NameCensus.

UK surname

Manly

A transferred use of the English vocabulary word describing masculine qualities or characteristics.

In the 1881 census there were 444 people recorded with the Manly surname, ranking it #7,385 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 203, ranked #19,396, down from #7,385 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to London parishes, St Pancras and St Marylebone. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Cherwell, Richmond upon Thames and Hertsmere.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Manly is 444 in 1881. Compared with 1881, the name has fallen by 54.3%.

1881 census count

444

Ranked #7,385

Modern count

203

2016, ranked #19,396

Peak year

1881

444 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Manly had 444 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #7,385 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 203 in 2016, ranked #19,396.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 444 in 1881.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Outer Suburbs.

Manly surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Manly surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Manly 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 421 #5,789
1861 historical 396 #6,476
1881 historical 444 #7,385
1891 historical 299 #11,140
1901 historical 286 #12,029
1911 historical 303 #11,372
1997 modern 234 #15,939
1998 modern 238 #16,218
1999 modern 241 #16,179
2000 modern 239 #16,239
2001 modern 231 #16,365
2002 modern 225 #16,994
2003 modern 208 #17,685
2004 modern 209 #17,706
2005 modern 189 #18,807
2006 modern 195 #18,564
2007 modern 196 #18,737
2008 modern 197 #18,818
2009 modern 198 #19,145
2010 modern 204 #19,200
2011 modern 192 #19,797
2012 modern 195 #19,540
2013 modern 195 #19,857
2014 modern 198 #19,841
2015 modern 200 #19,567
2016 modern 203 #19,396

Geography

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Where Manlys are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around London parishes, St Pancras, St Marylebone and Liverpool. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Cherwell, Richmond upon Thames, Hertsmere, Mendip and Sefton. 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 London parishes London 1
2 London parishes London 3
3 St Pancras London (North Districts)
4 St Marylebone London (North Districts)
5 Liverpool Lancashire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Cherwell 003 Cherwell
2 Richmond upon Thames 005 Richmond upon Thames
3 Hertsmere 006 Hertsmere
4 Mendip 009 Mendip
5 Sefton 009 Sefton

Forenames

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First names often paired with Manly

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Manly

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

Ethnically Diverse Suburban Professionals

Group

Outer Suburbs

Nationally, the Manly surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Outer Suburbs, within Ethnically Diverse Suburban Professionals. This does not mean every Manly household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

These neighbourhoods are found on the outer edges of many towns and cities. Many residents were born outside the UK. Indian ethnic group representation is high. There are high numbers of families with dependent children aged 5 to 14. Incidences of disability and of provision of unpaid care are low. Neighbourhoods provide a mix of detached housing and flats, and terraced housing is not uncommon. Levels of overcrowding are low and homeownership rates are high. Professional and managerial occupations are prevalent: unemployment is low and education to degree level is the norm.

Wider pattern

Those working within the managerial, professional and administrative occupations typically reflect a wide range of ethnic groups, and reside in detached or semi-detached housing. Their residential locations at the edges of cities and conurbations and car-based lifestyles are more characteristic of Supergroup membership than birthplace or participation in child-rearing. Houses are typically owner-occupied and marriage rates are lower than the national average. This Supergroup is found throughout suburban UK.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

The Greater London Mix

Group

Social Rented Sector Professional Support Workers

Within London, Manly 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

Manly is most concentrated in decile 8 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.

8
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

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

Meaning and origin of Manly

The surname Manly originated in England, deriving from the Old English words "mann" and "leah," which together mean "man's meadow" or "clearing in a forest where a man lives." It is believed to have first emerged as a descriptive surname for someone living in a meadow or clearing during the medieval period.

In its earliest form, the name was often spelled "Manlegh" or "Manlye." One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Manlegh" in reference to landowners in various counties of England.

During the 13th century, the surname began to appear in various historical records, such as the Hundred Rolls of 1273, which listed individuals with the name "Manly" or similar spellings in counties like Oxfordshire and Warwickshire.

One notable early bearer of the Manly surname was Sir John Manly, a prominent English landowner and knight who lived in the late 13th and early 14th centuries. He is mentioned in several historical documents of the time, including the Calendars of Inquisitions Post Mortem from the reign of King Edward II.

In the 15th century, the Manly surname was also associated with the village of Manley in Cheshire, England, suggesting a possible connection between the surname and this place name. During this period, individuals such as William Manley (born around 1425) and John Manley (born around 1450) were recorded as residents of this area.

Another significant figure bearing the Manly surname was Captain John Manly, an American naval officer who played a crucial role in the American Revolutionary War. Born in 1733 in Marblehead, Massachusetts, he commanded several ships and captured numerous British vessels during the war.

Other notable individuals with the Manly surname include Sir Henry Manly, a 17th-century English politician and landowner; Basil Manly, an American Baptist minister and educator (1798-1868); and Curt Manly, an American baseball player who played for the Philadelphia Athletics in the early 1900s.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Manly families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Manly 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. Middlesex leads with 111 Manlys recorded in 1881 and an index of 2.55x.

