NameCensus.

UK surname

Dronfield

In the 1881 census there were 207 people recorded with the Dronfield surname, ranking it #12,555 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 250, ranked #16,792, down from #12,555 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Ecclesfield, Chesterfield and Sheffield. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Stratford-on-Avon, Sheffield and Leicester.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Dronfield is 297 in 2000. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 20.8%.

1881 census count

207

Ranked #12,555

Modern count

250

2016, ranked #16,792

Peak year

2000

297 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Dronfield had 207 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #12,555 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 250 in 2016, ranked #16,792.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 284 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Rural Amenity.

Dronfield surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Dronfield surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Dronfield 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 155 #12,604
1861 historical 146 #15,628
1881 historical 207 #12,555
1891 historical 211 #14,366
1901 historical 241 #13,417
1911 historical 284 #11,862
1997 modern 282 #14,072
1998 modern 293 #14,094
1999 modern 290 #14,281
2000 modern 297 #14,008
2001 modern 288 #14,103
2002 modern 287 #14,402
2003 modern 281 #14,443
2004 modern 276 #14,684
2005 modern 272 #14,742
2006 modern 257 #15,448
2007 modern 265 #15,295
2008 modern 255 #15,859
2009 modern 252 #16,323
2010 modern 255 #16,563
2011 modern 257 #16,335
2012 modern 262 #16,001
2013 modern 255 #16,551
2014 modern 261 #16,421
2015 modern 259 #16,409
2016 modern 250 #16,792

Geography

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Where Dronfields are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Ecclesfield, Chesterfield, Sheffield, Staveley and Ecclesfield (Ecclesfield), Rotherham (Dalton), Conisborough. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Stratford-on-Avon, Sheffield, Leicester and Amber Valley. 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 Ecclesfield Yorkshire, West Riding
2 Chesterfield Derbyshire
3 Sheffield Yorkshire, West Riding
4 Staveley Derbyshire
5 Ecclesfield (Ecclesfield), Rotherham (Dalton), Conisborough Yorkshire, West Riding

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Stratford-on-Avon 005 Stratford-on-Avon
2 Sheffield 008 Sheffield
3 Sheffield 025 Sheffield
4 Leicester 003 Leicester
5 Amber Valley 003 Amber Valley

Forenames

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First names often paired with Dronfield

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Dronfield

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

Inner London Working Professionals

Within London, Dronfield 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

Dronfield is most concentrated in decile 5 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.

5
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Dronfield falls in decile 9 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.

9
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Dronfield is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of 25-30 mbit/s.

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

5
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - British

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

1881 census detail

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Dronfield families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Dronfield 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. Yorkshire leads with 104 Dronfields recorded in 1881 and an index of 5.20x.

County Total Index
Yorkshire 104 5.20x
Derbyshire 77 24.36x
Middlesex 9 0.45x
Lincolnshire 7 2.17x
Leicestershire 5 2.23x
Lancashire 3 0.13x
Staffordshire 2 0.29x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Ecclesfield in Yorkshire leads with 25 Dronfields recorded in 1881 and an index of 170.42x.

Place Total Index
Ecclesfield 25 170.42x
Bradfield 22 285.34x
Staveley 22 392.16x
Sheffield 15 23.55x
Chesterfield 13 109.70x
Brightside Bierlow 11 28.03x
Claylane 9 205.01x
Hornsey 9 35.24x
Ecclesall Bierlow 8 19.66x
Wortley In Wortley 8 1012.66x
Barnsley 7 33.91x
Eyam 7 795.45x
St Martin Lincoln 7 233.33x
Wingerworth 7 2500.00x
Derwent 6 4615.38x
Callow 5 8333.33x
Heeley 5 82.24x
Heather 4 1290.32x
Ardwick 3 13.88x
South Normanton 3 135.14x
Chapel En Le Frith 2 69.20x
Hollinsclough 2 833.33x
Hunshelf 2 204.08x
Bakewell 1 57.80x
Blaston 1 1111.11x
Eckington 1 13.02x
Nether Padley 1 3333.33x
Penistone 1 64.10x

Top female names

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

Name Count
John 18
William 12
George 10
Henry 6
Alfred 4
Charles 4
Francis 4
Arthur 3
Edward 3
Wilfred 3
Albert 2
Cornelius 2
Ernest 2
Fred 2
Frederick 2
Harry 2
Herbert 2
James 2
Joseph 2
Matthew 2
Percy 2
Samuel 2
Alice 1
Ambrose 1
Aurther 1
Cliffe 1
David 1
Earnest 1
Emblen 1
Frank 1
Hedley 1
Horace 1
Hugh 1
Isreal 1
Job 1
Jonathan 1
Joshua 1
Mathew 1
Paul 1
Robert 1
Robinson 1
Thomas 1

FAQ

Dronfield surname: questions and answers

How common was the Dronfield surname in 1881?

In 1881, 207 people were recorded with the Dronfield surname. That placed it at #12,555 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Dronfield surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 250 in 2016. That gives Dronfield a modern rank of #16,792.

What does the Dronfield map show?

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