NameCensus.

UK surname

Keown

Anglicized form of Irish Ó Caomháin, meaning "descendant of Caomhán," a personal name derived from "caomh," meaning "gentle, kind."

In the 1881 census there were 128 people recorded with the Keown surname, ranking it #17,079 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 425, ranked #11,300, up from #17,079 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to St Bees, Bolton-le-Moors and Liverpool. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include IZ17, Hammersmith and Fulham and Govan and Linthouse.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Keown is 437 in 2014. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 232.0%.

1881 census count

128

Ranked #17,079

Modern count

425

2016, ranked #11,300

Peak year

2014

437 bearers

Map years

7

1881 to 2016

Key insights

  • Keown had 128 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #17,079 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 425 in 2016, ranked #11,300.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 164 in 1891.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Spacious Rural Living.

Keown surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Keown surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Keown 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 39 #26,319
1861 historical 70 #24,911
1881 historical 128 #17,079
1891 historical 164 #17,205
1901 historical 151 #17,988
1911 historical 133 #19,214
1997 modern 377 #11,508
1998 modern 384 #11,727
1999 modern 413 #11,180
2000 modern 398 #11,443
2001 modern 403 #11,163
2002 modern 403 #11,382
2003 modern 390 #11,467
2004 modern 385 #11,607
2005 modern 370 #11,875
2006 modern 350 #12,448
2007 modern 362 #12,271
2008 modern 389 #11,723
2009 modern 402 #11,682
2010 modern 413 #11,690
2011 modern 410 #11,644
2012 modern 427 #11,120
2013 modern 430 #11,259
2014 modern 437 #11,176
2015 modern 428 #11,276
2016 modern 425 #11,300

Geography

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Where Keowns are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around St Bees, Bolton-le-Moors, Liverpool, Glasgow and Cleator. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to IZ17, Hammersmith and Fulham, Govan and Linthouse, Wolverhampton and Hawick Central. 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 St Bees Cumberland
2 Bolton-le-Moors Lancashire
3 Liverpool Lancashire
4 Glasgow Lanark
5 Cleator Cumberland

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 IZ17 West Dunbartonshire
2 Hammersmith and Fulham 015 Hammersmith and Fulham
3 Govan and Linthouse Glasgow City
4 Wolverhampton 033 Wolverhampton
5 Hawick Central Scottish Borders

Forenames

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First names often paired with Keown

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Keown

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Keown, 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 Keown surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Spacious Rural Living, within Retired Professionals. This does not mean every Keown 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

The Greater London Mix

Group

Social Rented Sector Professional Support Workers

Within London, Keown is most associated with areas classed as Social Rented Sector Professional Support Workers, part of The Greater London Mix. 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

Mainly located in Inner London, these neighbourhoods retain a diverse employment structure, with some concentration in associated professional and technical occupations rather than skilled trades or construction. Social renting is more common and levels of homeownership are low. Many residents identify as Black. There is a lower than average rate of marriage or civil partnership, few that are very old (85 or over) and higher than average incidence of disability.

Wider London pattern

A Supergroup embodying London's diversity in many respects, apart from low numbers of residents identifying as of Bangladeshi, Indian, Pakistani or Other (non-Chinese) Asian ethnicity. There is lower than average prevalence of families with dependent children, while there are above average occurrences of never-married individuals and single-person households. The age distribution is skewed towards younger, single residents and couples without children, with many individuals identifying as of mixed or multiple ethnicity. Social rented or private rented housing is slightly more prevalent than average, and many residents live in flats. Individuals typically work in professional and associated roles in public administration, education or health rather than in elementary occupations in agriculture, energy, water, construction or manufacturing. Incidence of students is slightly below average. Individuals declaring no religion are more prevalent than average and non-use of English at home is below average.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Keown is most concentrated in decile 10 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.

10
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Keown 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 Keown 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 - Irish

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

Meaning and origin of Keown

The surname Keown is believed to have originated in Ireland, with roots dating back to the medieval period. It is thought to be an Anglicized form of the Irish Gaelic name Ó Cúáin or Ó Comhráin, which means "descendant of Cuán" or "descendant of Comhrán" respectively. These personal names were derived from the Old Irish words cúan, meaning "harbor," and comhrán, meaning "fellow-traveler."

