NameCensus.

UK surname

Moffatt

A Scottish locational surname derived from a place in Annandale meaning "long field" in Gaelic.

In the 1881 census there were 1,903 people recorded with the Moffatt surname, ranking it #2,291 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 2,875, ranked #2,338, down from #2,291 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to London parishes, Gateshead and Govan Combination. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Doncaster, Northumberland and South Lakeland.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Moffatt is 3,019 in 1999. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 51.1%.

1881 census count

1,903

Ranked #2,291

Modern count

2,875

2016, ranked #2,338

Peak year

1999

3,019 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Moffatt had 1,903 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #2,291 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 2,875 in 2016, ranked #2,338.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 2,780 in 1901.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Ageing Communities.

Moffatt surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Moffatt surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Moffatt 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 782 #3,414
1861 historical 1,010 #2,766
1881 historical 1,903 #2,291
1891 historical 2,155 #2,165
1901 historical 2,780 #2,003
1911 historical 2,336 #2,184
1997 modern 2,872 #2,245
1998 modern 2,972 #2,268
1999 modern 3,019 #2,253
2000 modern 2,960 #2,281
2001 modern 2,885 #2,286
2002 modern 2,938 #2,296
2003 modern 2,873 #2,288
2004 modern 2,891 #2,278
2005 modern 2,896 #2,239
2006 modern 2,861 #2,270
2007 modern 2,875 #2,282
2008 modern 2,900 #2,276
2009 modern 2,962 #2,285
2010 modern 2,985 #2,312
2011 modern 2,929 #2,326
2012 modern 2,885 #2,319
2013 modern 2,937 #2,317
2014 modern 2,952 #2,315
2015 modern 2,907 #2,320
2016 modern 2,875 #2,338

Geography

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Where Moffatts are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around London parishes, Gateshead, Govan Combination, Manchester and St Columb Minor. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Doncaster, Northumberland, South Lakeland and Copeland. 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 3
2 Gateshead Durham
3 Govan Combination Lanark
4 Manchester Lancashire
5 St Columb Minor Cornwall

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Doncaster 031 Doncaster
2 Northumberland 017 Northumberland
3 South Lakeland 004 South Lakeland
4 Northumberland 016 Northumberland
5 Copeland 005 Copeland

Forenames

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First names often paired with Moffatt

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Moffatt

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

Ageing Communities

Nationally, the Moffatt surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Ageing Communities, within Suburbanites and Peri-Urbanities. This does not mean every Moffatt household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

Many residents are of normal retirement age or above and live in communal establishments, and there are few dependent children. The dominant property type is a mix of retirement flats and detached houses. Those in work are likely to be employed in managerial and professional occupations, and many residents are educated to degree level. Levels of owner occupation are high, but the private rental sector is also present. Rural locations predominate.

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

Social Rented Sector Families with Children

Group

Social Rented Sector Pockets

Within London, Moffatt is most associated with areas classed as Social Rented Sector Pockets, part of Social Rented Sector Families with Children. 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

Found in pockets across London, residents are less likely to live in private sector rentals and fewer adults are students. Fewer individuals work in transport and communications occupations relative to the Supergroup average. More individuals identify as Black and were born in Africa.

Wider London pattern

Residents of these neighbourhoods include sizable numbers identifying with ethnicities originating outside Europe, particularly in Africa or Bangladesh. The proportion of residents identifying as White, Indian or Pakistani is well below the London average. Neighbourhood age profiles are skewed towards younger adults, and above average numbers of families have children. Rates of use of English at home are below average. Marriage rates are low, and levels of separation or divorce are above average. Housing is predominantly in flats, and renting in the social rented sector the norm - few residents are owner occupiers. Housing is often overcrowded, and neighbourhoods are amongst the most densely populated in London. Disability rates are above average, although levels of unpaid care provision are about average. Employment is in caring, leisure, other service occupations, sales and customer service, or process, plant, and machine operation. Part time working and full-time student study are common. Levels of unemployment are slightly above average. Most residents have only Level 1 or 2 educational qualifications or have completed apprenticeships.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Moffatt is most concentrated in decile 9 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.

