NameCensus.

UK surname

Fyfe

A topographic surname derived from the Scottish Gaelic word for a small valley.

In the 1881 census there were 2,758 people recorded with the Fyfe surname, ranking it #1,616 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 3,284, ranked #2,067, down from #1,616 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Forfar, Govan Combination and Edinburgh. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Fort William South, Forfar Central and Newmachar and Fintray.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Fyfe is 3,387 in 1901. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 19.1%.

1881 census count

2,758

Ranked #1,616

Modern count

3,284

2016, ranked #2,067

Peak year

1901

3,387 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Fyfe had 2,758 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #1,616 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 3,284 in 2016, ranked #2,067.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 3,387 in 1901.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Established but Challenged.

Fyfe surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Fyfe surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Fyfe 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 1,675 #1,717
1861 historical 1,978 #1,472
1881 historical 2,758 #1,616
1891 historical 3,087 #1,524
1901 historical 3,387 #1,645
1911 historical 449 #8,519
1997 modern 3,028 #2,125
1998 modern 3,198 #2,098
1999 modern 3,206 #2,102
2000 modern 3,151 #2,132
2001 modern 3,060 #2,150
2002 modern 3,147 #2,132
2003 modern 3,051 #2,151
2004 modern 3,109 #2,112
2005 modern 3,088 #2,092
2006 modern 3,055 #2,124
2007 modern 3,120 #2,096
2008 modern 3,176 #2,081
2009 modern 3,223 #2,102
2010 modern 3,243 #2,128
2011 modern 3,193 #2,131
2012 modern 3,160 #2,125
2013 modern 3,205 #2,137
2014 modern 3,253 #2,125
2015 modern 3,261 #2,095
2016 modern 3,284 #2,067

Geography

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Where Fyfes are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Forfar, Govan Combination, Edinburgh, Dundee, Liff, Benvie and Invergowry and Glasgow. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Fort William South, Forfar Central, Newmachar and Fintray, East Cairngorms and Portlethen. Treat these as concentration signals, not proof that every family line began there.

Top historical parishes

Rank Parish Area
1 Forfar Forfar
2 Govan Combination Lanark
3 Edinburgh Edinburgh
4 Dundee, Liff, Benvie and Invergowry Forfar
5 Glasgow Lanark

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Fort William South Highland
2 Forfar Central Angus
3 Newmachar and Fintray Aberdeenshire
4 East Cairngorms Aberdeenshire
5 Portlethen Aberdeenshire

Forenames

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First names often paired with Fyfe

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Fyfe

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

Semi- and Un-Skilled Workforce

Group

Established but Challenged

Nationally, the Fyfe surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Established but Challenged, within Semi- and Un-Skilled Workforce. This does not mean every Fyfe household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

Many households in these neighbourhoods comprise separated or divorced single parents with dependent children. Residents are typically born in the UK, and these neighbourhoods have relatively few members of ethnic minorities. The prevalence of children, their parents and those at or above normal retirement age, suggests neighbourhood structures may be long-established. Levels of unpaid care are high, and long-term disability is more common than in the Supergroup as a whole. Use of the social rented sector is common, often in terraced houses. Levels of overcrowding are above the Supergroup average. Unemployment is high, while those in work are employed in elementary occupations such as caring, leisure and customer services. Many residents have low level qualifications. Neighbourhood concentrations of this Group are found in the South Wales Valleys, Belfast, Londonderry and the Central Lowlands of Scotland.

Wider pattern

Living in terraced or semi-detached houses, residents of these neighbourhoods typically lack high levels of education and work in elementary or routine service occupations. Unemployment is above average. Residents are predominantly born in the UK, and residents are also predominantly from ethnic minorities. Social (but not private sector) rented sector housing is common. This Supergroup is found throughout the UK’s conurbations and industrial regions but is also an integral part of smaller towns.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

The Greater London Mix

Group

Social Rented Sector Professional Support Workers

Within London, Fyfe is most associated with areas classed as Social Rented Sector Professional Support Workers, part of The Greater London Mix. 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

Mainly located in Inner London, these neighbourhoods retain a diverse employment structure, with some concentration in associated professional and technical occupations rather than skilled trades or construction. Social renting is more common and levels of homeownership are low. Many residents identify as Black. There is a lower than average rate of marriage or civil partnership, few that are very old (85 or over) and higher than average incidence of disability.

