NameCensus.

UK surname

Dorr

Derived from the Middle English and Old French word "dorre," meaning a doorkeeper or gatekeeper.

In the 1881 census there were 165 people recorded with the Dorr surname, ranking it #14,559 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 178, ranked #21,160, down from #14,559 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Lincoln St Botolph, London parishes and Northampton St Giles, Northampton St Sepulchre, Northampton Priory. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include North Kesteven, King's Lynn and West Norfolk and Gwynedd.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Dorr is 187 in 2013. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 7.9%.

1881 census count

165

Ranked #14,559

Modern count

178

2016, ranked #21,160

Peak year

2013

187 bearers

Map years

7

1881 to 2016

Key insights

  • Dorr had 165 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #14,559 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 178 in 2016, ranked #21,160.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 165 in 1881.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Ageing Communities.

Dorr surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Dorr surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Dorr 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 73 #20,581
1861 historical 49 #27,768
1881 historical 165 #14,559
1891 historical 137 #19,501
1901 historical 151 #17,988
1911 historical 163 #16,939
1997 modern 166 #19,797
1998 modern 170 #20,030
1999 modern 176 #19,722
2000 modern 176 #19,698
2001 modern 175 #19,484
2002 modern 182 #19,411
2003 modern 173 #19,834
2004 modern 174 #19,871
2005 modern 161 #20,799
2006 modern 162 #20,886
2007 modern 163 #21,050
2008 modern 156 #21,862
2009 modern 174 #20,782
2010 modern 184 #20,521
2011 modern 185 #20,288
2012 modern 183 #20,356
2013 modern 187 #20,436
2014 modern 183 #20,880
2015 modern 178 #21,149
2016 modern 178 #21,160

Geography

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Where Dorrs are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Lincoln St Botolph, London parishes, Northampton St Giles, Northampton St Sepulchre, Northampton Priory, St Marylebone and Kettering. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to North Kesteven, King's Lynn and West Norfolk, Gwynedd, Amber Valley and Lincoln. 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 Lincoln St Botolph Lincolnshire
2 London parishes London 3
3 Northampton St Giles, Northampton St Sepulchre, Northampton Priory Northamptonshire
4 St Marylebone London (North Districts)
5 Kettering Northamptonshire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 North Kesteven 004 North Kesteven
2 King's Lynn and West Norfolk 004 King's Lynn and West Norfolk
3 Gwynedd 017 Gwynedd
4 Amber Valley 004 Amber Valley
5 Lincoln 004 Lincoln

Forenames

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First names often paired with Dorr

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Dorr

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

Ageing Communities

Nationally, the Dorr surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Ageing Communities, within Suburbanites and Peri-Urbanities. This does not mean every Dorr household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

Many residents are of normal retirement age or above and live in communal establishments, and there are few dependent children. The dominant property type is a mix of retirement flats and detached houses. Those in work are likely to be employed in managerial and professional occupations, and many residents are educated to degree level. Levels of owner occupation are high, but the private rental sector is also present. Rural locations predominate.

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

Social Rented Sector Families with Children

Group

Social Rented Sector Pockets

Within London, Dorr is most associated with areas classed as Social Rented Sector Pockets, part of Social Rented Sector Families with Children. 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

Found in pockets across London, residents are less likely to live in private sector rentals and fewer adults are students. Fewer individuals work in transport and communications occupations relative to the Supergroup average. More individuals identify as Black and were born in Africa.

Wider London pattern

Residents of these neighbourhoods include sizable numbers identifying with ethnicities originating outside Europe, particularly in Africa or Bangladesh. The proportion of residents identifying as White, Indian or Pakistani is well below the London average. Neighbourhood age profiles are skewed towards younger adults, and above average numbers of families have children. Rates of use of English at home are below average. Marriage rates are low, and levels of separation or divorce are above average. Housing is predominantly in flats, and renting in the social rented sector the norm - few residents are owner occupiers. Housing is often overcrowded, and neighbourhoods are amongst the most densely populated in London. Disability rates are above average, although levels of unpaid care provision are about average. Employment is in caring, leisure, other service occupations, sales and customer service, or process, plant, and machine operation. Part time working and full-time student study are common. Levels of unemployment are slightly above average. Most residents have only Level 1 or 2 educational qualifications or have completed apprenticeships.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Dorr 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

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

Meaning and origin of Dorr

The surname Dorr is of German origin, derived from the Middle High German word "dörr," meaning "dry" or "barren." It likely originated as a descriptive nickname or occupational name for someone who lived in an arid or infertile area or worked with dried goods.

The earliest known record of the name Dorr can be found in the 13th century in Bavaria, Germany. The name was also found in various forms, such as Dörr, Dörre, and Dörrer, in other parts of Germany and Switzerland during the medieval period.

One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Dorr was Johannes Dörr, a merchant and landowner who lived in Nuremberg, Germany, in the late 15th century. Another notable figure was Peter Dorr, a Protestant reformer and theologian from Saxony, who lived from 1521 to 1594.

