NameCensus.

UK surname

Hickford

In the 1881 census there were 303 people recorded with the Hickford surname, ranking it #9,654 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 455, ranked #10,716, down from #9,654 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Bocking, Clare and Ashen. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include St Edmundsbury, South Norfolk and Babergh.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Hickford is 489 in 1997. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 50.2%.

1881 census count

303

Ranked #9,654

Modern count

455

2016, ranked #10,716

Peak year

1997

489 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Hickford had 303 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #9,654 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 455 in 2016, ranked #10,716.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 400 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Rural Amenity.

Hickford surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Hickford surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Hickford 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 142 #13,428
1861 historical 191 #12,467
1881 historical 303 #9,654
1891 historical 280 #11,665
1901 historical 346 #10,516
1911 historical 400 #9,280
1997 modern 489 #9,453
1998 modern 486 #9,810
1999 modern 489 #9,830
2000 modern 484 #9,873
2001 modern 471 #9,895
2002 modern 478 #9,963
2003 modern 473 #9,879
2004 modern 471 #9,942
2005 modern 444 #10,315
2006 modern 434 #10,543
2007 modern 431 #10,703
2008 modern 434 #10,756
2009 modern 441 #10,875
2010 modern 455 #10,802
2011 modern 464 #10,524
2012 modern 443 #10,796
2013 modern 464 #10,589
2014 modern 465 #10,628
2015 modern 466 #10,552
2016 modern 455 #10,716

Geography

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Where Hickfords are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Bocking, Clare, Ashen, London parishes and Enfield. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to St Edmundsbury, South Norfolk, Babergh and Rochdale. 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 Bocking Essex
2 Clare Suffolk
3 Ashen Suffolk
4 London parishes London 3
5 Enfield Middlesex (Exclusive Of London Districts)

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 St Edmundsbury 010 St Edmundsbury
2 St Edmundsbury 014 St Edmundsbury
3 South Norfolk 013 South Norfolk
4 Babergh 002 Babergh
5 Rochdale 007 Rochdale

Forenames

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First names often paired with Hickford

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Hickford

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

Young Families and Mainstream Employment

Group

Social Rented Sector and Diverse Origins

Within London, Hickford is most associated with areas classed as Social Rented Sector and Diverse Origins, part of Young Families and Mainstream Employment. 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

Scattered across London’s Inner and Outer suburbs, residents of these neighbourhoods are typically housed in the social rented sector. Although terraced and semi-detached houses predominate, more residents live in flats than elsewhere in the Supergroup. Neighbourhoods are more ethnically diverse than the Supergroup average. Those identifying as of Bangladeshi, Pakistani and some Black ethnicities are more prevalent. Europeans born in a overseas non-EU countries make up more of the lower proportion of residents identifying as White. Few residents are very old (85+). Employment in distribution, hotels and restaurants is more common than elsewhere in the Supergroup.

Wider London pattern

Many families in these neighbourhoods have young children. Housing is principally in the social rented sector, in terraced or semi-detached units. While over-all residential densities are low, overcrowding is also prevalent locally. Residents are drawn from a range of ethnic minorities, with many identifying as Black and above average numbers born in Africa. Numbers identifying as of Chinese, Indian or White ethnicity are below average. Levels of proficiency in English are below average. Levels of separation or divorce and incidence of disability are both above average. Education is typically limited to Level 1, 2, or apprenticeship qualifications. Few residents work in professional or managerial occupations but the employment structure is otherwise diverse: it includes skilled trades, caring, leisure and other service occupations, sales and customer service occupations, construction, and work as process, plant, and machine operatives.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Hickford 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

Hickford falls in decile 6 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.

6
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

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

1881 census detail

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Hickford families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Hickford 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. Essex leads with 81 Hickfords recorded in 1881 and an index of 13.88x.

County Total Index
Essex 81 13.88x
Suffolk 72 20.00x
Middlesex 51 1.73x
Buckinghamshire 18 10.07x
Surrey 17 1.18x
Angus 10 3.65x
Hertfordshire 7 3.44x
Kent 6 0.60x
Yorkshire 6 0.20x
Durham 5 0.57x
Sussex 5 1.00x
Derbyshire 4 0.86x
Hampshire 4 0.66x
Lancashire 4 0.11x
Cambridgeshire 3 1.60x
Westmorland 3 4.62x
Warwickshire 2 0.27x
Bedfordshire 1 0.65x
Norfolk 1 0.22x
Northamptonshire 1 0.36x
Rutland 1 4.61x
Staffordshire 1 0.10x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Clare in Suffolk leads with 46 Hickfords recorded in 1881 and an index of 2674.42x.

