NameCensus.

UK surname

Methuen

In the 1881 census there were 69 people recorded with the Methuen surname, ranking it #23,816 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 98, ranked #31,470, down from #23,816 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Mynyddyslwyn, Monifieth and Backwell. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Monmouthshire, Ceredigion and Caerphilly.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Methuen is 121 in 2004. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 42.0%.

1881 census count

69

Ranked #23,816

Modern count

98

2016, ranked #31,470

Peak year

2004

121 bearers

Map years

3

1901 to 2006

Key insights

  • Methuen had 69 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #23,816 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 98 in 2016, ranked #31,470.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 103 in 1901.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Rural Amenity.

Methuen surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Methuen surname density by area, 2006 modern.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Methuen 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 20 #29,743
1861 historical 37 #29,339
1881 historical 69 #23,816
1891 historical 50 #30,253
1901 historical 103 #22,444
1911 historical 60 #26,808
1997 modern 100 #26,901
1998 modern 110 #26,129
1999 modern 115 #25,620
2000 modern 113 #25,843
2001 modern 113 #25,489
2002 modern 120 #25,110
2003 modern 107 #26,617
2004 modern 121 #24,939
2005 modern 112 #26,114
2006 modern 106 #27,332
2007 modern 96 #29,339
2008 modern 89 #30,713
2009 modern 94 #30,538
2010 modern 91 #31,497
2011 modern 85 #32,127
2012 modern 81 #32,796
2013 modern 86 #32,557
2014 modern 93 #32,025
2015 modern 94 #31,872
2016 modern 98 #31,470

Geography

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Where Methuens are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Mynyddyslwyn, Monifieth, Backwell, Mark, Chapel Allerton, Weare, East Brent, South Brent and Meare. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Monmouthshire, Ceredigion and Caerphilly. 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 Mynyddyslwyn Monmouthshire
2 Monifieth Forfar
3 Backwell Somerset
4 Mark, Chapel Allerton, Weare, East Brent, South Brent Somerset
5 Meare Somerset

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Monmouthshire 007 Monmouthshire
2 Ceredigion 008 Ceredigion
3 Monmouthshire 010 Monmouthshire
4 Caerphilly 006 Caerphilly
5 Monmouthshire 008 Monmouthshire

Forenames

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First names often paired with Methuen

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Methuen

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

Suburbanites and Peri-Urbanities

Group

Rural Amenity

Nationally, the Methuen surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Rural Amenity, within Suburbanites and Peri-Urbanities. This does not mean every Methuen 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 comprises older parents or retirees, with no resident dependent children, and with the lowest residential densities in this Supergroup. Predominantly UK-born, residents typically live in detached houses, although others do live in semi-detached and terraced properties. The level of multiple car ownership is the highest in this Supergroup. Most houses are owner occupied although social renting is also present. Many concentrations occur in high amenity rural locations, such as Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

Wider pattern

Pervasive throughout the UK, members of this Supergroup typically own (or are buying) their detached, semi-detached or terraced homes. They are also typically educated to A Level/Highers or degree level and work in skilled or professional occupations. Typically born in the UK, some families have children, although the median adult age is above 45 and some property has become under-occupied after children have left home. This Supergroup is pervasive not only in suburban locations, but also in neighbourhoods at or beyond the edge of cities that adjoin rural parts of the country.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Central Connected Professionals and Managers

Group

Senior Professionals

Within London, Methuen is most associated with areas classed as Senior Professionals, part of Central Connected Professionals and Managers. 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 very central neighbourhoods house residents whose ages are more skewed towards older age cohorts than elsewhere in the Supergroup. Few households have young children. Rates of illness are low. Indian ethnicity is rare compared to the Supergroup mean. Property under occupation is more common, despite the centrality of neighbourhoods, and more residents live in communal establishments than elsewhere in the Supergroup.

Wider London pattern

Adult residents of these neighbourhoods are typically aged 25 to 44, working full-time in professional, managerial or associate professional occupations. There are few families with dependent children. The predominantly Inner London neighbourhoods have an international character, including many residents born elsewhere in Europe alongside high numbers of individuals identifying as of Chinese ethnicity. Many individuals are never married, childless and/or living alone. Above average numbers of individuals, likely to be full-time students, live in communal establishments. Elsewhere, privately rented flats are the dominant housing type. Residents of these areas are well-qualified, with a significant number holding Level 4 or above qualifications. There is a correspondingly high level of individuals employed full-time in professional, managerial and associated professional or technical occupations. Employing industries are financial, real estate, professional, administration, and, to a lesser degree, transport and communications. Unemployment is uncommon.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Methuen is most concentrated in decile 6 for access to healthy assets and hazards. This places the surname near the middle of the scale.

Lower deciles point towards weaker access to healthy assets or stronger exposure to local hazards. Higher deciles point towards stronger access and fewer hazards.

6
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Methuen 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 Methuen is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of 20-25 mbit/s.

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

4
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - British

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

1881 census detail

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Methuen families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Methuen 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. Somerset leads with 25 Methuens recorded in 1881 and an index of 22.43x.

County Total Index
Somerset 25 22.43x
Middlesex 10 1.44x
Lancashire 7 0.85x
Gloucestershire 6 4.42x
Suffolk 5 5.93x
Angus 4 6.24x
Hampshire 4 2.82x
Kent 2 0.85x
Surrey 2 0.59x
Wiltshire 2 3.27x
Bedfordshire 1 2.79x
Berkshire 1 1.92x
Devon 1 0.69x
Midlothian 1 1.08x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Wedmore in Somerset leads with 9 Methuens recorded in 1881 and an index of 1232.88x.

Place Total Index
Wedmore 9 1232.88x
Downhead 7 17500.00x
Cirencester 6 326.09x
Backwell 5 2173.91x
Bury St Edmunds St Mary 5 316.46x
Enfield 5 110.13x
Urmston 5 943.40x
Arbroath 4 187.79x
Kensington London 4 10.39x
Portsea 4 14.38x
Mark 3 1153.85x
Corsham 2 224.72x
Hadlow 2 338.98x
Barnstaple 1 44.25x
Bisley 1 666.67x
Edinburgh St Cuthberts 1 2.68x
Everton 1 3.82x
Ewell 1 140.85x
Hornsey 1 11.42x
Layton With Warbreck 1 33.22x
Sandhurst 1 99.01x
Walcot 1 16.84x
Wrestlingworth 1 666.67x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Ellen 3
Annie 2
Hannah 2
Mary 2
Rosina 2
Susan 2
Ada 1
Amelia 1
Bertha 1
Catherine 1
Edith 1
Eleanor 1
Elizabeth 1
Elizth. 1
Elizth.A. 1
Emily 1
Kate 1
Lady 1
Lilly 1
Margaret 1
Margery 1
Martha 1
Maud 1
Sarah 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
Henry 3
Robert 3
Charles 2
David 2
Frederick 2
John 2
Paul 2
William 2
Aaron 1
Albert 1
Alexr. 1
Alleyn 1
Cameron 1
Chas.W. 1
Edward 1
Geo. 1
George 1
Isaac 1
James 1
Lenord 1
Lord 1
Richard 1
Thomas 1
Wm. 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 Methuen households.

FAQ

Methuen surname: questions and answers

How common was the Methuen surname in 1881?

In 1881, 69 people were recorded with the Methuen surname. That placed it at #23,816 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Methuen surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 98 in 2016. That gives Methuen a modern rank of #31,470.

What does the Methuen map show?

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