester St Andrew 14 78.52x
Burntwood Edial 13 14.93x
Colwich 13 40.12x
Litchurch 13 5.11x
Shoreditch London 13 0.74x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 287
Sarah 200
Elizabeth 147
Ann 88
Annie 79
Jane 79
Emma 65
Eliza 64
Ellen 64
Alice 51
Emily 48
Hannah 46
Martha 45
Maria 35
Margaret 34
Fanny 31
Harriet 31
Louisa 29
Lucy 27
Florence 25
Selina 22
Clara 21
Catherine 20
Agnes 19
Edith 18
Ada 17
Charlotte 16
Amy 15
Kate 15
Anne 13
Caroline 13
Frances 13
Elizth. 12
Minnie 11
Susannah 11
Rose 10
Amelia 9
Gertrude 9
Harriett 9
Lizzie 9
Matilda 9
Esther 8
Julia 8
Laura 8
Rebecca 8
Ruth 8
Beatrice 7
Eleanor 7
Helen 7
Lydia 7

Top male names

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

Name Count
John 266
William 231
Thomas 154
George 138
James 135
Joseph 98
Henry 91
Charles 79
Samuel 64
Edward 46
Alfred 43
Arthur 41
Robert 30
Frederick 29
Richard 27
Walter 25
Benjamin 23
Albert 22
Francis 22
Herbert 22
Harry 20
Peter 17
Wm. 17
Ernest 14
David 12
Frank 12
Thos. 12
Edwin 11
Isaac 8
Daniel 7
Abraham 6
Alexander 5
Henery 5
Andrew 4
Fred 4
Fredk. 4
Fredrick 4
Geo. 4
Philip 4
Sidney 4
Tom 4
Aaron 3
Clement 3
Edmund 3
Horace 3
Hy. 3
Lewis 3
Matthew 3
Moses 3
Ralph 3

FAQ

Deakin surname: questions and answers

How common was the Deakin surname in 1881?

In 1881, 4,149 people were recorded with the Deakin surname. That placed it at #1,091 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Deakin surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 7,043 in 2016. That gives Deakin a modern rank of #952.

What does the Deakin surname mean?

A surname derived from an English place name meaning "valley of the deer".

What does the Deakin map show?

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