NameCensus.

UK surname

Hatter

An occupational surname referring to a maker or seller of hats.

In the 1881 census there were 368 people recorded with the Hatter surname, ranking it #8,454 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 414, ranked #11,574, down from #8,454 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to London parishes, St Leonard Shoreditch and Bromham, Chittoe (Bishops Canning). In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Rother, Brentwood and North West Leicestershire.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Hatter is 470 in 1911. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 12.5%.

1881 census count

368

Ranked #8,454

Modern count

414

2016, ranked #11,574

Peak year

1911

470 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Hatter had 368 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #8,454 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 414 in 2016, ranked #11,574.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 470 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Rural Amenity.

Hatter surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Hatter surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Hatter 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 249 #8,816
1861 historical 296 #8,532
1881 historical 368 #8,454
1891 historical 383 #9,178
1901 historical 457 #8,610
1911 historical 470 #8,217
1997 modern 402 #10,974
1998 modern 432 #10,737
1999 modern 438 #10,695
2000 modern 425 #10,898
2001 modern 419 #10,835
2002 modern 422 #11,002
2003 modern 409 #11,088
2004 modern 407 #11,135
2005 modern 390 #11,397
2006 modern 394 #11,383
2007 modern 393 #11,526
2008 modern 391 #11,675
2009 modern 398 #11,768
2010 modern 412 #11,707
2011 modern 396 #11,943
2012 modern 413 #11,451
2013 modern 426 #11,350
2014 modern 435 #11,224
2015 modern 425 #11,346
2016 modern 414 #11,574

Geography

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Where Hatters are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around London parishes, St Leonard Shoreditch, Bromham, Chittoe (Bishops Canning), St Matthew Bethnal Green and Lineham. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Rother, Brentwood, North West Leicestershire, Gosport and Rhondda Cynon Taf. 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 St Leonard Shoreditch London (East Districts)
3 Bromham, Chittoe (Bishops Canning) Wiltshire
4 St Matthew Bethnal Green London (East Districts)
5 Lineham Wiltshire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Rother 004 Rother
2 Brentwood 005 Brentwood
3 North West Leicestershire 007 North West Leicestershire
4 Gosport 004 Gosport
5 Rhondda Cynon Taf 014 Rhondda Cynon Taf

Forenames

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First names often paired with Hatter

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Hatter

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

Professional Employment and Family Lifecycles

Group

Inner London Working Professionals

Within London, Hatter 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

Hatter is most concentrated in decile 5 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.

5
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Hatter 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 Hatter 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 Hatter, not the ethnicity of every person with the surname.

Meaning and origin of Hatter

The surname HATTER is an English occupational name derived from the word "hatter", referring to someone who made or sold hats. This surname has its origins in medieval England, particularly in the cities and towns where hat-making was a prominent trade.

The earliest recorded mention of the surname HATTER can be traced back to the 13th century in various tax rolls and court records from England. Some of the earliest spellings of the name include "le Hatter", "Hattere", and "Hattar".

One of the notable early references to the HATTER surname is found in the Reaney Surname Dictionary, which cites a John le Hatter from the Huntingdonshire Hundred Rolls of 1273. The surname is also recorded in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire in 1297, where a William le Hatter is mentioned.

During the 14th and 15th centuries, the HATTER name became more widespread across England, with records of individuals bearing this surname in various counties, including Oxfordshire, Wiltshire, and Surrey. Some notable examples from this period include John Hatter, who was listed in the Yorkshire Poll Tax Returns of 1379, and Thomas Hatter, recorded in the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex in 1524.

In the 16th and 17th centuries, the HATTER surname continued to be found throughout England, particularly in areas with a strong hatting industry, such as London and the surrounding counties. One notable bearer of this surname was Richard Hatter (1558-1619), a merchant and alderman of the City of London.

The surname HATTER has also been associated with several notable individuals throughout history, including:

1. Sir Henry Hatter (1636-1711), an English merchant and Member of Parliament for Southwark. 2. James Hatter (1765-1845), an English cricketer who played for the famous Hambledon Club. 3. John Hatter (1786-1858), an English engraver and artist known for his topographical views of London. 4. William Hatter (1813-1890), an English landscape painter and member of the Royal Academy. 5. George Hatter (1867-1942), an English footballer who played for several clubs, including Southampton and Nottingham Forest.

While the HATTER surname is most commonly associated with England, it has also been found in other parts of the British Isles and has been carried to various parts of the world through migration and settlement.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Hatter families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Hatter 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. Wiltshire leads with 127 Hatters recorded in 1881 and an index of 40.00x.

County Total Index
Wiltshire 127 40.00x
Middlesex 97 2.70x
Surrey 19 1.09x
Durham 11 1.03x
Sussex 11 1.82x
Hampshire 10 1.36x
Gloucestershire 9 1.28x
Lincolnshire 9 1.57x
Oxfordshire 9 4.06x
Somerset 9 1.56x
Berkshire 7 2.60x
Cardiganshire 7 7.99x
Derbyshire 7 1.25x
Leicestershire 7 1.76x
Lancashire 5 0.12x
Nottinghamshire 5 1.03x
Yorkshire 5 0.14x
Kent 4 0.33x
Warwickshire 4 0.44x
Cheshire 2 0.25x
Dorset 1 0.42x
Herefordshire 1 0.68x
Staffordshire 1 0.08x
Suffolk 1 0.23x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Corsham in Wiltshire leads with 36 Hatters recorded in 1881 and an index of 777.54x.