9
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

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

Meaning and origin of Moffatt

The surname Moffatt is of Scottish origin, derived from the place name Moffat, a town in the historic county of Dumfriesshire (now part of Dumfries and Galloway). The name is believed to have come from the Gaelic words 'magh' meaning 'a plain' and 'fada' meaning 'long', thus describing the town's geographic location in a long valley.

The earliest recorded spelling of the name appears in the records of the Inquisitio Davidis in 1116, where it is written as 'Moffet'. Over time, various spelling variations emerged, including Moffatt, Moffet, Moffet, Moffitt, and Moffet.

One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Sir Adam Moffat, who was appointed as the first Provost (mayor) of Edinburgh in 1453. Another notable figure was John Moffat (c. 1655-1737), a Scottish minister and Hebrew scholar who served as the Principal of the University of St Andrews.

In the 16th century, the surname Moffatt appeared in the records of the Privy Council of Scotland. During this period, the Moffatt family held lands in the Borders region of Scotland.

In the late 17th century, the Reverend Robert Moffatt (1643-1716) was a prominent minister in the Church of Scotland and served as the Moderator of the General Assembly in 1701.

In the 19th century, Robert Moffat (1795-1883) was a Scottish missionary and linguist who spent over 50 years in South Africa, translating the Bible into the Tswana language and establishing missions among the indigenous people.

Another notable figure was James Moffatt (1870-1944), a Scottish biblical scholar and translator who produced the renowned Moffatt Translation of the Bible in modern English, published in 1922.

The name Moffatt has also been associated with various place names, such as Moffat Water, a river in Dumfriesshire, and Moffat Hills, a range of hills in the same region.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Moffatt families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Moffatt 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 428 Moffatts recorded in 1881 and an index of 1.92x.

County Total Index
Lancashire 428 1.92x
Middlesex 205 1.09x
Northumberland 182 6.51x
Durham 142 2.54x
Cumberland 108 6.67x
Lanarkshire 92 1.51x
Yorkshire 91 0.49x
Cornwall 75 3.52x
Staffordshire 62 0.98x
Surrey 56 0.61x
Cheshire 46 1.11x
Kent 40 0.62x
Westmorland 37 8.96x
Hampshire 34 0.88x
Gloucestershire 28 0.76x
Essex 24 0.65x
Warwickshire 21 0.44x
Midlothian 19 0.75x
Shetland 19 9.90x
Isle of Man 17 4.87x
Renfrewshire 15 1.03x
Suffolk 15 0.66x
West Lothian 12 4.24x
Nottinghamshire 11 0.43x
Somerset 11 0.36x
Ayrshire 9 0.64x
Shropshire 9 0.55x
Derbyshire 8 0.27x
Aberdeenshire 7 0.40x
Berkshire 7 0.50x
Berwickshire 7 3.08x
Flintshire 7 1.39x
Fife 6 0.54x
Lincolnshire 6 0.20x
Stirlingshire 6 0.87x
Channel Islands 5 0.90x
Devon 5 0.13x
Dumfriesshire 5 1.20x
Leicestershire 5 0.24x
Monmouthshire 5 0.37x
Oxfordshire 5 0.43x
Buteshire 4 3.51x
Dunbartonshire 4 0.79x
Argyllshire 3 0.57x
Roxburghshire 3 0.88x
Royal Navy 3 1.34x
Sussex 3 0.09x
Cambridgeshire 2 0.17x
Glamorgan 2 0.06x
Pembrokeshire 2 0.33x
Perthshire 2 0.24x
Wiltshire 2 0.12x
Herefordshire 1 0.13x
Hertfordshire 1 0.08x
Kincardineshire 1 0.44x
Norfolk 1 0.03x
Worcestershire 1 0.04x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Cambusnethan in Lanarkshire leads with 45 Moffatts recorded in 1881 and an index of 33.33x.

