NameCensus.

UK surname

Garratt

A surname derived from a territorial name for someone who lived near a gate or passageway.

In the 1881 census there were 3,047 people recorded with the Garratt surname, ranking it #1,471 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 4,017, ranked #1,689, down from #1,471 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Dudley, London parishes and St Werburgh. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Sandwell, Dudley and Milton Keynes.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Garratt is 4,483 in 1911. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 31.8%.

1881 census count

3,047

Ranked #1,471

Modern count

4,017

2016, ranked #1,689

Peak year

1911

4,483 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Garratt had 3,047 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #1,471 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 4,017 in 2016, ranked #1,689.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 4,483 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Rural Amenity.

Garratt surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Garratt surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Garratt 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 1,997 #1,451
1861 historical 1,930 #1,509
1881 historical 3,047 #1,471
1891 historical 3,198 #1,483
1901 historical 3,899 #1,445
1911 historical 4,483 #1,152
1997 modern 4,161 #1,555
1998 modern 4,284 #1,567
1999 modern 4,341 #1,559
2000 modern 4,258 #1,576
2001 modern 4,183 #1,569
2002 modern 4,178 #1,608
2003 modern 4,058 #1,627
2004 modern 4,011 #1,646
2005 modern 3,960 #1,645
2006 modern 3,955 #1,645
2007 modern 3,983 #1,654
2008 modern 3,976 #1,668
2009 modern 4,062 #1,668
2010 modern 4,161 #1,668
2011 modern 4,093 #1,669
2012 modern 4,008 #1,678
2013 modern 4,132 #1,657
2014 modern 4,115 #1,669
2015 modern 4,065 #1,678
2016 modern 4,017 #1,689

Geography

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Where Garratts are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Dudley, London parishes, St Werburgh, Northampton St Giles, Northampton St Sepulchre, Northampton Priory and Leicester St Margaret and Bishop's Fee, Leicester All Saints, Blackfriars. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Sandwell, Dudley and Milton Keynes. 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 Dudley Staffordshire
2 London parishes London 3
3 St Werburgh Derbyshire
4 Northampton St Giles, Northampton St Sepulchre, Northampton Priory Northamptonshire
5 Leicester St Margaret and Bishop's Fee, Leicester All Saints, Blackfriars Leicestershire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Sandwell 014 Sandwell
2 Sandwell 009 Sandwell
3 Dudley 033 Dudley
4 Milton Keynes 002 Milton Keynes
5 Dudley 020 Dudley

Forenames

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First names often paired with Garratt

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Garratt

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

The Greater London Mix

Group

Social Rented Sector Professional Support Workers

Within London, Garratt 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

Garratt 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

Garratt 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 Garratt is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of 60-70 mbit/s.

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

9
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - British

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

Meaning and origin of Garratt

The surname Garratt is of English origin, deriving from the medieval given name Gerard or Gerald. The name first emerged in the 12th century in the county of Lancashire, located in northwest England. It is believed to have originated from the Old French name Gerard, which itself derived from the Germanic elements "gar" meaning "spear" and "wald" meaning "rule."

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Garratt can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire from 1166, where a man named Gerardus is mentioned. The name also appears in the Hundred Rolls of Cambridgeshire from 1273, referring to a person named Adam Garret.

During the Middle Ages, the surname Garratt was often associated with the town of Garratt Green, located in the parish of Wandsworth, Surrey. This area was mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086 under the name "Garferodegreen." It is possible that some individuals bearing the surname Garratt may have originated from or had connections to this place.

Notable individuals with the surname Garratt throughout history include Sir Thomas Garratt (1551-1635), a wealthy English merchant and Member of Parliament for Arundel during the reign of King James I. Another prominent figure was John Garratt (c.1630-1711), an English Baptist minister and author who played a significant role in the early development of the Baptist movement.

In the 18th century, Samuel Garratt (1749-1827) was a British naval officer and navigator who served in the Royal Navy during the American Revolutionary War and the Napoleonic Wars. He is particularly known for his contributions to the development of navigation techniques and the improvement of nautical charts.

The 19th century saw the rise of George Mifflin Garratt (1835-1902), an American jurist and politician who served as a judge in Iowa and was later appointed as the United States Attorney General under President William McKinley.

Another notable individual was Sir Samuel Garratt (1865-1945), a British civil engineer who was instrumental in the construction of several major railway projects in India and played a crucial role in the development of the country's transportation infrastructure during the British Raj.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Garratt families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Garratt 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. Warwickshire leads with 367 Garratts recorded in 1881 and an index of 4.91x.

County Total Index
Warwickshire 367 4.91x
Middlesex 301 1.02x
Derbyshire 267 5.75x
Northamptonshire 208 7.46x
Lancashire 195 0.55x
Staffordshire 185 1.85x
Leicestershire 181 5.51x
Yorkshire 176 0.60x
Surrey 151 1.05x
Nottinghamshire 113 2.83x
Worcestershire 111 2.87x
Lincolnshire 92 1.94x
Buckinghamshire 70 3.91x
Cheshire 61 0.93x
Bedfordshire 60 3.91x
Hertfordshire 53 2.59x
Somerset 53 1.11x
Kent 48 0.47x
Essex 30 0.51x
Sussex 30 0.60x
Wiltshire 25 0.95x
Flintshire 23 2.89x
Huntingdonshire 23 3.91x
Glamorgan 21 0.41x
Berkshire 19 0.85x
Durham 16 0.18x
Oxfordshire 16 0.87x
Hampshire 15 0.25x
Shropshire 14 0.55x
Rutland 13 5.97x
Cambridgeshire 11 0.59x
Devon 11 0.18x
Northumberland 11 0.25x
Pembrokeshire 11 1.17x
Cornwall 10 0.30x
Norfolk 9 0.20x
Herefordshire 8 0.66x
Suffolk 6 0.17x
Carmarthenshire 5 0.40x
Gloucestershire 4 0.07x
Isle of Man 3 0.55x
Monmouthshire 3 0.14x
Dorset 2 0.10x
Lanarkshire 2 0.02x
Royal Navy 2 0.57x
Ayrshire 1 0.05x
Dumfriesshire 1 0.15x
Merionethshire 1 0.18x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Dudley in Worcestershire leads with 97 Garratts recorded in 1881 and an index of 20.62x.

