NameCensus.

UK surname

Hermiston

From an old Scottish parish in East Lothian, near Edinburgh.

In the 1881 census there were 149 people recorded with the Hermiston surname, ranking it #15,551 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 163, ranked #22,407, down from #15,551 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Kelso, Sprouston and Hawick and Wilton. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Ettrick Yarrow and Liliesleaf Area, Selkirk and Rannoch and Aberfeldy.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Hermiston is 174 in 1891. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 9.4%.

1881 census count

149

Ranked #15,551

Modern count

163

2016, ranked #22,407

Peak year

1891

174 bearers

Map years

7

1861 to 2016

Key insights

  • Hermiston had 149 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #15,551 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 163 in 2016, ranked #22,407.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 174 in 1891.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Spacious Rural Living.

Hermiston surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Hermiston surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Hermiston 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 83 #19,181
1861 historical 122 #18,036
1881 historical 149 #15,551
1891 historical 174 #16,520
1901 historical 174 #16,520
1911 historical 67 #26,152
1997 modern 159 #20,339
1998 modern 159 #20,916
1999 modern 168 #20,312
2000 modern 160 #20,903
2001 modern 164 #20,279
2002 modern 150 #21,913
2003 modern 147 #21,977
2004 modern 151 #21,720
2005 modern 150 #21,786
2006 modern 143 #22,619
2007 modern 151 #22,120
2008 modern 156 #21,862
2009 modern 169 #21,190
2010 modern 170 #21,560
2011 modern 160 #22,282
2012 modern 162 #22,078
2013 modern 159 #22,706
2014 modern 161 #22,728
2015 modern 162 #22,509
2016 modern 163 #22,407

Geography

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Where Hermistons are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Kelso, Sprouston, Hawick and Wilton, Selkirk and Edinburgh. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Ettrick Yarrow and Liliesleaf Area, Selkirk, Rannoch and Aberfeldy, Coldstream and Area and Broughty Ferry East. Treat these as concentration signals, not proof that every family line began there.

Top historical parishes

Rank Parish Area
1 Kelso Roxburgh
2 Sprouston Roxburgh
3 Hawick and Wilton Roxburgh
4 Selkirk Selkirk
5 Edinburgh Edinburgh

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Ettrick Yarrow and Liliesleaf Area Scottish Borders
2 Selkirk Scottish Borders
3 Rannoch and Aberfeldy Perth and Kinross
4 Coldstream and Area Scottish Borders
5 Broughty Ferry East Dundee City

Forenames

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First names often paired with Hermiston

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Hermiston

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

Retired Professionals

Group

Spacious Rural Living

Nationally, the Hermiston surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Spacious Rural Living, within Retired Professionals. This does not mean every Hermiston household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

These predominantly ageing households typically have no resident dependent children. Most are owner-occupiers and live in detached houses in low density residential developments (although renting is more common than in the rest of the Supergroup). White ethnicity predominates. Residents are typically beyond retirement age but those still in work have managerial, professional or skilled trade occupations. White ethnicity and Christian religious affiliation predominate. Neighbourhoods are located throughout rural UK.

Wider pattern

Typically married but no longer with resident dependent children, these well-educated households either remain working in their managerial, professional, administrative or other skilled occupations, or are retired from them – the modal individual age is beyond normal retirement age. Underoccupied detached and semi-detached properties predominate, and unpaid care is more prevalent than reported disability. The prevalence of this Supergroup outside most urban conurbations indicates that rural lifestyles prevail, typically sustained by using two or more cars per household.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Professional Employment and Family Lifecycles

Group

Inner London Working Professionals

Within London, Hermiston 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

Hermiston is most concentrated in decile 1 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.

1
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Hermiston falls in decile 7 for neighbourhood deprivation. This puts the surname near the middle of the scale.

Decile 1 represents the more deprived end of the scale. Decile 10 represents the less deprived end.

7
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Hermiston is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of 30-40 mbit/s.