Place Total Index
Cambusnethan 45 33.33x
Manchester 43 4.29x
Chorlton On Medlock 33 9.31x
St Columb Minor 33 184.67x
Toxteth Park 33 4.37x
St Pancras London 29 1.92x
Dawdon 28 40.71x
Liverpool 27 1.99x
Warrington 26 9.83x
Gateshead 25 5.97x
Hedworth Monkton Jarrow 25 10.32x
Newcastle On Tyne All Sts 23 13.77x
Portsea 21 2.78x
Byker 20 14.47x
Barony 19 1.23x
Everton 19 2.67x
Walls 19 204.08x
West Derby 19 2.91x
Whitehaven 19 22.03x
Ardwick 17 8.45x
Birkenhead 17 5.14x
Blackburn 17 2.86x
Hulme 17 3.65x
Walsall Borough 17 34.51x
Islington London 16 0.88x
Alston 15 50.30x
Birmingham 15 0.95x
Lambeth 15 0.92x
Onchan 15 14.92x
Govan 14 0.93x
Kirkby Stephen 14 130.72x
Kirkdale 14 3.73x
Camborne 13 14.83x
Kensington London 13 1.24x
St George Hanover 13 5.30x
Caldewgate 12 13.53x
Camberwell 12 1.00x
Mile End Old Town 12 4.04x
Newcastle On Tyne St 12 8.28x
Salford 12 1.83x
Tranmere 12 7.87x
Tynemouth 12 8.01x
Alnwick 11 22.87x
Bodmin 11 31.24x
Clerkenwell London 11 2.48x
East Denton 11 172.96x
Preston 11 1.84x
Bethnal Green London 10 1.22x
Morpeth 10 30.40x
Walsall Foreign 10 3.05x
Westgate 10 5.77x
Abbey 9 4.05x
Burton Upon Trent 9 6.06x
Dewsbury 9 4.71x
Egremont 9 23.32x
Ford 9 88.06x
Oldham 9 1.25x
Ulverston 9 13.85x
Bathgate 8 13.02x
Bedminster 8 2.81x
Bow London 8 3.34x
Branxton 8 563.38x
Burntwood Edial 8 19.74x
Caton 8 114.45x
Chiswick 8 7.79x
Crosthwaite Lyth 8 160.97x
Erith 8 12.66x
Gorton 8 3.82x
Hamilton 8 4.72x
Heckmondwike 8 13.35x
Holmside 8 58.06x
Lewisham 8 2.34x
Leyton 8 12.52x
Rickergate 8 23.36x
Twickenham 8 9.93x
Aberdeen Old Machar 7 1.93x
Kingston On Thames 7 3.18x
Madeley 7 11.76x
Reading St Lawrence 7 23.19x
Wakefield 7 4.90x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 130
Elizabeth 72
Jane 51
Margaret 38
Sarah 36
Ann 28
Annie 25
Isabella 20
Alice 18
Emma 17
Catherine 16
Ellen 16
Agnes 14
Eliza 12
Martha 12
Edith 11
Emily 11
Anne 10
Bridget 10
Hannah 10
Margt. 10
Eleanor 9
Louisa 9
Fanny 7
Frances 7
Maria 7
Ada 6
Clara 6
Esther 6
Kate 6
Amy 5
Caroline 5
Grace 5
Jessie 5
Sophia 5
Ethel 4
Harriet 4
Henrietta 4
Matilda 4
Rebecca 4
Christina 3
Eliz. 3
Florence 3
Gertrude 3
Helen 3
Isabel 3
Janet 3
Mabel 3
Maud 3
Rose 3

Top male names

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

Name Count
John 128
James 106
William 96
George 65
Thomas 56
Robert 37
Joseph 31
Charles 21
Henry 17
Arthur 14
Patrick 13
Edward 12
Wm. 11
Alfred 10
Frederick 10
Richard 10
David 9
Andrew 8
Samuel 8
Albert 7
Thos. 7
Walter 7
Michael 6
Peter 6
Alexander 5
Ernest 5
Herbert 5
Hugh 5
Frank 4
Isaac 4
Chas. 3
Christopher 3
Douglas 3
Fredk. 3
Jacob 3
Jonathan 3
Martin 3
Willm. 3
Abraham 2
Anthony 2
Archibald 2
Bowland 2
Cuthbert 2
Francis 2
Infant 2
Jno. 2
Kenneth 2
Nicholas 2
Roger 2
Saml. 2

FAQ

Moffatt surname: questions and answers

How common was the Moffatt surname in 1881?

In 1881, 1,903 people were recorded with the Moffatt surname. That placed it at #2,291 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Moffatt surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 2,875 in 2016. That gives Moffatt a modern rank of #2,338.

What does the Moffatt surname mean?

A Scottish locational surname derived from a place in Annandale meaning "long field" in Gaelic.

What does the Moffatt map show?

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