NameCensus.

UK surname

Kydd

A variant spelling of Kyd, an English surname derived from an Old English personal name.

In the 1881 census there were 520 people recorded with the Kydd surname, ranking it #6,564 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 610, ranked #8,601, down from #6,564 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Arbilot, Forfar and Arbroath and St. Vigeans. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Montrose South, Carnoustie East and Arbroath Landward.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Kydd is 646 in 1901. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 17.3%.

1881 census count

520

Ranked #6,564

Modern count

610

2016, ranked #8,601

Peak year

1901

646 bearers

Map years

8

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Kydd had 520 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #6,564 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 610 in 2016, ranked #8,601.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 646 in 1901.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Spacious Rural Living.

Kydd surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Kydd surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Kydd 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 304 #7,559
1861 historical 312 #8,127
1881 historical 520 #6,564
1891 historical 586 #6,517
1901 historical 646 #6,673
1911 historical 97 #23,076
1997 modern 521 #9,026
1998 modern 579 #8,581
1999 modern 563 #8,812
2000 modern 560 #8,819
2001 modern 531 #9,039
2002 modern 556 #8,909
2003 modern 554 #8,788
2004 modern 529 #9,134
2005 modern 541 #8,900
2006 modern 543 #8,903
2007 modern 552 #8,883
2008 modern 559 #8,844
2009 modern 587 #8,733
2010 modern 596 #8,831
2011 modern 597 #8,723
2012 modern 587 #8,746
2013 modern 599 #8,765
2014 modern 613 #8,654
2015 modern 611 #8,619
2016 modern 610 #8,601

Geography

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Where Kydds are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Arbilot, Forfar, Arbroath and St. Vigeans, Inverkeilor and Dundee, Liff, Benvie and Invergowry. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Montrose South, Carnoustie East, Arbroath Landward, Monifieth East and Kirriemuir. Treat these as concentration signals, not proof that every family line began there.

Top historical parishes

Rank Parish Area
1 Arbilot Forfar
2 Forfar Forfar
3 Arbroath and St. Vigeans Forfar
4 Inverkeilor Forfar
5 Dundee, Liff, Benvie and Invergowry Forfar

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Montrose South Angus
2 Carnoustie East Angus
3 Arbroath Landward Angus
4 Monifieth East Angus
5 Kirriemuir Angus

Forenames

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First names often paired with Kydd

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Kydd

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

Kydd 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

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

Meaning and origin of Kydd

The surname KYDD originated in northern England, particularly in the counties of Yorkshire and Lincolnshire, during the late medieval period. It is derived from the Old English word "cydd," which means "a young person" or "a youth."

The name likely arose as a descriptive nickname for a young person or a diminutive form of a personal name such as Kidder or Kidson. It may have also been used to refer to the youngest child in a family.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name KYDD can be found in the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379, where it appears as "Kyd." Similar spellings, such as "Kydde" and "Kide," were also used in various historical records from the 14th and 15th centuries.

In the Domesday Book of 1086, a record of landholders in England commissioned by William the Conqueror, there is no direct mention of the surname KYDD. However, there are references to places that may have influenced the development of the name, such as the village of Kidderminster in Worcestershire.

One notable bearer of the KYDD surname was Thomas Kydd (c. 1558-1616), an English writer and translator who published works on astronomy and navigation. Another was Captain William Kydd (1654-1696), a Scottish naval officer who served in the Royal Navy during the late 17th century.

In the 18th century, Robert Kydd (1701-1758) was a Scottish mathematician and philosopher who made contributions to the study of calculus and differential equations. Later, James Kydd (1785-1834) was a Scottish naval officer and explorer who served in the British Royal Navy and conducted surveys in the Indian Ocean.

A more recent historical figure with the KYDD surname was Charles Kydd (1879-1948), a British architect and designer who played a significant role in the development of London's Regent Street and the Piccadilly Circus area in the early 20th century.

While the KYDD surname has its origins in northern England, it has since spread to other parts of the United Kingdom and beyond, with bearers of the name found in various countries around the world.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Kydd families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Kydd 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. Angus leads with 399 Kydds recorded in 1881 and an index of 84.91x.