Wider London pattern

A Supergroup embodying London's diversity in many respects, apart from low numbers of residents identifying as of Bangladeshi, Indian, Pakistani or Other (non-Chinese) Asian ethnicity. There is lower than average prevalence of families with dependent children, while there are above average occurrences of never-married individuals and single-person households. The age distribution is skewed towards younger, single residents and couples without children, with many individuals identifying as of mixed or multiple ethnicity. Social rented or private rented housing is slightly more prevalent than average, and many residents live in flats. Individuals typically work in professional and associated roles in public administration, education or health rather than in elementary occupations in agriculture, energy, water, construction or manufacturing. Incidence of students is slightly below average. Individuals declaring no religion are more prevalent than average and non-use of English at home is below average.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Fyfe is most concentrated in decile 2 for access to healthy assets and hazards. This places the surname towards the less healthy 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.

2
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Fyfe 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 Fyfe is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of Over 70 mbit/s.

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

10
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - British

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

Meaning and origin of Fyfe

The surname Fyfe is of Scottish origin and dates back to the 12th century. It is derived from the Old French word "fife," which means a small pipe or whistle. This suggests that the name may have originally been an occupational name for a piper or musician.

The Fyfe surname is believed to have originated in the counties of Fife, Perthshire, and Angus in eastern Scotland. The earliest recorded spelling of the name appears to be "Fyfe" in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, which were a series of homage rolls listing Scots who pledged allegiance to King Edward I of England.

One of the earliest known bearers of the Fyfe surname was Sir John de Fyfe, who was a Scottish knight and landowner from Fife. He was mentioned in several charters and records from the late 13th and early 14th centuries.

Another notable Fyfe was Andrew Fyfe, who was born in Fife around 1410 and served as the King's Chaplain and Secretary to King James II of Scotland in the mid-15th century. He was also the Rector of the University of St Andrews.

In the 16th century, there was a prominent family of Fyfes who were landowners in the Parish of Dunfermline, Fife. One member of this family was Sir John Fyfe, who was a Burgess of Dunfermline and served as a Commissioner for the county of Fife in the Scottish Parliament in the late 1500s.

The Fyfe surname has also been associated with the Scottish town of Cupar in Fife, which was historically known as "Couper of Fyfe." This place name connection may have contributed to the surname's development.

Other notable historical figures with the Fyfe surname include Robert Fyfe (1564-1636), a Scottish Presbyterian minister and author, and James Fyfe (1767-1851), a Scottish journalist and political reformer who was involved in the radical movement of the late 18th and early 19th centuries.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Fyfe families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Fyfe 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. Lanarkshire leads with 608 Fyfes recorded in 1881 and an index of 7.01x.

County Total Index
Lanarkshire 608 7.01x
Angus 421 16.95x
Aberdeenshire 350 14.09x
Clackmannanshire 202 91.21x
Renfrewshire 154 7.41x
Midlothian 146 4.06x
Perthshire 134 11.13x
Ayrshire 119 5.93x
Fife 114 7.18x
Stirlingshire 74 7.48x
Dunbartonshire 42 5.83x
Middlesex 34 0.13x
Lancashire 32 0.10x
Kincardineshire 26 7.96x
Buteshire 25 15.39x
Durham 23 0.29x
Surrey 21 0.16x
Kinross-shire 19 28.03x
Inverness-shire 18 2.25x
Argyllshire 17 2.28x
Caithness 17 4.63x
Banffshire 16 2.88x
Yorkshire 16 0.06x
Hampshire 14 0.25x
Cheshire 13 0.22x
Kent 12 0.13x
Somerset 9 0.21x
Morayshire 8 1.92x
Roxburghshire 8 1.65x
Denbighshire 7 0.69x
Lincolnshire 6 0.14x
Staffordshire 6 0.07x
Sussex 6 0.13x
Derbyshire 5 0.12x
Essex 5 0.09x
Isle of Man 3 0.60x
Selkirkshire 3 1.24x
Cambridgeshire 2 0.12x
Cornwall 2 0.07x
East Lothian 2 0.56x
Northumberland 2 0.05x
Royal Navy 2 0.63x
Berwickshire 1 0.31x
Monmouthshire 1 0.05x
Norfolk 1 0.02x
Pembrokeshire 1 0.12x
Warwickshire 1 0.01x
West Lothian 1 0.25x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Govan in Lanarkshire leads with 174 Fyfes recorded in 1881 and an index of 8.11x.

