NameCensus.

UK surname

Deverell

Originally referring to someone who lived near a quarry or pit.

In the 1881 census there were 445 people recorded with the Deverell surname, ranking it #7,373 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 378, ranked #12,393, down from #7,373 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff, Englishcombe, Tiverton and Melksham. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Aylesbury Vale, Suffolk Coastal and Bath and North East Somerset.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Deverell is 557 in 1911. Compared with 1881, the name has fallen by 15.1%.

1881 census count

445

Ranked #7,373

Modern count

378

2016, ranked #12,393

Peak year

1911

557 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Deverell had 445 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #7,373 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 378 in 2016, ranked #12,393.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 557 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Spacious Rural Living.

Deverell surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Deverell surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Deverell 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 281 #8,028
1861 historical 245 #10,057
1881 historical 445 #7,373
1891 historical 431 #8,330
1901 historical 520 #7,818
1911 historical 557 #7,210
1997 modern 381 #11,393
1998 modern 386 #11,668
1999 modern 388 #11,696
2000 modern 381 #11,814
2001 modern 379 #11,676
2002 modern 384 #11,794
2003 modern 388 #11,508
2004 modern 386 #11,579
2005 modern 379 #11,662
2006 modern 360 #12,198
2007 modern 379 #11,854
2008 modern 374 #12,086
2009 modern 376 #12,290
2010 modern 371 #12,679
2011 modern 373 #12,496
2012 modern 387 #12,015
2013 modern 393 #12,085
2014 modern 395 #12,125
2015 modern 387 #12,218
2016 modern 378 #12,393

Geography

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Where Deverells are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff, Englishcombe, Tiverton, Melksham 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 Aylesbury Vale, Suffolk Coastal, Bath and North East Somerset, Bristol and Caerphilly. 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 Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff Gloucestershire
2 Englishcombe, Tiverton Somerset
3 Melksham Wiltshire
4 London parishes London 1
5 London parishes London 3

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Aylesbury Vale 009 Aylesbury Vale
2 Suffolk Coastal 012 Suffolk Coastal
3 Bath and North East Somerset 007 Bath and North East Somerset
4 Bristol 043 Bristol, City of
5 Caerphilly 014 Caerphilly

Forenames

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First names often paired with Deverell

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Deverell

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Deverell, 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 Deverell surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Spacious Rural Living, within Retired Professionals. This does not mean every Deverell 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

Professional Employment and Family Lifecycles

Group

Inner London Working Professionals

Within London, Deverell 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

Deverell 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

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

Meaning and origin of Deverell

The surname Deverell originated in England during the medieval period. It is believed to have derived from the Old English words "deor" meaning "deer" and "hyll" meaning "hill," suggesting that the name may have been a topographic reference to a location inhabited by deer.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Deverel." This entry suggests that the name was already established in certain parts of England by the late 11th century.

During the 13th century, the name appeared in various forms, including "Deverel," "Deverill," and "Deverell." These variations likely stemmed from regional pronunciations and spelling conventions of the time.

The surname is closely associated with several place names in Wiltshire, such as Deverill (Deverell) Longbridge, Deverill (Deverell) Monkton, and Deverill (Deverell) Parva. These locations may have played a role in the surname's origins or in its subsequent spread across the region.

Notable individuals with the surname Deverell throughout history include:

1. Walter Deverell (c. 1540-1616), an English politician who served as a Member of Parliament for Bridport in 1589. 2. Robert Deverell (1565-1636), an English clergyman and author known for his work "The Antiquity of Protestant Religion." 3. Walter Howell Deverell (1789-1854), an English painter and illustrator renowned for his portraits and historical scenes. 4. Walter Deverell (1827-1854), an English Pre-Raphaelite painter, the son of Walter Howell Deverell, and a member of the influential artistic circle of the time. 5. John Deverell (1778-1849), an English architect and surveyor who designed several notable buildings in London and the surrounding areas.

The surname Deverell has a rich history rooted in the English countryside, with connections to topographic features and place names that have endured for centuries. Its various spellings and the presence of individuals bearing the name in historical records attest to its longevity and significance within English onomastic traditions.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Deverell families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Deverell 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. Wiltshire leads with 84 Deverells recorded in 1881 and an index of 21.83x.

County Total Index
Wiltshire 84 21.83x
Somerset 72 10.28x
Middlesex 64 1.47x
Gloucestershire 47 5.51x
Surrey 44 2.08x
Oxfordshire 33 12.28x
Buckinghamshire 20 7.60x
Bedfordshire 11 4.88x
Nottinghamshire 11 1.88x
Lancashire 10 0.19x
Kent 7 0.47x
Sussex 7 0.95x
Warwickshire 6 0.55x
Berkshire 4 1.22x
Derbyshire 4 0.59x
Essex 3 0.35x
Cheshire 2 0.21x
Cornwall 2 0.41x
Devon 2 0.22x
Hampshire 2 0.22x
Monmouthshire 2 0.64x
Northumberland 2 0.31x
Herefordshire 1 0.56x
Hertfordshire 1 0.33x
Huntingdonshire 1 1.16x
Lanarkshire 1 0.07x
Norfolk 1 0.15x
Royal Navy 1 1.93x
Yorkshire 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. Melksham in Wiltshire leads with 26 Deverells recorded in 1881 and an index of 389.22x.

