NameCensus.

UK surname

Hodges

From a place name meaning "enclosed fields" in Old English, or referring to someone living near such fields.

In the 1881 census there were 8,741 people recorded with the Hodges surname, ranking it #481 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 10,589, ranked #613, down from #481 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Ystradyfodwg (incl. Rhigos), Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff and London parishes. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Aylesbury Vale, Rhondda Cynon Taf and Herefordshire.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Hodges is 11,665 in 1911. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 21.1%.

1881 census count

8,741

Ranked #481

Modern count

10,589

2016, ranked #613

Peak year

1911

11,665 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Hodges had 8,741 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #481 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 10,589 in 2016, ranked #613.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 11,665 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Rural Amenity.

Hodges surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Hodges surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Hodges 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 6,050 #457
1861 historical 5,381 #516
1881 historical 8,741 #481
1891 historical 8,826 #500
1901 historical 10,781 #483
1911 historical 11,665 #423
1997 modern 11,058 #554
1998 modern 11,430 #557
1999 modern 11,481 #560
2000 modern 11,357 #563
2001 modern 11,080 #565
2002 modern 11,177 #571
2003 modern 10,953 #571
2004 modern 10,931 #578
2005 modern 10,627 #582
2006 modern 10,566 #585
2007 modern 10,618 #588
2008 modern 10,608 #594
2009 modern 10,804 #597
2010 modern 11,106 #596
2011 modern 10,978 #595
2012 modern 10,646 #602
2013 modern 10,806 #603
2014 modern 10,861 #603
2015 modern 10,711 #606
2016 modern 10,589 #613

Geography

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Where Hodges' are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Ystradyfodwg (incl. Rhigos), Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff, London parishes and Lambeth. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Aylesbury Vale, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Herefordshire, Monmouthshire and West Dorset. 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 Ystradyfodwg (incl. Rhigos) Glamorganshire
2 Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff Gloucestershire
3 London parishes London 1
4 London parishes London 3
5 Lambeth London (South Districts)

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Aylesbury Vale 004 Aylesbury Vale
2 Rhondda Cynon Taf 005 Rhondda Cynon Taf
3 Herefordshire 022 Herefordshire, County of
4 Monmouthshire 011 Monmouthshire
5 West Dorset 001 West Dorset

Forenames

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First names often paired with Hodges

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Hodges

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

Older Residents in Owner-Occupied Suburbs

Group

London Fringe

Within London, Hodges is most associated with areas classed as London Fringe, part of Older Residents in Owner-Occupied Suburbs. 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

Predominantly located in neighbourhoods on the outskirts of Greater London, residents of these neighbourhoods typically have their highest qualifications below degree (Level 4) level, with those still in work engaged in skilled trades and occupations in distribution, hotels and restaurants. There is low ethnic diversity in these neighbourhoods and high levels of Christian religious affiliation. Detached or terraced houses predominate, often with spare rooms.

Wider London pattern

The age distribution of these neighbourhoods is skewed towards the middle-aged and old, although few residents live alone or in communal establishments and numbers of dependent children are around average. Owner occupation is the norm, as is residence in detached or semi-detached houses. Residential densities are low and many households have spare rooms. Most residents were born in the UK and, aside from some identifying as members of Chinese or Indian ethnicities, identify as White. Mixed ethnicity households are rare. Incidence of married couples is higher than average and few individuals have never been married. A large proportion of individuals still in employment work in administrative and secretarial occupations, or in the construction industry. Few residents are students, and many households own more than one car.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Hodges 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

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

Meaning and origin of Hodges

The surname Hodges has English origins and can be traced back to the medieval period. It is a topographic name derived from the Old English word "hoccer", meaning someone who lived near a small hill or ridge.

The name was first found in the counties of Somerset, Devon, and Dorset in the south-west of England. It is believed to have been adopted as a hereditary surname in the 11th or 12th century, following the Norman Conquest of England in 1066.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name appears in the Domesday Book of 1086, which mentions a landowner named Richard Hodges in the county of Somerset. Other early references include Willelmus Hodges, mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Worcestershire in 1195, and Robert le Hodges, listed in the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire in 1273.