Place Total Index
Dudley 97 20.62x
Birmingham 79 3.17x
Aston 57 2.77x
Derby St Werburgh 48 17.92x
Islington London 39 1.36x
Bethnal Green London 33 2.56x
Coventry Holy Trinity 33 14.79x
Lambeth 33 1.28x
Melbourne 33 104.07x
Northampton Priory St 32 19.13x
Hinckley 31 39.77x
Leicester St Margaret 30 3.74x
Northampton St Giles 29 27.31x
Rowley Regis 29 10.40x
Chilvers Coton 27 87.83x
Hornsey 27 7.20x
Nottingham St Mary 27 2.61x
West Bromwich 27 4.71x
Salford 26 2.51x
Sheffield 26 2.78x
Newington 25 2.28x
Northampton St Sepulchre 23 16.22x
St Pancras London 23 0.96x
Hanslope 21 130.43x
Barrow Upon Trent 20 557.10x
Coventry St Michael 20 8.33x
Luton 20 7.53x
Nether Heyford 20 243.01x
Wednesbury 20 8.00x
Alfreton 19 13.48x
Handsworth 19 7.71x
Dunchurch 18 176.30x
Nuneaton 18 20.79x
Shoreditch London 17 1.32x
Warminster 17 29.60x
Great Gidding 16 326.53x
St Marylebone London 16 1.01x
Youlgreave 16 119.23x
Arnold 15 25.72x
Basford 15 8.15x
Camberwell 15 0.79x
Liverpool 15 0.70x
Peterborough 15 7.43x
Rugby 15 14.84x
Warkworth 15 59.78x
Westminster St James 15 4.92x
Hertford St Andrew 14 55.49x
Hitchin 14 15.18x
Runcorn 14 9.28x
Airmyn 13 257.43x
Baddesley Ensor 13 135.70x
Rotherham 13 7.85x
St George Hanover Square 13 2.49x
Bassingham 12 163.27x
Guildford Holy Trinity 12 43.60x
Kirkby In Ashfield 12 28.08x
Liscard 12 10.18x
Mile End Old Town London 12 1.90x
Newton Solney 12 251.05x
Northop 12 42.54x
Oldham 12 1.06x
Radstock 12 38.25x
Ridgmont 12 158.52x
Southwark Christchurch 12 8.64x
St George In East London 12 4.30x
Stanton 12 155.24x
Uppingham 12 46.26x
Bedminster 11 2.45x
Croydon 11 1.37x
Deptford St Paul 11 1.41x
Dewsbury 11 3.65x
Drayton In Hales 11 20.84x
Edgbaston 11 4.75x
Hammersmith London 11 1.51x
Hawarden 11 17.58x
Manchester 11 0.70x
Appleby 10 130.04x
Earl Shilton 10 139.86x
Long Eaton 10 16.33x
Wavendon 10 100.70x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 186
Sarah 125
Elizabeth 123
Ann 67
Emma 55
Eliza 50
Annie 48
Alice 43
Jane 38
Martha 32
Ellen 31
Emily 27
Hannah 27
Charlotte 23
Fanny 23
Louisa 23
Harriet 22
Maria 21
Florence 19
Kate 19
Lucy 19
Margaret 18
Ada 17
Caroline 15
Edith 15
Susan 15
Catherine 14
Clara 12
Anne 11
Frances 11
Gertrude 11
Matilda 11
Esther 10
Elizth. 9
Ruth 9
Julia 8
Amelia 7
Harriett 7
Lizzie 7
Lydia 7
Rebecca 7
Rose 7
Agnes 6
Minnie 6
Selina 6
Beatrice 5
Mabel 5
Maud 5
Rosina 5
Sophia 5

Top male names

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

Name Count
William 196
John 164
George 127
Thomas 114
Joseph 85
Charles 78
James 73
Arthur 45
Henry 45
Samuel 40
Walter 37
Alfred 32
Edward 31
Frederick 31
Herbert 21
Robert 20
Richard 19
Harry 18
Frank 17
Ernest 15
Albert 14
Benjamin 13
Wm. 13
Francis 10
Edwin 9
Fred 9
Stephen 9
Thos. 9
Isaac 8
Mark 8
Percy 8
David 5
Fredrick 5
Geo. 5
Julius 5
Tom 5
Abraham 4
Daniel 4
Lewis 4
Sidney 4
Frederic 3
Horace 3
Isaiah 3
Jonathan 3
Joshua 3
Philip 3
Reuben 3
Willie 3
Joe 2
Raymond 2

FAQ

Garratt surname: questions and answers

How common was the Garratt surname in 1881?

In 1881, 3,047 people were recorded with the Garratt surname. That placed it at #1,471 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Garratt surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 4,017 in 2016. That gives Garratt a modern rank of #1,689.

What does the Garratt surname mean?

A surname derived from a territorial name for someone who lived near a gate or passageway.

What does the Garratt map show?

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