One of the earliest recorded instances of the Keown surname can be found in the Annals of the Four Masters, a chronicle of medieval Irish history. In the entry for the year 1285, a man named Domhnall Ó Cúáin is mentioned as the Lord of Uí Fiachrach Aidne, a territory located in what is now County Galway.

The Keown surname is particularly associated with County Mayo in the west of Ireland. It is believed that many bearers of the name can trace their ancestry back to the Ó Comhráin sept, a powerful clan that held lands around the town of Balla in the 13th and 14th centuries.

One notable historical figure with the surname Keown was Brian Keown, a Catholic priest and scholar who lived in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. Born in County Mayo around 1570, Keown studied at the Irish College in Salamanca, Spain, and later served as a professor of theology at the University of Salamanca.

Another individual of note was Philip Keown, a 17th-century Irish soldier who fought on the Royalist side during the English Civil War. Keown served under the Marquess of Ormond and was involved in several battles, including the Siege of Dublin in 1649.

In the 18th century, a man named John Keown gained recognition as a skilled architect and builder. Born in County Mayo around 1720, Keown was responsible for the construction of several notable buildings in the region, including the Church of Ireland in Ballina and the Nesbitt Arms Hotel in Ardnaree.

During the 19th century, the Keown surname spread beyond Ireland as many families emigrated to other parts of the world, particularly to England, the United States, and Australia. One prominent Australian with the name was John Keown, a politician and businessman who served as the Mayor of Sydney from 1875 to 1876.

Another notable figure was William Keown, a Scottish-born artist who lived from 1797 to 1863. Keown was known for his landscape paintings, many of which depicted scenes from the Scottish Highlands and the Lake District in England.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Keown families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Keown 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. Lanarkshire leads with 30 Keowns recorded in 1881 and an index of 6.43x.

County Total Index
Lanarkshire 30 6.43x
Lancashire 28 1.63x
Isle of Man 23 85.79x
Cumberland 21 16.90x
Yorkshire 10 0.70x
Bedfordshire 9 12.04x
Cheshire 8 2.51x
Kent 7 1.42x
Hampshire 4 1.35x
Durham 3 0.70x
Middlesex 3 0.21x
Surrey 2 0.28x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. German Peel in Isle of Man leads with 15 Keowns recorded in 1881 and an index of 974.03x.

Place Total Index
German Peel 15 974.03x
Cleator 14 270.79x
Govan 11 9.53x
Bedford St Paul 9 175.44x
Leeds 8 9.90x
Everton 7 12.82x
Glasgow 7 8.44x
Liverpool 7 6.73x
Minster In Sheppey 7 85.78x
New Monkland 7 50.72x
Onchan 7 90.67x
Whitehaven 7 105.74x
Birkenhead 6 23.62x
Barony 5 4.23x
Manchester 4 5.19x
Portsea 4 6.90x
Chelsea London 3 6.90x
Kirkdale 3 10.41x
Ryhope 3 100.67x
Todmorden Walsden 3 65.36x
Headingley Cum Burley 2 21.72x
Stockport 2 12.20x
Barrow In Furness 1 4.29x
German 1 68.49x
Lambeth 1 0.79x
Moss Side 1 11.10x
Newington 1 1.88x
Urmston 1 90.09x
Walton On Hill 1 10.78x

Top female names

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

Top male names

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

Name Count
John 14
Robert 7
William 7
James 4
Patrick 4
Francis 3
Thomas 3
Charles 2
Daniel 2
Hamilton 2
Henry 2
Hugh 2
Richard 2
David 1
Edward 1
Felix 1
Frances 1
George 1
Jno. 1
Joseph 1
Robt. 1
Sam 1
Stanley 1

FAQ

Keown surname: questions and answers

How common was the Keown surname in 1881?

In 1881, 128 people were recorded with the Keown surname. That placed it at #17,079 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Keown surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 425 in 2016. That gives Keown a modern rank of #11,300.

What does the Keown surname mean?

Anglicized form of Irish Ó Caomháin, meaning "descendant of Caomhán," a personal name derived from "caomh," meaning "gentle, kind."

What does the Keown map show?

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