NameCensus.

UK surname

Follows

In the 1881 census there were 628 people recorded with the Follows surname, ranking it #5,639 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 960, ranked #5,989, down from #5,639 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Sedgley, London parishes and Stafford St Mary and St Chad, Tillington. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Cannock Chase, Walsall and Dudley.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Follows is 1,053 in 1911. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 52.9%.

1881 census count

628

Ranked #5,639

Modern count

960

2016, ranked #5,989

Peak year

1911

1,053 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Follows had 628 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #5,639 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 960 in 2016, ranked #5,989.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 1,053 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Suburban Professionals.

Follows surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Follows surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Follows 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 343 #6,861
1861 historical 401 #6,399
1881 historical 628 #5,639
1891 historical 702 #5,586
1901 historical 844 #5,394
1911 historical 1,053 #4,374
1997 modern 922 #5,862
1998 modern 1,017 #5,605
1999 modern 1,016 #5,644
2000 modern 995 #5,713
2001 modern 973 #5,701
2002 modern 993 #5,725
2003 modern 965 #5,762
2004 modern 964 #5,772
2005 modern 922 #5,913
2006 modern 904 #6,019
2007 modern 910 #6,036
2008 modern 920 #6,034
2009 modern 952 #5,988
2010 modern 960 #6,071
2011 modern 967 #5,978
2012 modern 948 #5,990
2013 modern 966 #5,992
2014 modern 975 #5,981
2015 modern 969 #5,966
2016 modern 960 #5,989

Geography

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Where Follows' are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Sedgley, London parishes, Stafford St Mary and St Chad, Tillington, Leicester St Margaret and Bishop's Fee, Leicester All Saints, Blackfriars and St Mary Newington. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Cannock Chase, Walsall and Dudley. 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 Sedgley Staffordshire
2 London parishes London 3
3 Stafford St Mary and St Chad, Tillington Staffordshire
4 Leicester St Margaret and Bishop's Fee, Leicester All Saints, Blackfriars Leicestershire
5 St Mary Newington London (South Districts)

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Cannock Chase 002 Cannock Chase
2 Walsall 025 Walsall
3 Cannock Chase 003 Cannock Chase
4 Cannock Chase 001 Cannock Chase
5 Dudley 002 Dudley

Forenames

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First names often paired with Follows

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Follows

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

Ethnically Diverse Suburban Professionals

Group

Suburban Professionals

Nationally, the Follows surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Suburban Professionals, within Ethnically Diverse Suburban Professionals. This does not mean every Follows household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

Employment in this Group is typically in managerial and professional occupations, and education to degree level is common. Residents are typically of working age, many of whom identify with an Indian ethnicity. Households are unlikely to be of Mixed or Multiple ethnicities, and English is not the main language used in some households. This Group is found on the outskirts of most conurbations as well as in the suburbs of some free-standing towns.

Wider pattern

Those working within the managerial, professional and administrative occupations typically reflect a wide range of ethnic groups, and reside in detached or semi-detached housing. Their residential locations at the edges of cities and conurbations and car-based lifestyles are more characteristic of Supergroup membership than birthplace or participation in child-rearing. Houses are typically owner-occupied and marriage rates are lower than the national average. This Supergroup is found throughout suburban UK.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Social Rented Sector Families with Children

Group

Social Rented Sector Pockets

Within London, Follows 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

Follows is most concentrated in decile 6 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.

6
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Follows falls in decile 1 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.

1
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Follows is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of 50-60 mbit/s.

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

8
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - British

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

1881 census detail

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Follows families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Follows 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. Staffordshire leads with 289 Follows' recorded in 1881 and an index of 14.00x.

County Total Index
Staffordshire 289 14.00x
Leicestershire 62 9.14x
Lancashire 53 0.73x
Worcestershire 43 5.38x
Surrey 28 0.94x
Nottinghamshire 24 2.91x
Derbyshire 22 2.30x
Warwickshire 20 1.30x
Middlesex 16 0.26x
Shropshire 16 3.03x
Cheshire 14 1.04x
Yorkshire 11 0.18x
Northamptonshire 6 1.04x
Cumberland 5 0.95x
Kent 5 0.24x
Buckinghamshire 4 1.08x
Lincolnshire 3 0.31x
Norfolk 3 0.32x
Pembrokeshire 2 1.03x
Hertfordshire 1 0.24x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Stafford St Mary in Staffordshire leads with 124 Follows' recorded in 1881 and an index of 424.37x.

