NameCensus.

UK surname

Dufour

A French occupational surname referring to a baker or someone who operates an oven.

In the 1881 census there were 92 people recorded with the Dufour surname, ranking it #20,709 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 146, ranked #24,173, down from #20,709 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to London parishes, Newcastle All Saints and St Pancras. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Brighton and Hove, Leicester and Newcastle upon Tyne.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Dufour is 157 in 1998. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 58.7%.

1881 census count

92

Ranked #20,709

Modern count

146

2016, ranked #24,173

Peak year

1998

157 bearers

Map years

5

1901 to 2016

Key insights

  • Dufour had 92 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #20,709 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 146 in 2016, ranked #24,173.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 142 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Diverse Educated Urban Singles.

Dufour surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Dufour surname density by area, 2016 modern.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Dufour 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 45 #25,168
1861 historical 29 #30,287
1881 historical 92 #20,709
1891 historical 75 #27,414
1901 historical 103 #22,444
1911 historical 142 #18,487
1997 modern 134 #22,608
1998 modern 157 #21,058
1999 modern 153 #21,551
2000 modern 147 #22,081
2001 modern 140 #22,441
2002 modern 141 #22,794
2003 modern 131 #23,553
2004 modern 134 #23,425
2005 modern 135 #23,297
2006 modern 129 #24,165
2007 modern 134 #23,931
2008 modern 132 #24,476
2009 modern 138 #24,276
2010 modern 147 #23,809
2011 modern 141 #24,294
2012 modern 138 #24,614
2013 modern 147 #23,977
2014 modern 148 #24,075
2015 modern 147 #24,036
2016 modern 146 #24,173

Geography

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Where Dufours are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around London parishes, Newcastle All Saints, St Pancras and Cheltenham. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Brighton and Hove, Leicester, Newcastle upon Tyne, North Tyneside and Coventry. 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 London parishes London 1
2 London parishes London 3
3 Newcastle All Saints Northumberland
4 St Pancras London (North Districts)
5 Cheltenham Gloucestershire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Brighton and Hove 028 Brighton and Hove
2 Leicester 040 Leicester
3 Newcastle upon Tyne 026 Newcastle upon Tyne
4 North Tyneside 014 North Tyneside
5 Coventry 028 Coventry

Forenames

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First names often paired with Dufour

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Dufour

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

Multicultural and Educated Urbanites

Group

Diverse Educated Urban Singles

Nationally, the Dufour surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Diverse Educated Urban Singles, within Multicultural and Educated Urbanites. This does not mean every Dufour 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 includes many never-married individuals not living with dependent children. Many were born in EU countries and are now aged between 25-44. This Group is characterised by its ethnic group diversity, although those identifying as Asian are not well represented. Affiliation with the Christian religion amongst residents is low. Reported disability rates are low. Neighbourhoods include some central locations in London and other major cities. Private renting is the norm, and there is some overcrowding. Many individuals are educated to degree level, and full-time employment is common, particularly in managerial and professional occupations.

Wider pattern

Established populations comprising ethnic minorities together with persons born outside the UK predominate in this Supergroup. Residents present diverse personal characteristics and circumstances: while generally well-educated and practising skilled occupations, some residents live in overcrowded rental sector housing. English may not be the main language used by people in this Group. Although the typical adult resident is middle aged, single person households are common and marriage rates are low by national standards. This Supergroup predominates in Inner London, with smaller enclaves in many other densely populated metropolitan areas.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Professional Employment and Family Lifecycles

Group

Inner London Working Professionals

Within London, Dufour 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

Dufour is most concentrated in decile 10 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.

10
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Dufour falls in decile 3 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.

3
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Dufour 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 - Other

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

Meaning and origin of Dufour

The surname Dufour originated in France during the medieval period. It is derived from the Old French words "du" meaning "of" and "four" meaning "oven". The name likely referred to someone who worked with an oven, such as a baker or miller.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Dufour appears in the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a comprehensive survey of land ownership in England commissioned by William the Conqueror. This suggests that the name may have been introduced to England by French settlers during the Norman Conquest in the 11th century.

In the 13th century, a notable figure named Guillaume Dufour was a prominent merchant and landowner in the region of Burgundy, France. Another early record dates back to the 14th century, when a man named Jean Dufour was a master baker in the city of Paris.