County Total Index
Angus 399 84.91x
Perthshire 16 7.03x
Kincardineshire 15 24.28x
Lanarkshire 14 0.85x
Essex 13 1.30x
Aberdeenshire 10 2.13x
Durham 10 0.66x
Midlothian 8 1.18x
Kent 5 0.29x
Middlesex 5 0.10x
West Lothian 5 6.55x
Sutherland 3 7.69x
Fife 2 0.67x
Lancashire 2 0.03x
Northamptonshire 2 0.42x
Nottinghamshire 2 0.29x
Warwickshire 2 0.16x
Bedfordshire 1 0.38x
Hampshire 1 0.10x
Inverness-shire 1 0.66x
Kirkcudbrightshire 1 1.36x
Shropshire 1 0.23x
Staffordshire 1 0.06x
Surrey 1 0.04x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. St Vigeans in Angus leads with 83 Kydds recorded in 1881 and an index of 327.16x.

Place Total Index
St Vigeans 83 327.16x
Forfar 46 180.75x
Arbroath 44 282.59x
Panbride 29 1183.67x
Arbirlot 26 1818.18x
Carmyllie 20 1000.00x
Dundee 19 10.83x
Barry 17 301.42x
Liff Benvie 17 23.83x
Monifieth 14 84.34x
Kirkden 11 374.15x
Brechin 10 54.14x
Montrose 10 35.11x
Barony 9 2.17x
Inverkeillor 9 309.28x
Edinburgh St Cuthberts 8 2.93x
Inverarity 8 529.80x
West Ham 8 3.62x
Banchory Devenick 7 121.32x
Craig 7 154.19x
Abernethy 6 202.02x
Caputh 6 167.60x
Oathlaw 6 769.23x
Beckenham 5 22.10x
East Ham 5 26.91x
Govan 5 1.23x
Livingstone 5 191.57x
Whickham 5 36.00x
Aberdeen Old Machar 4 4.08x
Abroath St Vigeans 4 207.25x
Dunnottar 4 91.95x
Forgue 4 94.79x
Guthrie 4 519.48x
Laurencekirk 4 111.73x
Dornoch 3 68.34x
Dun 3 319.15x
Farnell 3 277.78x
Hurworth 3 113.64x
Ratcliffe London 3 10.71x
Brington 2 138.89x
Cupar 2 15.31x
Hartlepool 2 9.32x
Kingoldrum 2 294.12x
Logierait 2 49.88x
Nottingham Standard 2 114.29x
Aberdeen St Nicholas 1 1.14x
Aberlemno 1 57.47x
Aldershot 1 2.87x
Bedford St Paul 1 5.55x
Belhelvie 1 31.15x
Bootle Cum Linacre 1 2.09x
Bromley London 1 0.90x
Burslem 1 2.04x
Chilvers Coton 1 19.01x
Everton 1 0.52x
Fearn 1 181.82x
Hornsey 1 1.56x
Inverness 1 2.62x
Kinnel 1 81.97x
Kinnettles 1 149.25x
Kirriemuir 1 8.62x
Lambeth 1 0.23x
Maryton 1 147.06x
Meole Brace 1 44.05x
Monks Kirby 1 35.59x
Perth East Church 1 4.66x
Rescobie 1 84.03x
Tibbermore 1 30.67x
Troqueer 1 10.38x

Top female names

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

Name Count
James 4
William 4
Alexander 2
David 2
Thomas 2
Andrew 1
Daniel 1
George 1
J.M.B. 1
Joseph 1
Peter 1
Richard 1
Robert 1

Top occupations

Occupational titles are kept as recorded and later transcribed, so related jobs, spelling variants and mistakes stay separate. Scholar was the census term for a child in education. That means the other rows often tell you more about adult work in Kydd households.

FAQ

Kydd surname: questions and answers

How common was the Kydd surname in 1881?

In 1881, 520 people were recorded with the Kydd surname. That placed it at #6,564 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Kydd surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 610 in 2016. That gives Kydd a modern rank of #8,601.

What does the Kydd surname mean?

A variant spelling of Kyd, an English surname derived from an Old English personal name.

What does the Kydd map show?

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