NameCensus.

UK surname

Messham

In the 1881 census there were 132 people recorded with the Messham surname, ranking it #16,744 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 319, ranked #14,121, up from #16,744 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Toxteth Park, Hawarden and West Derby. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Flintshire and Wrexham.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Messham is 344 in 2003. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 141.7%.

1881 census count

132

Ranked #16,744

Modern count

319

2016, ranked #14,121

Peak year

2003

344 bearers

Map years

7

1881 to 2016

Key insights

  • Messham had 132 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #16,744 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 319 in 2016, ranked #14,121.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 225 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Small Town Suburbia.

Messham surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Messham surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Messham 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 44 #25,328
1861 historical 26 #30,677
1881 historical 132 #16,744
1891 historical 127 #20,496
1901 historical 175 #16,469
1911 historical 225 #13,874
1997 modern 312 #13,182
1998 modern 332 #12,990
1999 modern 329 #13,147
2000 modern 343 #12,746
2001 modern 328 #12,944
2002 modern 333 #13,062
2003 modern 344 #12,577
2004 modern 341 #12,673
2005 modern 335 #12,795
2006 modern 326 #13,128
2007 modern 327 #13,229
2008 modern 328 #13,319
2009 modern 336 #13,345
2010 modern 333 #13,717
2011 modern 338 #13,435
2012 modern 329 #13,593
2013 modern 322 #14,037
2014 modern 319 #14,216
2015 modern 314 #14,275
2016 modern 319 #14,121

Geography

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Where Messhams are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Toxteth Park, Hawarden, West Derby, Preston and Kelloe. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Flintshire and Wrexham. 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 Toxteth Park Lancashire
2 Hawarden Cheshire
3 West Derby Lancashire
4 Preston Lancashire
5 Kelloe Durham

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Flintshire 017 Flintshire
2 Flintshire 014 Flintshire
3 Flintshire 013 Flintshire
4 Wrexham 006 Wrexham
5 Flintshire 004 Flintshire

Forenames

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First names often paired with Messham

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Messham

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Messham, 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 Messham surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Small Town Suburbia, within Retired Professionals. This does not mean every Messham 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, Messham 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

Messham 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

Messham falls in decile 8 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.

8
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Messham is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of 25-30 mbit/s.

The scale below places that band in context, from slower local download bands through to faster ones.

5
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - British

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

1881 census detail

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Messham families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Messham 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. Flintshire leads with 65 Messhams recorded in 1881 and an index of 187.81x.

County Total Index
Flintshire 65 187.81x
Lancashire 25 1.64x
Cheshire 24 8.44x
Lincolnshire 7 3.40x
Middlesex 7 0.54x
Sussex 3 1.38x
Nottinghamshire 1 0.58x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Hawarden Pentrobin in Flintshire leads with 34 Messhams recorded in 1881 and an index of 6181.82x.

Place Total Index
Hawarden Pentrobin 34 6181.82x
Chester St John Baptist 19 371.82x
Hawarden 18 661.76x
Great Hale 7 2258.06x
Hawarden Ewloe Town 7 1891.89x
Kingsbury 6 1818.18x
Liverpool 6 6.47x
Toxteth Park 6 11.60x
Mold 5 159.24x
Preston 5 12.23x
Everton 4 8.22x
Tranmere 4 38.31x
West Derby 4 8.95x
Eastbourne 3 30.03x
Eccleston 1 714.29x
Mold Bistree 1 178.57x
Nottingham St Mary 1 2.23x
St Marylebone London 1 1.45x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 13
Elizabeth 9
Ann 4
Jane 4
Margaret 3
Martha 3
Sarah 3
Eliza 2
Harriett 2
Ada 1
Adeliza 1
Anne 1
Annie 1
Beatrice 1
Catherine 1
Clare 1
Dinah 1
Edith 1
Elizh. 1
Ellen 1
Emily 1
Hannah 1
Julia 1
Louisa 1
M.Ellen 1
Margt. 1
Rebecca 1
Rosina 1
Sophia 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
William 11
John 10
Thomas 8
Edward 6
James 5
Alfred 2
George 2
Jacob 2
Joseph 2
Ralph 2
Willm. 2
Wm. 2
Daniel 1
David 1
Edwd. 1
Enoch 1
Fredrick 1
Geo. 1
Harry 1
Herbert 1
Hugh 1
Levi 1
Luke 1
Percy 1
Reuben 1
Robert 1
Samuel 1

FAQ

Messham surname: questions and answers

How common was the Messham surname in 1881?

In 1881, 132 people were recorded with the Messham surname. That placed it at #16,744 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Messham surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 319 in 2016. That gives Messham a modern rank of #14,121.

What does the Messham map show?

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