Place Total Index
Clare 46 2674.42x
Ashen 24 10434.78x
Islington London 19 6.63x
Bocking 14 398.86x
Kedington 14 1473.68x
Little Brickhill 12 5000.00x
Tilbury 11 4782.61x
Haverhill 10 312.50x
Montrose 10 60.28x
St Luke London 8 16.87x
Enfield 7 36.10x
Edmonton 6 25.20x
Rickmansworth 6 106.95x
Brightlingsea 5 150.15x
Drypool 5 111.61x
Maldon St Marys 5 357.14x
Sible Hedingham 5 256.41x
Sturmere 5 1315.79x
Clapham 4 10.83x
Eckington 4 35.59x
Heap 4 21.51x
Iveston 4 98.77x
Windlesham 4 147.60x
Hammersmith London 3 4.12x
Lambeth 3 1.16x
Leatherhead 3 83.10x
Maldon St Peter 3 101.01x
Middleton 3 1304.35x
Newport Pagnell 3 80.21x
St Botolph Cambridge 3 625.00x
Aston 2 0.97x
East Grinstead 2 28.37x
Felstead 2 100.00x
Frant 2 56.66x
Hackney London 2 1.21x
Kensington London 2 1.22x
Lewisham 2 3.72x
Northfleet 2 22.52x
Soulbury 2 416.67x
St Martin Outwich London 2 2857.14x
St Maurice Winchester 2 79.37x
Stanford Le Hope 2 238.10x
Barking 1 5.86x
Burton Upon Trent 1 4.28x
Charlton Next Woolwich 1 9.51x
Christchurch 1 7.61x
East Barnet 1 24.75x
Glemsford 1 39.53x
Great Bookham 1 90.09x
Great Ryburgh 1 142.86x
Hadleigh 1 212.77x
Hastings St Mary 1 8.06x
Hatfield In Thorne 1 54.64x
Holdenhurst 1 6.29x
Hougham 1 16.67x
Knodishall 1 222.22x
Luton 1 3.78x
Maldon All Sts 1 86.21x
Medomsley 1 24.39x
Penge 1 5.30x
Peterborough 1 4.97x
Quendon 1 526.32x
Simpson 1 133.33x
St Pancras London 1 0.42x
Stretton 1 500.00x
Waltham Holy Cross 1 18.35x
Walton On Thames 1 15.13x
Westminster St Margaret 1 7.01x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 11
Elizabeth 10
Sarah 9
Emma 8
Ellen 5
Louisa 5
Alice 4
Annie 4
Clara 4
Eliza 4
Jane 4
Julia 4
Kate 4
Susan 4
Caroline 3
Catherine 3
Elisa 3
Hannah 3
Ann 2
Anna 2
Charlotte 2
Dianna 2
Emily 2
Fanny 2
Frances 2
Harriet 2
Lily 2
Margaret 2
Martha 2
Rose 2
Susanna 2
Amelia 1
Edith 1
Esther 1
Frederick 1
Georgianna 1
Harriett 1
Helen 1
Infant 1
Jonah 1
Laura 1
Lizzie 1
Louisae 1
Louise 1
Maria 1
Marla 1
Matilda 1
Matilde 1
Matildo 1
Maud 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
William 15
George 14
John 10
Thomas 10
Charles 9
Alfred 7
Arthur 7
Henry 7
Frederick 6
James 5
Samuel 5
Edward 4
Joseph 4
David 3
Fredk. 3
Fredrick 3
Walter 3
Benjamin 2
Ernest 2
Frank 2
Abner 1
Basil 1
Charlie 1
Chas. 1
Edwin 1
Ephraim 1
Fred 1
Geo. 1
Georg 1
Gladson 1
Gorden 1
Harold 1
Harry 1
Horace 1
Infant 1
Jas. 1
Percival 1
Peter 1
Thos. 1
Tom 1
Willie 1

FAQ

Hickford surname: questions and answers

How common was the Hickford surname in 1881?

In 1881, 303 people were recorded with the Hickford surname. That placed it at #9,654 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Hickford surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 455 in 2016. That gives Hickford a modern rank of #10,716.

What does the Hickford map show?

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