Place Total Index
Melksham 26 389.22x
Islington London 22 5.22x
Bristol St Philip Jacob 15 18.67x
Monckton Combe 14 625.00x
Walcot 14 37.53x
St Pancras London 13 3.71x
Twerton 13 180.06x
Charterhouse Hinton 12 1463.41x
Bristol St James St Paul 11 38.66x
Newington 11 6.84x
Attington 10 25000.00x
Lewknor 10 1265.82x
Camberwell 9 3.24x
Lambeth 9 2.37x
Monkton Farleigh 9 1451.61x
Soulbury 9 1267.61x
West Derby 9 5.96x
Clerkenwell London 8 7.79x
Trowbridge 8 47.03x
Bermondsey 7 5.40x
Chilwell 7 448.72x
Hellingly 7 284.55x
Kensington London 7 2.89x
Amesbury 6 357.14x
Aston 6 1.99x
Aston Abbotts 6 1395.35x
Bedford St Cuthbert 6 300.00x
Bedminster 6 9.12x
Devizes St Mary 6 154.24x
Swindon 6 20.11x
Bradford On Avon 5 40.58x
Aston Rowant 4 416.67x
Bathford 4 277.78x
Devizes St John 4 138.41x
Henbury 4 96.15x
Luton 4 10.26x
Nottingham St Mary 4 2.64x
Nuneham Courtenay 4 1025.64x
Oxford St Thomas 4 31.90x
Rowde 4 224.72x
St Marylebone London 4 1.72x
Streatham 4 12.39x
Stroud 4 24.10x
Westminster St Margaret 4 19.06x
Cheltenham 3 4.56x
Darley 3 109.09x
Fisherton Anger 3 42.13x
Great Cheverell 3 500.00x
Linslade 3 116.28x
Bathwick 2 25.81x
Bethnal Green London 2 1.06x
Brentwood 2 38.17x
Bristol St George 2 5.07x
Bristol St Mary Redcliff 2 25.74x
Clifton 2 4.64x
Deptford St Paul 2 1.75x
Llanvihangel Llantarnam 2 33.33x
Lyncombe Widcombe 2 10.91x
Plumstead 2 4.04x
Redruth 2 14.36x
Rochester St Margaret 2 12.78x
St Martin In Fields 2 7.68x
Stert 2 952.38x
Thatcham 2 39.76x
Weston Super Mare 2 11.31x
Aymestrey 1 104.17x
Barony 1 0.28x
Bath St James 1 13.70x
Bitton Oldland 1 11.47x
Bristol St Nicholas 1 64.94x
Ealing 1 2.57x
Great Yarmouth 1 1.80x
Hackney London 1 0.41x
Lewisham 1 1.26x
Lympston 1 61.73x
Old Windsor 1 26.46x
Royal Navy 1 2.26x
Stretford 1 3.52x
Wells St Cuthbert Out 1 17.73x
Woking 1 7.82x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 22
Sarah 17
Emily 13
Elizabeth 12
Ann 10
Alice 9
Annie 8
Emma 8
Jane 8
Ellen 7
Florence 6
Susan 6
Eliza 5
Charlotte 4
Kate 4
Agnes 3
Amy 3
Catherine 3
Edith 3
Margaret 3
Maria 3
Martha 3
Ada 2
Amelia 2
Anne 2
Barbara 2
Bessie 2
Clara 2
Elizth. 2
Hannah 2
Isabel 2
Julia 2
Lucy 2
Lydia 2
Marion 2
Matilda 2
Nellie 2
Phoebe 2
Adelaide 1
Amey 1
Bathia 1
Catharine 1
Connie 1
Dorothy 1
Jemina 1
Laura 1
Lilian 1
M. 1
Marian 1
Sussannah 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
George 23
John 22
William 19
Henry 15
Thomas 12
Joseph 10
Charles 9
Frederick 8
James 8
Alfred 6
Richard 6
Arthur 5
Daniel 5
Frank 5
Harry 5
Albert 4
Edwin 4
Edward 3
Fred 3
Herbert 3
Frederic 2
Louis 2
Thos. 2
Walter 2
Alexander 1
Benjamin 1
Cicel 1
Corneilus 1
David 1
Ebenezer 1
Edgar 1
Edwd.J. 1
Enos 1
Ernest 1
Ewd. 1
Fredk.O. 1
G. 1
Geo. 1
H.Chas. 1
Hugh 1
Jim 1
Josiah 1
Lewis 1
Oscar 1
Percy 1
Philip 1
Robert 1
Saml. 1
Sophia 1
Wm.John 1

FAQ

Deverell surname: questions and answers

How common was the Deverell surname in 1881?

In 1881, 445 people were recorded with the Deverell surname. That placed it at #7,373 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Deverell surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 378 in 2016. That gives Deverell a modern rank of #12,393.

What does the Deverell surname mean?

Originally referring to someone who lived near a quarry or pit.

What does the Deverell map show?

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