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

6
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - British

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

Meaning and origin of Hermiston

The surname Hermiston is believed to have originated in Scotland, with its roots traceable back to the early 13th century. The name is thought to have derived from the place name "Hermiston," which is derived from the Old English words "here," meaning an army, and "tun," meaning a farm or estate.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Hermiston can be found in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, a historical document that contains the names of Scottish nobles who swore allegiance to King Edward I of England. The entry "William de Hermiston" is listed, indicating that the surname was already in use by this time.

In the 14th century, the Hermiston family was associated with the lands of Hermiston, located in Midlothian, Scotland. Records from this period mention a Sir John Hermiston, who was a prominent landowner and knight during the reign of King David II (1329-1371).

The surname Hermiston has also been linked to the village of Hermiston, located in West Lothian, Scotland. This village was once home to the Hermiston family, whose members served as local lairds and landowners for generations.

One notable figure bearing the Hermiston surname was Sir Walter Hermiston (1565-1642), a Scottish politician and diplomat who served as Lord Provost of Edinburgh from 1629 to 1632. Another prominent individual was Sir James Hermiston (1676-1754), a Scottish judge and legal scholar who served as Lord Justice Clerk of Scotland.

Other historical figures with the surname Hermiston include John Hermiston (1720-1789), a Scottish merchant and landowner who played a significant role in the development of the city of Glasgow, and Margaret Hermiston (1785-1861), a Scottish writer and poet who published several works in the early 19th century.

Throughout its history, the Hermiston surname has also been associated with various place names and locations across Scotland, such as Hermiston House in Midlothian, Hermiston Mill in West Lothian, and the Hermiston Gait, a historic street in Edinburgh.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Hermiston families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Hermiston 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. Roxburghshire leads with 47 Hermistons recorded in 1881 and an index of 180.98x.

County Total Index
Roxburghshire 47 180.98x
Berwickshire 33 190.09x
Selkirkshire 21 161.91x
Northumberland 13 6.09x
Yorkshire 8 0.56x
Midlothian 7 3.64x
Gloucestershire 5 1.78x
Stirlingshire 5 9.46x
Middlesex 4 0.28x
Cumberland 3 2.43x
Kent 1 0.20x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Kelso in Roxburghshire leads with 12 Hermistons recorded in 1881 and an index of 463.32x.

Place Total Index
Kelso 12 463.32x
Eckford 11 2444.44x
Fogo 9 3913.04x
Selkirk 9 246.58x
Stitchel 9 5294.12x
Channelkirk 8 2666.67x
Normanby In 8 210.53x
Yarrow 8 2580.65x
Cirencester 5 131.23x
Crookhouse 5 50000.00x
Dunipace 5 537.63x
Dunse 5 303.03x
Norham Mains 5 12500.00x
Jedburgh 4 156.86x
Langton 4 1600.00x
Melrose 4 122.70x
Roxburgh 4 800.00x
South Leith 4 18.51x
Earlston 3 344.83x
Keswick 3 189.87x
Limehouse London 3 19.06x
Edinburgh St Cuthberts 2 2.59x
Hobkirk 2 606.06x
Smailholm 2 909.09x
Westruther 2 606.06x
Bromley London 1 3.17x
Charlton Next Woolwich 1 19.61x
Eccles 1 131.58x
Ednam 1 333.33x
Hume 1 500.00x
Kirkton 1 625.00x
Newbiggin In Morpeth 1 147.06x
Newcastle On Tyne St 1 9.04x
St Boswells 1 212.77x
Stow 1 101.01x
Westgate 1 7.57x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Alice 2
Elizabeth 2
Helen 2
Mary 2
Ann 1
Janet 1
Jessie 1
Margaret 1
Phoebe 1
Sarah 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
Robert 4
James 3
John 3
William 3
Andrew 2
Henry 2
Adam 1
Mark 1
Thomas 1

FAQ

Hermiston surname: questions and answers

How common was the Hermiston surname in 1881?

In 1881, 149 people were recorded with the Hermiston surname. That placed it at #15,551 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Hermiston surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 163 in 2016. That gives Hermiston a modern rank of #22,407.

What does the Hermiston surname mean?

From an old Scottish parish in East Lothian, near Edinburgh.

What does the Hermiston map show?

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