NameCensus.

UK surname

Denness

In the 1881 census there were 212 people recorded with the Denness surname, ranking it #12,373 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 455, ranked #10,716, up from #12,373 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Newington, Newchurch and Whitwell. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Cotswold and Isle of Wight.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Denness is 476 in 2002. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 114.6%.

1881 census count

212

Ranked #12,373

Modern count

455

2016, ranked #10,716

Peak year

2002

476 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Denness had 212 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #12,373 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 455 in 2016, ranked #10,716.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 321 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Rural Amenity.

Denness surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Denness surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Denness 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 200 #10,403
1861 historical 135 #16,651
1881 historical 212 #12,373
1891 historical 208 #14,496
1901 historical 284 #12,093
1911 historical 321 #10,902
1997 modern 453 #10,015
1998 modern 467 #10,120
1999 modern 462 #10,249
2000 modern 463 #10,200
2001 modern 450 #10,226
2002 modern 476 #9,999
2003 modern 456 #10,179
2004 modern 455 #10,208
2005 modern 450 #10,209
2006 modern 463 #10,015
2007 modern 456 #10,221
2008 modern 454 #10,334
2009 modern 453 #10,611
2010 modern 466 #10,595
2011 modern 476 #10,333
2012 modern 457 #10,548
2013 modern 465 #10,569
2014 modern 458 #10,749
2015 modern 450 #10,819
2016 modern 455 #10,716

Geography

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Where Denness' are most common

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

The modern local-area list points to Cotswold and Isle of Wight. 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 Newington Kent
2 Newchurch Hampshire
3 Whitwell Hampshire
4 London parishes London 3
5 Edinburgh Edinburgh

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Cotswold 009 Cotswold
2 Isle of Wight 009 Isle of Wight
3 Isle of Wight 015 Isle of Wight
4 Isle of Wight 014 Isle of Wight
5 Isle of Wight 006 Isle of Wight

Forenames

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First names often paired with Denness

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Denness

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

Professional Employment and Family Lifecycles

Group

Established Homeowners with Children

Within London, Denness is most associated with areas classed as Established Homeowners with Children, 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 predominantly British-born residents are typically married/in civil partnerships and own the properties in which they are raising their children. Parents are typically over 45, and many other residents are beyond normal retirement age. Detached and semi-detached houses predominate and multiple car ownership is common.

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

Denness 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

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

1881 census detail

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Denness families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Denness 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. Hampshire leads with 57 Denness' recorded in 1881 and an index of 13.45x.

County Total Index
Hampshire 57 13.45x
Kent 46 6.52x
Berkshire 30 19.33x
Dorset 16 11.79x
Lincolnshire 14 4.23x
Surrey 10 0.99x
Midlothian 9 3.25x
Sussex 7 2.01x
Yorkshire 7 0.34x
Lanarkshire 5 0.75x
Cambridgeshire 4 3.05x
Devon 4 0.93x
Hertfordshire 1 0.70x
Lancashire 1 0.04x
Middlesex 1 0.05x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Thatcham in Berkshire leads with 30 Denness' recorded in 1881 and an index of 1255.23x.

Place Total Index
Thatcham 30 1255.23x
Godshill 17 1734.69x
Newington In Milton 13 1756.76x
Brading 12 213.14x
Carisbrooke 11 187.07x
Bredgar 8 1818.18x
Canford Magna 8 1025.64x
Strood 8 198.51x
Ecclesall Bierlow 7 16.79x
Lower Halstow 7 1372.55x
North Owersby 7 2916.67x
Sutton Waldron 7 5000.00x
Streatham 6 39.11x
Bothwell 5 27.56x
Buxted 5 367.65x
Northwood 5 82.78x
Bermondsey 4 6.50x
Duddingston 4 71.94x
Littleport 4 160.00x
Market Rasen 4 216.22x
Milton In Gravesend 3 28.36x
Newport 3 130.43x
South Leith 3 9.62x
Alford 2 97.56x
Brook 2 1428.57x
Diptford 2 425.53x
Etchingham 2 312.50x
North Leith 2 15.60x
Smeeth 2 454.55x
Tormoham 2 10.98x
Whippingham 2 62.31x
Ashford 1 14.56x
Bilsby 1 277.78x
Bromley 1 9.30x
Bromley London 1 2.20x
Greenwich 1 3.04x
Hawkhurst 1 45.66x
Sawbridgeworth 1 46.30x
Shalfleet 1 121.95x
Shanklin 1 79.37x
St Helens 1 32.47x
Sturminster 1 75.76x
Toxteth Park 1 1.20x
Upchurch 1 125.00x
Ventnor 1 24.81x
Whitwell 1 200.00x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Elizabeth 8
Ann 6
Mary 6
Sarah 5
Alice 4
Ellen 4
Jane 4
Ada 3
Annie 3
Emma 3
Frances 3
Kate 3
Amelia 2
Amy 2
Caroline 2
Emily 2
Harriet 2
Laura 2
Lilly 2
Martha 2
Rosa 2
Agnes 1
Bertha 1
Blanche 1
Cathe. 1
Charlotte 1
Christiana 1
Christina 1
Deborah 1
Eleanor 1
Emeline 1
Florence 1
Grace 1
Hannah 1
Infant 1
Jennett 1
Lily 1
Lottie 1
Louisa 1
Louiza 1
Lydia 1
Maud 1
May 1
Pamely 1
Phoebe 1
Rosahannah 1
Rose 1
Rosetta 1
Sophia 1
Susan 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
George 11
John 10
William 9
James 7
Charles 6
Arthur 5
Thomas 5
Daniel 4
Frederick 4
Samuel 4
Henry 3
Richard 3
Alfred 2
Edward 2
Albert 1
Albt. 1
Benjamin 1
Bruce 1
Cephas 1
Chas.Hy. 1
Edmond 1
Edwin 1
Evelyn 1
Francis 1
Frank 1
Fred 1
Fred.W. 1
Herman 1
Higham 1
Isaac 1
Jacob 1
Josiah 1
Julian 1
Owen 1
Simeon 1
Solomon 1
Sydney 1
Wm. 1

FAQ

Denness surname: questions and answers

How common was the Denness surname in 1881?

In 1881, 212 people were recorded with the Denness surname. That placed it at #12,373 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Denness surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 455 in 2016. That gives Denness a modern rank of #10,716.

What does the Denness map show?

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