During the Renaissance period, a French explorer and navigator named Samuel Dufour (1512-1587) gained recognition for his expeditions to the New World and his detailed maps of the Atlantic coast of North America.

In the 18th century, a Swiss mathematician and cartographer named Guillaume-Henri Dufour (1787-1875) made significant contributions to surveying and map-making techniques, and his work was instrumental in the development of modern cartography.

Another notable individual with the surname Dufour was the French artist and illustrator Raoul Dufour (1836-1912), who is best known for his intricate etchings and engravings depicting scenes from French literature and history.

Throughout the centuries, the Dufour name has been associated with various locations and place names in France, such as Dufour-sur-Meuse, Dufour-en-Vexin, and Dufour-sur-Loire, which may have influenced the spelling and pronunciation of the surname in different regions.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Dufour families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Dufour 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. Middlesex leads with 39 Dufours recorded in 1881 and an index of 4.30x.

County Total Index
Middlesex 39 4.30x
Surrey 15 3.39x
Gloucestershire 9 5.06x
Northumberland 9 6.67x
Lancashire 6 0.56x
Durham 4 1.48x
Yorkshire 4 0.45x
Channel Islands 2 7.44x
Montgomeryshire 2 9.62x
Devon 1 0.53x
Kent 1 0.32x
Sussex 1 0.65x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Camberwell in Surrey leads with 9 Dufours recorded in 1881 and an index of 15.53x.

Place Total Index
Camberwell 9 15.53x
Byker 8 119.94x
Islington London 7 7.96x
Kensington London 7 13.88x
Cheltenham 6 43.70x
Lambeth 5 6.32x
Westminster St John 5 45.25x
St George Martyr London 4 217.39x
St Martin In Fields 4 73.66x
Barrow In Furness 3 20.49x
Eston 3 153.06x
Manchester 3 6.20x
Mile End Old Town London 3 15.54x
Stockton On Tees 3 23.06x
Bristol St Augustine 2 69.69x
Llanidloes 2 129.87x
St Helier 2 22.86x
St Pancras London 2 2.74x
Acton 1 18.80x
Clapham 1 8.82x
Gloucester St John Baptist 1 86.96x
Hackington St Stephen 1 500.00x
Heaton 1 222.22x
Lidford 1 117.65x
Middlesbrough 1 8.54x
Middleton In Teesdale 1 140.85x
Mile End New Town London 1 55.87x
South Bersted 1 76.92x
St Anne Soho London 1 19.31x
St George Bloomsbury 1 19.23x
St Giles In Fields London 1 22.47x
St Marylebone London 1 2.06x
Westminster St Margaret 1 22.83x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Jane 3
Maria 3
Alice 2
Hannah 2
Louise 2
Mary 2
Adolphine 1
Anna 1
Annie 1
Berthe 1
Blanch 1
Cacilia 1
Edith 1
Eliza 1
Elizabeth 1
Elizh. 1
Ellen 1
Esther 1
Eulalie 1
Gertude 1
Helena 1
Irma 1
Isabella 1
Jennie 1
Josephine 1
Leila 1
Louisa 1
Lucy 1
Margt. 1
Rosa 1
Rose 1
Srima 1
Suzette 1
Vergmie 1
Victoria 1
Winnefred 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
Charles 7
Ernest 3
Joseph 3
William 3
Alexander 2
Alfred 2
George 2
Henry 2
John 2
Walter 2
Albert 1
Auguste 1
Augusten 1
Camille 1
Carl 1
Edward 1
Ferdinand 1
Harry 1
Heinrich 1
Henri 1
Herbert 1
Hippelyte 1
Jean 1
Josh. 1
Louis 1
Nicholas 1
Oswald 1
Paul 1
Raphael 1
Robert 1

FAQ

Dufour surname: questions and answers

How common was the Dufour surname in 1881?

In 1881, 92 people were recorded with the Dufour surname. That placed it at #20,709 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Dufour surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 146 in 2016. That gives Dufour a modern rank of #24,173.

What does the Dufour surname mean?

A French occupational surname referring to a baker or someone who operates an oven.

What does the Dufour map show?

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