NameCensus.

UK surname

Laven

A surname likely derived from a Germanic place name associated with the word "lava" or "laven" meaning "a clearing" or "meadow".

In the 1881 census there were 133 people recorded with the Laven surname, ranking it #16,676 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 124, ranked #26,975, down from #16,676 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Hull Holy Trinity, London parishes and Gateshead. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Amber Valley, Reigate and Banstead and Redcar and Cleveland.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Laven is 153 in 1861. Compared with 1881, the name has fallen by 6.8%.

1881 census count

133

Ranked #16,676

Modern count

124

2016, ranked #26,975

Peak year

1861

153 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Laven had 133 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #16,676 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 124 in 2016, ranked #26,975.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 153 in 1861.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Spacious Rural Living.

Laven surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Laven surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Laven 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 103 #16,835
1861 historical 153 #15,032
1881 historical 133 #16,676
1891 historical 140 #19,193
1901 historical 109 #21,712
1911 historical 103 #22,328
1997 modern 115 #24,834
1998 modern 117 #25,190
1999 modern 123 #24,643
2000 modern 121 #24,824
2001 modern 124 #24,114
2002 modern 124 #24,616
2003 modern 118 #25,146
2004 modern 120 #25,078
2005 modern 128 #24,076
2006 modern 115 #25,969
2007 modern 114 #26,491
2008 modern 127 #25,020
2009 modern 132 #24,929
2010 modern 129 #25,900
2011 modern 126 #26,060
2012 modern 115 #27,717
2013 modern 126 #26,585
2014 modern 130 #26,216
2015 modern 123 #27,088
2016 modern 124 #26,975

Geography

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Where Lavens are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Hull Holy Trinity, London parishes, Gateshead, Edinburgh and Manchester. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Amber Valley, Reigate and Banstead, Redcar and Cleveland and Kensington and Chelsea. 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 Hull Holy Trinity Yorkshire, East Riding
2 London parishes London 3
3 Gateshead Durham
4 Edinburgh Edinburgh
5 Manchester Lancashire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Amber Valley 009 Amber Valley
2 Reigate and Banstead 018 Reigate and Banstead
3 Redcar and Cleveland 006 Redcar and Cleveland
4 Kensington and Chelsea 006 Kensington and Chelsea
5 Amber Valley 007 Amber Valley

Forenames

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First names often paired with Laven

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Laven

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

European Enclaves

Within London, Laven is most associated with areas classed as European Enclaves, 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

Many residents of these accessible neighbourhoods have wide-ranging non-UK European origins. Typically residing in privately rented flats, many residents live alone and are beyond normal retirement age. There are more students than elsewhere in the Supergroup, some of which live in communal establishments. Household residents are often drawn from different ethnic groups.

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

Laven is most concentrated in decile 3 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.

3
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Laven falls in decile 9 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.

9
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Laven 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 - Irish

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

Meaning and origin of Laven

The surname Laven is believed to have originated in Germany, likely in the northern regions near the Dutch border. It is thought to be derived from an old German word meaning "linden" or "linden tree," which was a common tree found throughout that area.

The earliest known records of the Laven surname date back to the 13th century, with references found in medieval documents and town records from various German states. One notable early mention is in the 1296 Worms municipal chronicle, which lists a "Johannes Laven" as a local landowner.

During the 16th and 17th centuries, the name began to spread beyond Germany, appearing in records from neighboring countries like the Netherlands and Switzerland. In 1612, a Dutch merchant named Pieter Laven is documented as having traveled to the East Indies on a trading voyage.

In the 19th century, several prominent individuals bore the Laven surname. These include German philosopher and writer Friedrich Laven (1812-1875), who wrote extensively on ethics and morality. There was also a Swiss artist named Johann Laven (1836-1921), renowned for his landscape paintings of the Alpine regions.

As people migrated across Europe and beyond, the Laven name spread further. One notable figure was British explorer and naturalist Richard Laven (1845-1902), who led expeditions to South America and the Pacific, documenting previously unknown plant and animal species.