In the 16th century, the name Dorr appeared in the records of the town of Weinsberg, in what is now Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The town's coat of arms featured a dorr (dried branch), which may have influenced the local use of the surname.

The name Dorr also has a long history in England, where it was likely introduced by German immigrants in the 16th and 17th centuries. One of the earliest known English bearers of the name was Thomas Dorr, born in Somerset in 1613.

Another significant figure was Thomas Wilson Dorr, an American political reformer and leader of the Dorr Rebellion in Rhode Island, which sought to establish a more democratic state constitution. He lived from 1805 to 1854.

Other notable individuals with the surname Dorr include Heinrich Dörr (1839-1911), a German composer and music teacher, and Frederic Dorr Steele (1873-1944), an American writer and illustrator known for his novels set in the American West.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Dorr families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Dorr 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. Northamptonshire leads with 44 Dorrs recorded in 1881 and an index of 29.07x.

County Total Index
Northamptonshire 44 29.07x
Middlesex 41 2.55x
Lincolnshire 12 4.66x
Warwickshire 12 2.96x
Ayrshire 7 5.81x
Devon 6 1.79x
Lanarkshire 6 1.15x
Lancashire 6 0.31x
Clackmannanshire 4 30.10x
Norfolk 4 1.62x
Staffordshire 4 0.74x
Surrey 4 0.51x
Perthshire 3 4.15x
Angus 2 1.34x
Bedfordshire 2 2.40x
Nottinghamshire 2 0.92x
Cambridgeshire 1 0.98x
Durham 1 0.21x
Hampshire 1 0.30x
Kent 1 0.18x
Oxfordshire 1 1.01x
Westmorland 1 2.83x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Kettering in Northamptonshire leads with 31 Dorrs recorded in 1881 and an index of 506.54x.

Place Total Index
Kettering 31 506.54x
Birmingham 11 8.13x
Navenby 11 2075.47x
Northampton All Sts 8 155.64x
St Marylebone London 8 9.31x
Largs 7 246.48x
St Martin In Fields 7 72.61x
St Pancras London 7 5.40x
Glasgow 6 6.49x
Hackney London 6 6.65x
Liverpool 6 5.17x
Paddington London 6 10.14x
Stoke Damerel 6 25.59x
Alloa 4 62.02x
Westminster St James 4 24.18x
Dron 3 1578.95x
Newcastle Under Lyme 3 31.22x
Northampton Priory St 3 33.04x
Battersea 2 3.38x
Camberwell 2 1.95x
Liff Benvie 2 8.84x
Luton 2 13.86x
Northampton St Sepulchre 2 25.97x
South Lynn 2 71.68x
Ashill 1 277.78x
Aston 1 0.89x
Burton Joyce 1 270.27x
Clerkenwell London 1 2.63x
Darenth 1 117.65x
Edmonton 1 7.71x
Enville 1 232.56x
Filkins 1 312.50x
Harlaxton 1 476.19x
Hedworth Monkton Jarrow 1 4.82x
Holy Trinity Cambridge 1 90.09x
Kensington London 1 1.12x
Nottingham St Mary 1 1.78x
Portsea 1 1.55x
Preston Patrick 1 333.33x
Terrington St John 1 270.27x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 6
Sarah 6
Alice 4
Annie 3
Edith 3
Harriet 3
Ann 2
Bertha 2
Eliza 2
Elizth. 2
Ellen 2
Emily 2
Louise 2
Lucy 2
Rose 2
Susan 2
(Mrs) 1
Amelia 1
Anita 1
Clara 1
Cornelia 1
Eleanor 1
Eliss 1
Elizabeth 1
Fanny 1
Gertrude 1
Harriett 1
Henriette 1
Jane 1
Jeanne 1
Julia 1
Lizzie 1
Louisa 1
Lousia 1
Mabel 1
Mahala 1
Margaret 1
Margrett 1
Matilda 1
Nellie 1
Rebecca 1
Sophia 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
George 8
William 8
Henry 6
James 6
Frederick 4
Harry 4
Alfred 3
Charles 3
John 3
Samuel 3
Conrad 2
Frank 2
Jacob 2
Joseph 2
Martin 2
Thomas 2
Alfd. 1
Arthur 1
Bernard 1
Fred 1
Frederic 1
Geo. 1
Gilbert 1
Henrich 1
Justin 1
Maritz 1
Reginald 1
Thos. 1

FAQ

Dorr surname: questions and answers

How common was the Dorr surname in 1881?

In 1881, 165 people were recorded with the Dorr surname. That placed it at #14,559 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Dorr surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 178 in 2016. That gives Dorr a modern rank of #21,160.

What does the Dorr surname mean?

Derived from the Middle English and Old French word "dorre," meaning a doorkeeper or gatekeeper.

What does the Dorr map show?

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