The surname has various spellings throughout history, including Hodge, Hodges, Hodgis, and Hoggis. It is also linked to some place names, such as Hodges Green in Hertfordshire and Hodges Farm in Gloucestershire.

Notable historical figures with the surname Hodges include Sir William Hodges (1744-1797), an English painter and explorer who accompanied Captain Cook on his second voyage to the Pacific. Another prominent bearer was Nathaniel Hodges (1629-1688), an English physician and writer who published works on medical subjects.

Other individuals of note include James Hodges (1786-1859), an English landscape painter, and Walter Hodges (1798-1882), an English author and clergyman. In more recent times, Sir Alastair Hodges (1920-1995) was a British diplomat and ambassador to several countries, including the United States and France.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Hodges families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Hodges 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 1,370 Hodges' recorded in 1881 and an index of 1.60x.

County Total Index
Middlesex 1,370 1.60x
Kent 782 2.68x
Somerset 715 5.18x
Gloucestershire 714 4.25x
Surrey 550 1.32x
Worcestershire 413 3.69x
Herefordshire 400 11.39x
Warwickshire 393 1.82x
Hampshire 333 1.90x
Lancashire 259 0.25x
Monmouthshire 225 3.63x
Yorkshire 218 0.26x
Sussex 207 1.43x
Dorset 183 3.25x
Glamorgan 175 1.17x
Leicestershire 161 1.69x
Staffordshire 136 0.47x
Northamptonshire 135 1.68x
Buckinghamshire 130 2.51x
Devon 124 0.70x
Essex 122 0.72x
Nottinghamshire 115 1.00x
Shropshire 102 1.38x
Wiltshire 98 1.29x
Berkshire 95 1.48x
Oxfordshire 86 1.63x
Cheshire 64 0.34x
Durham 57 0.22x
Derbyshire 54 0.40x
Cornwall 50 0.52x
Carmarthenshire 31 0.86x
Hertfordshire 28 0.47x
Huntingdonshire 26 1.53x
Channel Islands 25 0.98x
Midlothian 20 0.17x
Pembrokeshire 16 0.59x
Lanarkshire 15 0.05x
Norfolk 14 0.11x
Bedfordshire 12 0.27x
Denbighshire 12 0.37x
Royal Navy 12 1.18x
Cambridgeshire 11 0.20x
Northumberland 11 0.09x
Montgomeryshire 10 0.51x
Suffolk 10 0.10x
Cumberland 9 0.12x
Rutland 9 1.43x
Brecknockshire 7 0.41x
Lincolnshire 7 0.05x
Radnorshire 5 0.72x
Aberdeenshire 4 0.05x
Angus 4 0.05x
Isle of Man 4 0.25x
Fife 3 0.06x
Perthshire 3 0.08x
Ayrshire 2 0.03x
Cardiganshire 2 0.10x
Flintshire 2 0.09x
Kinross-shire 2 0.92x
Stirlingshire 1 0.03x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Birmingham in Warwickshire leads with 151 Hodges' recorded in 1881 and an index of 2.10x.

