NameCensus.

UK surname

Ireton

A surname derived from the Old English place name "Ireton" meaning "settlement of Irish settlers".

In the 1881 census there were 91 people recorded with the Ireton surname, ranking it #20,843 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 237, ranked #17,418, up from #20,843 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Lancaster Borough, Portsmouth, Portsea and Lancaster. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include South Lakeland, Haringey and Craven.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Ireton is 249 in 2014. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 160.4%.

1881 census count

91

Ranked #20,843

Modern count

237

2016, ranked #17,418

Peak year

2014

249 bearers

Map years

6

1891 to 2016

Key insights

  • Ireton had 91 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #20,843 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 237 in 2016, ranked #17,418.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 150 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Rural Amenity.

Ireton surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Ireton surname density by area, 2016 modern.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Ireton 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 23 #29,205
1861 historical 42 #28,691
1881 historical 91 #20,843
1891 historical 100 #24,045
1901 historical 121 #20,444
1911 historical 150 #17,866
1997 modern 215 #16,844
1998 modern 223 #16,936
1999 modern 222 #17,080
2000 modern 219 #17,195
2001 modern 218 #17,017
2002 modern 226 #16,939
2003 modern 226 #16,766
2004 modern 216 #17,331
2005 modern 217 #17,217
2006 modern 212 #17,612
2007 modern 212 #17,803
2008 modern 224 #17,337
2009 modern 228 #17,486
2010 modern 230 #17,750
2011 modern 225 #17,841
2012 modern 236 #17,187
2013 modern 246 #16,979
2014 modern 249 #16,954
2015 modern 235 #17,530
2016 modern 237 #17,418

Geography

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Where Iretons are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Lancaster Borough, Portsmouth, Portsea, Lancaster, Cardiff St John and St Mary and Stevenage. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to South Lakeland, Haringey, Craven, East Hertfordshire and Barnet. 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 Lancaster Borough Lancashire
2 Portsmouth, Portsea Hampshire
3 Lancaster Lancashire
4 Cardiff St John and St Mary Glamorganshire
5 Stevenage Hertfordshire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 South Lakeland 008 South Lakeland
2 Haringey 009 Haringey
3 Craven 003 Craven
4 East Hertfordshire 011 East Hertfordshire
5 Barnet 006 Barnet

Forenames

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First names often paired with Ireton

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Ireton

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

Ireton is most concentrated in decile 7 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.

7
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

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

Meaning and origin of Ireton

The surname Ireton is of English origin, derived from the Old English words "iren" meaning iron, and "tun" meaning an enclosure or settlement. It likely originated as a place name referring to a settlement near an iron works or forge.

Ireton is first recorded as a surname in the early 13th century in records from Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire, located in the East Midlands region of England. Some of the earliest recorded spellings include Irenton, Ironton, and Yreneton.

One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Sir Ralf de Ireton, a knight who lived in the late 13th century. His name appears in several medieval records from Yorkshire.

The Ireton surname is not found in the renowned Domesday Book of 1086, suggesting it emerged later as a surname. However, it may have originated from an unrecorded place name in the Domesday survey.

During the English Civil War in the 17th century, Henry Ireton (1611-1651) was a prominent figure. He was a general in the Parliamentarian army and son-in-law of Oliver Cromwell. Ireton played a key role in the trial and execution of King Charles I in 1649.

Another notable bearer of the name was John Ireton (1615-1689), an English politician and lawyer who served as Lord Mayor of London in 1658 and 1659.

In the 18th century, George Ireton (1736-1806) was an English architect and engineer who designed several notable buildings in London, including the Church of St. John's in Hoxton.

The surname Ireton has also been associated with places such as Ireton Holme in Derbyshire, and Ireton Wood, an ancient woodland in Nottinghamshire, suggesting its connection to geographic locations.

Other notable individuals with the surname Ireton include writer and poet Edith Ireton (1859-1941), and British Army officer Sir John Nicholson Ireton (1823-1903), who served in the Indian Rebellion of 1857.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Ireton families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Ireton 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. Lancashire leads with 34 Iretons recorded in 1881 and an index of 3.23x.

County Total Index
Lancashire 34 3.23x
Hertfordshire 25 40.86x
Middlesex 16 1.80x
Yorkshire 9 1.02x
Surrey 3 0.69x
Derbyshire 1 0.72x
Dorset 1 1.72x
Essex 1 0.57x
Nottinghamshire 1 0.84x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Stevenage in Hertfordshire leads with 23 Iretons recorded in 1881 and an index of 2421.05x.

Place Total Index
Stevenage 23 2421.05x
Quernmore 12 6666.67x
Fishwick 7 1076.92x
Ulverston 7 228.01x
Shoreditch London 6 15.60x
Southowram 5 186.57x
Bolton Le Sands 4 1666.67x
St Pancras London 4 5.60x
Wentworth 4 740.74x
Preston 3 10.65x
St George Martyr London 3 166.67x
Digswell 2 2857.14x
Mortlake 2 103.63x
St Paul Covent Garden 2 224.72x
Carnforth 1 172.41x
Caterham 1 52.36x
Chesterfield 1 19.19x
Islington London 1 1.16x
Portland 1 31.95x
Ratcliffe Upon Trent 1 333.33x
West Ham 1 2.59x

FAQ

Ireton surname: questions and answers

How common was the Ireton surname in 1881?

In 1881, 91 people were recorded with the Ireton surname. That placed it at #20,843 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Ireton surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 237 in 2016. That gives Ireton a modern rank of #17,418.

What does the Ireton surname mean?

A surname derived from the Old English place name "Ireton" meaning "settlement of Irish settlers".

What does the Ireton map show?

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