NameCensus.

UK surname

Giffard

In the 1881 census there were 209 people recorded with the Giffard surname, ranking it #12,475 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 282, ranked #15,406, down from #12,475 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Egham, Fryern Barnet and St Pancras. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Caerphilly, Blaenau Gwent and South Staffordshire.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Giffard is 291 in 2009. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 34.9%.

1881 census count

209

Ranked #12,475

Modern count

282

2016, ranked #15,406

Peak year

2009

291 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Giffard had 209 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #12,475 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 282 in 2016, ranked #15,406.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 289 in 1891.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Ageing Communities.

Giffard surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Giffard surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Giffard 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 103 #16,835
1861 historical 141 #16,072
1881 historical 209 #12,475
1891 historical 289 #11,425
1901 historical 190 #15,634
1911 historical 197 #15,101
1997 modern 252 #15,193
1998 modern 260 #15,291
1999 modern 267 #15,097
2000 modern 266 #15,096
2001 modern 259 #15,151
2002 modern 286 #14,442
2003 modern 276 #14,604
2004 modern 277 #14,644
2005 modern 279 #14,480
2006 modern 266 #15,076
2007 modern 275 #14,888
2008 modern 273 #15,113
2009 modern 291 #14,742
2010 modern 278 #15,567
2011 modern 285 #15,140
2012 modern 280 #15,248
2013 modern 287 #15,224
2014 modern 286 #15,378
2015 modern 283 #15,380
2016 modern 282 #15,406

Geography

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Where Giffards are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Egham, Fryern Barnet, St Pancras, Totnes and Lambeth. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Caerphilly, Blaenau Gwent, South Staffordshire and Torbay. 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 Egham Berkshire
2 Fryern Barnet Middlesex (Exclusive Of London Districts)
3 St Pancras London (North Districts)
4 Totnes Devon
5 Lambeth London (South Districts)

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Caerphilly 007 Caerphilly
2 Blaenau Gwent 008 Blaenau Gwent
3 South Staffordshire 003 South Staffordshire
4 Torbay 004 Torbay
5 Torbay 018 Torbay

Forenames

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First names often paired with Giffard

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Giffard

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

Ageing Communities

Nationally, the Giffard surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Ageing Communities, within Suburbanites and Peri-Urbanities. This does not mean every Giffard household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

Many residents are of normal retirement age or above and live in communal establishments, and there are few dependent children. The dominant property type is a mix of retirement flats and detached houses. Those in work are likely to be employed in managerial and professional occupations, and many residents are educated to degree level. Levels of owner occupation are high, but the private rental sector is also present. Rural locations predominate.

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

Established Homeowners with Children

Within London, Giffard is most associated with areas classed as Established Homeowners with Children, 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 predominantly British-born residents are typically married/in civil partnerships and own the properties in which they are raising their children. Parents are typically over 45, and many other residents are beyond normal retirement age. Detached and semi-detached houses predominate and multiple car ownership is common.

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

Giffard is most concentrated in decile 4 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.

4
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Giffard falls in decile 2 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.

2
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Giffard 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 Giffard, not the ethnicity of every person with the surname.

1881 census detail

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Giffard families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Giffard 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 49 Giffards recorded in 1881 and an index of 1.99x.

County Total Index
Middlesex 49 1.99x
Channel Islands 42 57.43x
Surrey 29 2.41x
Lancashire 25 0.85x
Kent 23 2.73x
Devon 12 2.34x
Staffordshire 10 1.20x
Glamorgan 9 2.09x
Cornwall 8 2.86x
Hampshire 8 1.58x
Essex 7 1.44x
Sussex 6 1.44x
Buckinghamshire 5 3.35x
Herefordshire 4 3.95x
Dorset 3 1.85x
Somerset 2 0.50x
Aberdeenshire 1 0.44x
Argyllshire 1 1.46x
Ayrshire 1 0.54x
Banffshire 1 1.95x
Berkshire 1 0.54x
Berwickshire 1 3.35x
Dumfriesshire 1 1.83x
Gloucestershire 1 0.21x
Renfrewshire 1 0.52x
Royal Navy 1 3.40x
Worcestershire 1 0.31x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. St Helier in Channel Islands leads with 14 Giffards recorded in 1881 and an index of 58.80x.