Place Total Index
Govan 174 8.11x
Glasgow 155 10.07x
Aberdeen Old Machar 137 26.42x
Barony 123 5.60x
Clackmannan 110 262.78x
Forfar 102 75.83x
Edinburgh St Cuthberts 83 5.74x
Cambuslang 76 86.93x
Alloa 69 64.25x
Dundee 61 6.58x
Kilbirnie 60 124.51x
Aberdeen St Nicholas 55 11.84x
Alva 40 84.80x
East Greenock 32 16.31x
Kirriemuir 30 48.94x
Alyth 28 86.45x
Duddingston 25 34.67x
West Greenock 25 6.70x
Cupar 24 34.76x
Tillicoultry 23 46.68x
Turriff 23 57.37x
Kirkden 22 141.57x
Dunnichen 21 160.31x
Tulliallan 21 102.94x
Cambusnethan 20 10.38x
Kilmalcolm 20 80.32x
Newhills 20 39.33x
Fossoway 19 163.09x
Kirkcaldy 19 24.13x
Abbey 17 5.36x
Liff Benvie 17 4.51x
Port Glasgow 17 16.92x
Rothesay 17 21.61x
Stirling 17 13.63x
Brechin 16 16.39x
Dumbarton 16 15.95x
Liverpool 16 0.83x
St Vigeans 16 11.93x
Cathcart 15 13.34x
Girvan 15 29.77x
Kilmarnock 15 6.28x
Shipley 15 10.88x
Arbroath 14 17.00x
Fyvie 14 34.54x
Glamis 14 93.40x
Montrose 14 9.30x
Old Monkland 14 4.07x
Perth East Church 14 12.34x
Perth Middle Church 14 30.93x
Towie 13 186.51x
Beith 12 20.04x
Darlington 12 3.90x
Dunfermline 12 4.92x
Bonhill 11 9.51x
Cadder 11 17.17x
Kensington London 11 0.74x
Birkenhead 10 2.12x
Dun 10 201.21x
Dunblane 10 34.72x
Ferry Port On Craig 10 38.28x
Paisley High Church 10 6.04x
Scoonie 10 29.09x
Huntly 9 22.27x
Inverkeillor 9 58.44x
Logie 9 20.84x
Thurso 9 15.72x
Blairgowrie 8 16.81x
Bothwell 8 3.40x
Glenmuick Tullich 8 44.69x
Knapdale South 8 31.19x
Larbert 8 13.53x
Mains 8 37.90x
Monikie 8 61.40x
Monquhitter 8 31.12x
New Monkland 8 3.12x
South Leith 8 1.98x
Upton 8 305.34x
Neilston 7 6.71x
Reay 7 34.77x
Stracathro 7 155.90x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 17
Annie 7
Eliza 7
Agnes 6
Elizabeth 6
Emily 6
Jane 6
Alice 5
Edith 4
Isabella 4
Margaret 4
Frances 3
Amy 2
Ellen 2
Florence 2
Helen 2
Jessie 2
Maria 2
A.J. 1
Caroline 1
Catharine 1
Catherine 1
Cathrine 1
Christine 1
Davidena 1
E.H.M. 1
Eleanor 1
Elizbth. 1
Elsie 1
Emilie 1
Emma 1
Janet 1
Jean 1
Jeanie 1
Katie 1
Lizzie 1
Louisa 1
Lucy 1
M.L. 1
Marian 1
Marina 1
Marion 1
Martha 1
Mercy 1
Sophia 1
Theresa 1
Wilhalmina 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
James 17
John 17
William 10
George 8
Charles 4
David 4
Robert 4
Walter 4
Alexander 3
Andrew 3
Arthur 3
Thomas 3
Peter 2
A.A. 1
Alan 1
Alex 1
Alfred 1
Alick 1
Allan 1
Allen 1
Archibald 1
Chas.F. 1
D.W. 1
Eustice 1
Francis 1
Fred 1
Geo.R. 1
Geo.Wm. 1
Herbert 1
Hugh 1
Isaac 1
Josh. 1
Malcolm 1
Martin 1
Ronald 1
Stanley 1
Valentine 1
Wm. 1

FAQ

Fyfe surname: questions and answers

How common was the Fyfe surname in 1881?

In 1881, 2,758 people were recorded with the Fyfe surname. That placed it at #1,616 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Fyfe surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 3,284 in 2016. That gives Fyfe a modern rank of #2,067.

What does the Fyfe surname mean?

A topographic surname derived from the Scottish Gaelic word for a small valley.

What does the Fyfe map show?

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