Place Total Index
Corsham 36 777.54x
Lyneham 23 1854.84x
Shoreditch London 22 14.14x
Bethnal Green London 17 10.90x
Bromham 11 769.23x
Chippenham 9 135.14x
Portsea 9 6.24x
Rye 8 139.13x
Frome 7 50.65x
Holbeach 7 109.55x
Lambeth 7 2.24x
Lampeter 7 813.95x
West Drayton 7 564.52x
Westbury 7 94.47x
Whitechapel London 7 19.79x
Bristol St Philip Jacob 6 9.05x
Burghfield 6 377.36x
Camberwell 6 2.62x
Chipping Norton 6 116.96x
Chiswick 6 30.58x
Dawdon 6 45.66x
Great Bedwin 6 266.67x
St Pancras London 6 2.08x
Tottenham 6 10.50x
Spitalfields London 5 18.52x
Biddestone St Nicholas 4 800.00x
Burbage 4 246.91x
Chittoe 4 1600.00x
Heddington 4 909.09x
Hillingdon 4 34.93x
Hugglescote 4 68.26x
Ilkeston 4 25.38x
Nottingham St Mary 4 3.20x
St George Hanover Square 4 6.32x
Walton On Hill 4 17.33x
Aldbourn 3 162.16x
Reigate Foreign 3 15.84x
Shipley 3 337.08x
Swindon 3 12.18x
Wroughton 3 109.09x
Aston 2 0.80x
Calne 2 30.58x
Eastbourne 2 7.18x
Frieston 2 147.06x
Hammersmith London 2 2.26x
Islington London 2 0.57x
Monkwearmouth 2 19.57x
Oxford St Giles 2 18.90x
Southwark St John 2 18.21x
St Briavels 2 219.78x
Tenterden 2 46.30x
Thringstone 2 131.58x
Aylesford 1 29.50x
Barrow In Furness 1 1.73x
Bow London 1 2.19x
Bristol St Nicholas 1 78.74x
Broughton 1 140.85x
Chester St John Baptist 1 7.02x
Dartford 1 7.99x
Devizes St James 1 23.70x
Devizes St John 1 42.02x
Goodrich 1 108.70x
Great Finborough 1 196.08x
Handsworth 1 10.64x
Harrow On The Hill 1 13.95x
Kensington London 1 0.50x
Langley Burrell 1 75.76x
Liddiard Tregooze 1 123.46x
Loughborough 1 5.54x
Lyncombe Widcombe 1 6.61x
Mile End Old Town London 1 1.31x
Poole St James 1 11.30x
Seend 1 158.73x
St Marylebone London 1 0.52x
Tysoe 1 81.30x
Walcot 1 3.25x
Walsall Foreign 1 1.60x
Wilcott 1 144.93x
Wombwell 1 9.64x
Worksop 1 6.97x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 31
Sarah 20
Elizabeth 15
Ann 10
Jane 7
Emily 6
Emma 6
Harriet 6
Eliza 5
Charlotte 4
Ellen 4
Fanny 4
Margaret 4
Annie 3
Hannah 3
Lucy 3
Maria 3
Rachel 3
Rose 3
Ada 2
Alice 2
Catherine 2
Esther 2
Joyce 2
Louisa 2
Martha 2
Matilda 2
Phoebe 2
Susanah 2
Elzbth. 1
Flora 1
Florence 1
Frances 1
Georgina 1
Grace 1
Helen 1
Henrietta 1
Kate 1
Kezia 1
Learetta 1
Lena 1
Lenore 1
Lydia 1
Magdalen 1
Olise 1
Pamela 1
Prisilla 1
Rachael 1
Riseley 1
Winifred 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
William 23
John 21
Charles 11
George 11
Joseph 11
James 10
Thomas 10
Henry 7
Albert 6
Arthur 4
Frederick 4
Alfred 3
Edwin 3
Matthew 3
Richard 3
Abraham 2
David 2
Edward 2
Frank 2
Hugh 2
Jesse 2
Job 2
Walter 2
Andrew 1
Archie 1
Benjamin 1
Daniel 1
Earnest 1
Elias 1
Elizabeth 1
Ernest 1
Fred 1
Fredrick 1
Geo. 1
Harry 1
Hedley 1
Herbert 1
Horace 1
Jacob 1
Jas. 1
Jasper 1
Kalpen 1
Mark 1
Percival 1
Raphael 1
Richd 1
Richd. 1
Robert 1
Sam 1
Samuel 1

FAQ

Hatter surname: questions and answers

How common was the Hatter surname in 1881?

In 1881, 368 people were recorded with the Hatter surname. That placed it at #8,454 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Hatter surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 414 in 2016. That gives Hatter a modern rank of #11,574.

What does the Hatter surname mean?

An occupational surname referring to a maker or seller of hats.

What does the Hatter map show?

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