Other historical figures with the Laven surname include French linguist Marie Laven (1879-1955), who made significant contributions to the study of Romance languages. And in the United States, there was William Laven (1903-1979), a successful businessman and philanthropist who founded the Laven Foundation to support education and community development initiatives.

While the origins of the Laven surname can be traced back to medieval Germany, it has since become a name found across many countries and cultures, reflecting the movements and migrations of people throughout history.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Laven families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Laven 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 25 Lavens recorded in 1881 and an index of 1.62x.

County Total Index
Lancashire 25 1.62x
Yorkshire 21 1.63x
Cheshire 15 5.24x
Durham 15 3.89x
Midlothian 11 6.33x
Middlesex 8 0.62x
Warwickshire 8 2.45x
Essex 7 2.73x
Northumberland 5 2.59x
Leicestershire 3 2.09x
Devon 2 0.74x
Lanarkshire 2 0.48x
Norfolk 2 1.00x
Somerset 2 0.96x
Staffordshire 2 0.46x
Cornwall 1 0.68x
Cumberland 1 0.90x
Dorset 1 1.17x
Shropshire 1 0.89x
Surrey 1 0.16x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Stockport in Cheshire leads with 9 Lavens recorded in 1881 and an index of 61.06x.

Place Total Index
Stockport 9 61.06x
Birmingham 8 7.34x
Edinburgh St Cuthberts 8 11.44x
Pemberton 8 130.29x
Colchester St Botolph 7 321.10x
Birkenhead 6 26.28x
Drypool 6 304.57x
Hedworth Monkton Jarrow 5 29.90x
Brightside Bierlow 4 15.86x
Bury 4 22.74x
Ealing 4 34.51x
Heworth 4 52.56x
Everton 3 6.11x
Hugglescote 3 141.51x
Newcastle On Tyne All Sts 3 26.02x
Oldham 3 6.04x
Whitby 3 69.28x
Bishopwearmouth 2 6.04x
Holy Trinity 2 6.47x
Priddy 2 2000.00x
Spotland 2 11.68x
St Pancras London 2 1.92x
Stranton 2 15.40x
Tattersett 2 2222.22x
Westminster St James 2 14.99x
Wigan 2 9.30x
Wylam 2 465.12x
Barnsley 1 7.54x
Bideford 1 34.60x
Edinburgh Old Church 1 71.43x
Eston 1 35.71x
Kea 1 91.74x
Lasswade 1 25.19x
Liberton 1 37.31x
Moreton Hampstead 1 142.86x
New Monkland 1 8.06x
North Meols 1 6.64x
Old Monkland 1 6.01x
Portland 1 21.83x
Radcliffe 1 13.48x
Skinningrove 1 126.58x
South Frodingham 1 1250.00x
Stanton Long 1 833.33x
Stockton On Tees 1 5.37x
Swillington 1 270.27x
Teddesley Hay 1 1666.67x
Trimdon 1 73.53x
Upholland 1 50.76x
Walsall Borough 1 29.41x
Wandsworth 1 8.01x
Workington 1 15.63x
York Holy Trinity 1 90.09x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 10
Bridget 6
Ann 5
Annie 3
Ellen 3
Emily 3
Catherine 2
Elizabeth 2
Margaret 2
Margt. 2
(Mrs) 1
Eliza 1
Emma 1
Jane 1
Louisa 1
Margret 1
Maria 1
May 1
Selina 1
William 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
John 16
Thomas 10
James 9
Patrick 7
George 4
Michael 3
Edward 2
Martin 2
Peter 2
Andrew 1
Bernard 1
Chares 1
Dominick 1
Francis 1
Frank 1
Frederick 1
Henry 1
J. 1
Joseph 1
Joshua 1
Michal 1
Owen 1
Sydney 1
William 1
Willm. 1
Wm. 1

FAQ

Laven surname: questions and answers

How common was the Laven surname in 1881?

In 1881, 133 people were recorded with the Laven surname. That placed it at #16,676 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Laven surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 124 in 2016. That gives Laven a modern rank of #26,975.

What does the Laven surname mean?

A surname likely derived from a Germanic place name associated with the word "lava" or "laven" meaning "a clearing" or "meadow".

What does the Laven map show?

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