Place Total Index
Birmingham 151 2.10x
Lambeth 143 1.91x
Aston 119 2.00x
Bethnal Green London 107 2.87x
Bristol St George 107 13.77x
Kensington London 106 2.23x
Portsea 100 2.91x
Islington London 99 1.19x
St Pancras London 95 1.38x
Hackney London 82 1.71x
Hammersmith London 80 3.79x
St Marylebone London 79 1.73x
Battersea 74 2.35x
Bedminster 72 5.56x
Camberwell 61 1.11x
Brighton 53 1.82x
Ledbury 53 43.93x
Nottingham St Mary 52 1.74x
Shoreditch London 52 1.40x
Mile End Old Town London 50 2.74x
St Luke London 49 3.57x
Weston Super Mare 43 12.35x
Maidstone 42 4.82x
Newington 42 1.33x
Bermondsey 41 1.61x
Bristol St Philip Jacob 41 2.59x
Leicester St Margaret 41 1.77x
Sherborne 40 24.15x
Westbury On Severn East 38 10.00x
Lyncombe Widcombe 37 10.25x
Millbrook 37 8.37x
Tonbridge 37 3.51x
Bromley London 35 1.86x
Clerkenwell London 35 1.73x
Croydon 35 1.51x
Poplar London 34 2.10x
Twyford 34 206.69x
Cheltenham 33 2.55x
Lewisham 33 2.12x
St George Hanover Square 33 2.19x
Reading St Mary 32 6.21x
Rochester St Margaret 32 10.38x
Walcot 32 4.36x
Doulting 31 174.75x
Leeds 31 0.65x
Bedwellty 30 2.74x
Bristol St James St Paul 30 5.35x
Kings Norton 30 2.99x
Llanwonno 30 5.60x
Chelsea London 29 1.12x
Southwark St George Martyr 29 1.68x
Bow London 28 2.57x
Bromley 28 6.28x
Ombersley 28 44.93x
Paddington London 28 0.89x
Stockton On Tees 28 2.28x
Whitstable 28 19.53x
Aberdare 27 2.64x
Chatham 26 3.23x
Dymock 26 64.90x
Lower Mitton 26 26.37x
Stroud 26 7.95x
Holdenhurst 25 5.43x
Shepton Mallet 25 16.16x
Tewkesbury 25 16.67x
Yeovil 25 8.92x
Clifton 24 2.83x
Edgbaston 24 3.58x
Fulham London 24 1.93x
Greenwich 24 1.76x
Hulme 24 1.13x
West Ham 24 0.64x
Milton 23 107.88x
Westminster St John 23 2.20x
Wolverhampton 22 0.99x
Broadwinsor 21 57.00x
Crewkerne 21 14.34x
Edgcott 21 377.02x
Limehouse London 21 2.23x
Woolhope 21 95.98x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 512
Elizabeth 330
Sarah 313
Jane 162
Ellen 156
Eliza 152
Ann 145
Annie 143
Alice 131
Emma 131
Emily 130
Louisa 102
Hannah 67
Caroline 65
Harriet 65
Maria 65
Fanny 64
Florence 63
Martha 59
Edith 58
Charlotte 53
Ada 51
Kate 51
Clara 50
Lucy 45
Frances 41
Catherine 38
Anne 36
Harriett 35
Margaret 34
Agnes 31
Amy 28
Matilda 27
Rose 27
Susan 27
Esther 24
Jessie 24
Isabella 23
Rebecca 23
Amelia 22
Eleanor 22
Julia 21
Sophia 21
Helen 19
Bessie 18
Rosa 17
Anna 16
Selina 16
Elizth. 15
Laura 15

Top male names

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

Name Count
William 537
John 386
George 317
Henry 275
Thomas 264
James 241
Charles 231
Joseph 137
Alfred 123
Edward 106
Frederick 103
Arthur 91
Albert 81
Richard 72
Samuel 72
Walter 67
Frank 58
Robert 57
Edwin 55
Ernest 40
Harry 40
Herbert 40
David 30
Francis 30
Benjamin 28
Wm. 23
Sidney 18
Thos. 18
Isaac 15
Stephen 14
Fredrick 13
Tom 13
Chas. 11
Daniel 11
Sydney 11
Edgar 10
Fred 10
Fredk. 10
Philip 9
Willm. 9
Edmund 8
Geo. 7
Harold 7
Jesse 7
Leonard 7
Percy 7
Abraham 6
Hubert 6
Josiah 6
Lewis 6

FAQ

Hodges surname: questions and answers

How common was the Hodges surname in 1881?

In 1881, 8,741 people were recorded with the Hodges surname. That placed it at #481 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Hodges surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 10,589 in 2016. That gives Hodges a modern rank of #613.

What does the Hodges surname mean?

From a place name meaning "enclosed fields" in Old English, or referring to someone living near such fields.

What does the Hodges map show?

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