Place Total Index
Stafford St Mary 124 424.37x
Stoke Upon Trent 32 14.62x
Northfield 22 145.21x
Leicester St Margaret 19 11.49x
Birmingham 17 3.31x
Denton 17 105.72x
Tipton 16 25.31x
Sandiacre 15 438.60x
Croft 14 1157.02x
Acton Trussell 11 956.52x
Sedgley 11 14.35x
Burntwood Edial 10 75.82x
Southwark St George Martyr 10 8.13x
Castle Church 9 72.52x
Newington 9 3.98x
Romsley 9 1034.48x
Wymeswold 9 459.18x
Barton Upon Irwell 8 14.64x
Costock 8 1230.77x
Dawley 8 41.60x
Norton In Moors 8 73.19x
Broughton Astley 7 472.97x
Camberwell 7 1.79x
Cheslyn Hay 7 185.68x
Congleton 7 30.00x
Earl Shilton 7 472.97x
Marston 7 503.60x
Norton Canes 7 93.09x
East Retford 6 83.92x
Hanbury 6 277.78x
St Botolph Aldgate London 6 47.62x
Wellingborough 6 20.74x
Wolverhampton 6 3.78x
Burslem 5 8.45x
Denaby 5 145.77x
Derby St Alkmund 5 17.42x
St Cuthbert W O Harraby 5 704.23x
St Marylebone London 5 1.53x
Stirchley 5 925.93x
Ardwick 4 6.11x
Cannock 4 11.10x
Gorton 4 5.86x
Poplar London 4 3.47x
Salford 4 1.87x
Stoke Poges 4 88.69x
Swinfen Packington 4 470.59x
Wolstanton 4 6.38x
Belgrave 3 19.61x
Bexley 3 16.26x
Boston 3 10.11x
Bury 3 3.62x
Butterworth 3 16.97x
East Leake 3 151.52x
Hammerwich 3 102.39x
Heigham 3 5.94x
Lenton 3 15.45x
Manchester 3 0.92x
Nantwich 3 19.12x
Newcastle Under Lyme 3 8.21x
Nottingham St Mary 3 1.41x
Trentham 3 17.08x
Wednesbury 3 5.82x
Wednesfield 3 9.87x
West Derby 3 1.41x
Blackburn 2 1.04x
Buglawton 2 61.54x
Derby St Werburgh 2 3.62x
Gillingham 2 4.65x
Handsworth 2 3.93x
Kidderminster Foreign 2 17.71x
Lambeth 2 0.38x
Narborough 2 107.53x
Prees 2 31.06x
Reynoldston 2 1333.33x
York St Mary 2 7.97x
York St Michael 2 227.27x
Aston 1 0.24x
Frankley 1 322.58x
Lichfield St Michael 1 15.43x
Northchurch 1 22.22x

Top female names

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

Name Count
William 42
John 41
Thomas 29
George 27
James 23
Henry 14
Joseph 13
Charles 10
Edward 9
Samuel 8
Alfred 6
Arthur 6
Benjamin 4
Edwin 4
Amos 3
Ernest 3
Harry 3
Jacob 3
Richard 3
Robert 3
Albert 2
Frank 2
Frederick 2
Henery 2
Job 2
Samson 2
Walter 2
Alexander 1
Ann 1
Benjn. 1
Byron 1
David 1
Francis 1
Fredk. 1
Fredk.W. 1
Fredrick 1
Geo. 1
Howard 1
Hubert 1
Isaac 1
Jabez 1
Jairus 1
Jarius 1
Leonard 1
Oliver 1
Percival 1
Ralph 1
Robt. 1
Thos 1
Wm.Alfd. 1

FAQ

Follows surname: questions and answers

How common was the Follows surname in 1881?

In 1881, 628 people were recorded with the Follows surname. That placed it at #5,639 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Follows surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 960 in 2016. That gives Follows a modern rank of #5,989.

What does the Follows map show?

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