Place Total Index
St Helier 14 58.80x
Southwark St George Martyr 11 22.15x
Chatham 10 43.16x
Habergham Eaves 10 37.36x
St George Hanover Square 8 18.40x
St Peter 8 379.15x
St Peters 7 179.49x
Breage 6 235.29x
Brixham 6 100.84x
Bury 6 17.94x
Deane 6 5000.00x
St Saviour 6 148.51x
Wolborough 6 92.45x
Hackney London 5 3.61x
Kensington London 5 3.64x
Springfield 5 234.74x
St Clement 5 450.45x
St Pancras London 5 2.52x
Wavendon 5 602.41x
Brewood 4 166.67x
Brighton 4 4.76x
Ewyas Harold 4 869.57x
Lambeth 4 1.86x
Mile End Old Town London 4 7.61x
Shoreditch London 4 3.74x
Bermondsey 3 4.08x
Camberwell 3 1.90x
Herne 3 80.43x
Hornsey 3 9.61x
Lyme Regis 3 154.64x
Salford 3 3.48x
St John Near Swansea 3 56.50x
St Marylebone London 3 2.28x
St Peter Port 3 22.17x
Stoke Upon Trent 3 3.40x
Swansea Higher 3 66.96x
Barnes 2 39.29x
Bethnal Green London 2 1.87x
Burstow 2 196.08x
Frome 2 21.05x
Hastings St Mary 2 19.31x
Liverpool 2 1.12x
Llanwonno 2 12.95x
Plumstead 2 7.13x
Poplar London 2 4.29x
Preston 2 2.55x
St Anne 2 152.67x
St Martin 2 44.64x
St Martin In Fields 2 13.53x
St Sampson 2 60.61x
Ulverston 2 23.45x
Walton On Thames 2 36.23x
West Ham 2 1.86x
Wolstanton 2 7.91x
Cairney 1 75.19x
Cardiff St John 1 7.12x
Cheam 1 77.52x
Chelsea London 1 1.34x
Deptford St Paul 1 1.54x
Eastwood 1 8.49x
Edmonton 1 5.03x
Great Malvern 1 14.88x
Islington London 1 0.42x
Kilmarnock 1 4.55x
Kilmore Kilbride 1 22.94x
Leatherhead 1 33.22x
Madron Penzance 1 9.84x
Milford 1 67.57x
Moffat 1 40.16x
Nenthorn 1 256.41x
Rathven 1 10.40x
Royal Navy 1 3.98x
South Stoneham 1 9.12x
St Blazey 1 40.82x
St Giles In Fields London 1 8.26x
Stapleton 1 10.89x
Wantage 1 33.90x
Westminster St John 1 3.33x
Westminster St Margaret 1 8.40x
Wolverhampton 1 1.56x

Top female names

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

Name Count
William 14
John 13
George 7
Henry 7
James 7
Edward 5
Alfred 4
Charles 4
Wm. 4
Alexander 3
Christopher 3
Frederick 3
Harry 3
Philip 3
Thomas 3
Arthur 2
Douglas 2
Hardinge 2
Richard 2
Tom 2
Walter 2
Agnew 1
Albert 1
Alex. 1
Benjamin 1
Campbell 1
Cecil 1
Colin 1
E.W. 1
Edmund 1
Francis 1
Fredk. 1
Gerald 1
H. 1
Hanley 1
Harold 1
Herbert 1
Isaac 1
J.H. 1
Natty 1
Robert 1
Samuel 1
Tho. 1
Thos. 1
Warren 1
Zachery 1

FAQ

Giffard surname: questions and answers

How common was the Giffard surname in 1881?

In 1881, 209 people were recorded with the Giffard surname. That placed it at #12,475 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Giffard surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 282 in 2016. That gives Giffard a modern rank of #15,406.

What does the Giffard map show?

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