County Total Index
Middlesex 111 2.55x
Lancashire 36 0.70x
Somerset 34 4.84x
Devon 33 3.64x
Surrey 32 1.51x
Oxfordshire 19 7.06x
Glamorgan 18 2.37x
Kent 17 1.14x
Warwickshire 16 1.45x
Cheshire 15 1.56x
Essex 13 1.51x
Durham 11 0.85x
Gloucestershire 11 1.29x
Lanarkshire 11 0.78x
Monmouthshire 9 2.86x
Hertfordshire 8 2.66x
Staffordshire 7 0.48x
Hampshire 6 0.67x
Channel Islands 5 3.87x
Northumberland 5 0.77x
Yorkshire 5 0.12x
Flintshire 4 3.41x
Sussex 4 0.54x
Aberdeenshire 3 0.74x
Midlothian 3 0.51x
Shropshire 2 0.53x
Suffolk 2 0.38x
Caernarfonshire 1 0.57x
Cornwall 1 0.20x
Dorset 1 0.35x
Leicestershire 1 0.21x
Northamptonshire 1 0.24x
Perthshire 1 0.51x
Worcestershire 1 0.18x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. St Pancras London in Middlesex leads with 30 Manlys recorded in 1881 and an index of 8.55x.

Place Total Index
St Pancras London 30 8.55x
Nuneham Courtenay 16 4102.56x
Paulton 15 467.29x
St George In East 13 43.83x
West Ham 13 6.84x
Deptford St Paul 10 8.71x
Edgbaston 10 29.33x
New Monkland 10 23.99x
Exeter St Sidwell 9 43.29x
Hornsey 9 16.32x
Newington 9 5.59x
Broxbourne 8 134.23x
Toxteth Park 8 4.57x
Clapham 7 12.84x
Hackney London 7 2.86x
Hampstead London 7 10.31x
Lambeth 7 1.84x
Merthyr Tydfil 7 9.59x
Sidmouth 7 134.62x
Tavistock 7 67.70x
Bedminster 6 9.10x
Chelsea London 6 4.57x
Gloucester St Nicholas 6 151.52x
Gorton 6 12.34x
Harborne 6 12.72x
Panteg 6 120.97x
St Marylebone London 6 2.58x
Birmingham 5 1.36x
Fulham London 5 7.91x
Kensington London 5 2.06x
Mile End New Town 5 84.03x
Monkwearmouth Shore 5 19.75x
Oake 5 3125.00x
Westgate 5 12.44x
Aberavon 4 57.22x
Brighton 4 2.70x
Bristol St Philip Jacob 4 4.97x
Bromley London 4 4.17x
Chester St Oswald 4 22.95x
Cholmondeley 4 930.23x
Hartlepool 4 21.69x
Rhuddlan Rhyl 4 493.83x
St George Hanover 4 7.03x
St Helier 4 9.51x
Aberdare 3 5.76x
Aberdeen St Nicholas 3 3.97x
Accrington 3 6.38x
Berry Pomeroy 3 200.00x
Bix 3 468.75x
Epsom 3 28.99x
Fazakerley 3 375.00x
Islington London 3 0.71x
Milton In Gravesend 3 13.45x
North Petherton 3 53.00x
Roath 3 8.70x
Southampton St Mary 3 5.34x
Atherton 2 10.62x
Camberwell 2 0.72x
Canterbury St Mary 2 20.04x
Dalwood 2 322.58x
Ecclesall Bierlow 2 2.28x
Edinburgh Buccleuch 2 14.47x
Great Little Marsden 2 8.44x
Holy Trinity 2 1.92x
Liverpool 2 0.64x
Lostock Gralam 2 172.41x
Lowestoft 2 7.97x
Manchester 2 0.86x
Nantwich 2 17.89x
Paddington London 2 1.25x
Shoreditch London 2 1.06x
Sidbury 2 103.09x
St Woollos 2 5.69x
Whitchurch 2 70.42x
Worsley 2 6.27x
Breage 1 22.17x
Govan 1 0.29x
Morley 1 4.45x
Oystermouth 1 17.04x
Tranmere 1 2.83x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 26
Sarah 16
Elizabeth 15
Ann 10
Jane 7
Alice 6
Edith 6
Eliza 6
Emma 6
Annie 5
Catherine 5
Louisa 5
Amelia 4
Caroline 4
Ellen 4
Lucy 4
Agnes 3
Charlotte 3
Dorothy 3
Emily 3
Florence 3
Jessie 3
Margaret 3
Minnie 3
Ada 2
Anne 2
Barbara 2
Beatrice 2
Bertha 2
Clara 2
Fanny 2
Frances 2
Hannah 2
Helen 2
Honour 2
Julia 2
Kate 2
Letitia 2
Maria 2
Susan 2
Elen 1
Elenor 1
Elizabetha 1
Elizth 1
Emblin 1
Harriet 1
Harriett 1
Henrietta 1
Hepsibeth 1
Infant 1

Top male names

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

FAQ

Manly surname: questions and answers

How common was the Manly surname in 1881?

In 1881, 444 people were recorded with the Manly surname. That placed it at #7,385 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Manly surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 203 in 2016. That gives Manly a modern rank of #19,396.

What does the Manly surname mean?

A transferred use of the English vocabulary word describing masculine qualities or characteristics.

What does the Manly map show?

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