NameCensus.

UK surname

Liver

In the 1881 census there were 64 people recorded with the Liver surname, ranking it #24,561 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 113, ranked #28,691, down from #24,561 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Lancaster Borough, Toxteth Park and Manchester. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Lancaster and Shropshire.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Liver is 122 in 1861. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 76.6%.

1881 census count

64

Ranked #24,561

Modern count

113

2016, ranked #28,691

Peak year

1861

122 bearers

Map years

5

1861 to 2016

Key insights

  • Liver had 64 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #24,561 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 113 in 2016, ranked #28,691.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 122 in 1861.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Small Town Suburbia.

Liver surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Liver surname density by area, 2016 modern.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Liver 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 74 #20,443
1861 historical 122 #18,036
1881 historical 64 #24,561
1891 historical 122 #21,053
1901 historical 112 #21,382
1911 historical 104 #22,209
1997 modern 92 #28,079
1998 modern 95 #28,303
1999 modern 104 #27,164
2000 modern 89 #29,173
2001 modern 87 #29,161
2002 modern 82 #30,181
2003 modern 78 #30,654
2004 modern 81 #30,569
2005 modern 81 #30,740
2006 modern 83 #30,808
2007 modern 87 #30,666
2008 modern 91 #30,431
2009 modern 91 #30,944
2010 modern 91 #31,497
2011 modern 85 #32,127
2012 modern 94 #31,258
2013 modern 100 #30,773
2014 modern 105 #30,204
2015 modern 105 #30,092
2016 modern 113 #28,691

Geography

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Where Livers are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Lancaster Borough, Toxteth Park, Manchester, Lytham and Lancaster. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Lancaster and Shropshire. 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 Toxteth Park Lancashire
3 Manchester Lancashire
4 Lytham Lancashire
5 Lancaster Lancashire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Lancaster 020 Lancaster
2 Lancaster 006 Lancaster
3 Lancaster 010 Lancaster
4 Shropshire 013 Shropshire
5 Lancaster 016 Lancaster

Forenames

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First names often paired with Liver

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Liver

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Liver, 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

Small Town Suburbia

Nationally, the Liver surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Small Town Suburbia, within Retired Professionals. This does not mean every Liver 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 is predominantly comprised of married couples with no resident dependent children, living in areas characterised neither by under-occupancy nor overcrowding throughout the UK in or adjacent to small towns. White ethnic groups and affiliation with Christianity predominates. Housing tends to be predominantly semi-detached or detached and workers are employed principally in managerial and professional occupations, with semi-skilled occupations also in evidence. These areas of the Supergroup are of higher population density.

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, Liver 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

Liver 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

Liver falls in decile 1 for neighbourhood deprivation. This puts the surname towards the more deprived end of the index.

Decile 1 represents the more deprived end of the scale. Decile 10 represents the less deprived end.

1
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Liver 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 Liver, not the ethnicity of every person with the surname.

1881 census detail

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Liver families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Liver 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 46 Livers recorded in 1881 and an index of 6.31x.

County Total Index
Lancashire 46 6.31x
Middlesex 4 0.65x
Perthshire 4 14.51x
Devon 2 1.56x
Staffordshire 2 0.96x
Cornwall 1 1.44x
Midlothian 1 1.22x
Royal Navy 1 13.66x
Somerset 1 1.01x
Worcestershire 1 1.25x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Salford in Lancashire leads with 8 Livers recorded in 1881 and an index of 37.31x.

Place Total Index
Salford 8 37.31x
Lancaster 7 161.29x
Skerton 7 1166.67x
Great Lever 5 649.35x
Blackburn 4 20.62x
Dunning 4 1176.47x
Toxteth Park 3 12.15x
Hammersmith London 2 13.22x
Manchester 2 6.10x
Pendleton In Salford 2 23.02x
Wavertree 2 85.84x
Barrow In Furness 1 10.08x
Burslem 1 16.84x
Burton Upon Trent 1 20.62x
Devonport 1 68.03x
East Chinnock 1 833.33x
Edgeworth 1 256.41x
Edinburgh St Stephens 1 61.73x
Islington London 1 1.68x
Kensington London 1 2.93x
Newchurch 1 16.78x
Openshaw 1 29.33x
Plymouth St Andrew 1 10.15x
Preston 1 5.13x
Royal Navy 1 15.97x
Saltash 1 185.19x
Stourbridge 1 48.54x
West Derby 1 4.69x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Ellen 3
Margaret 3
Mary 3
Ada 1
Adela 1
Agnes 1
Alice 1
Amelia 1
Ann 1
Dolley 1
Emma 1
Fanney 1
Fanny 1
Harriet 1
Louisa 1
Louise 1
Maria 1
Martha 1
Nancy 1
Sarah 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
John 6
William 6
James 5
Joseph 3
Thomas 3
Albert 1
Arthur 1
Ben 1
Ernest 1
Frank 1
Frederick 1
Fredk.C. 1
George 1
Michael 1

FAQ

Liver surname: questions and answers

How common was the Liver surname in 1881?

In 1881, 64 people were recorded with the Liver surname. That placed it at #24,561 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Liver surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 113 in 2016. That gives Liver a modern rank of #28,691.

What does the Liver map show?

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