NameCensus.

UK surname

Ormesher

An English habitational surname derived from Ormeshow, areas near Burnley, Lancashire.

In the 1881 census there were 194 people recorded with the Ormesher surname, ranking it #13,097 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 512, ranked #9,823, up from #13,097 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to North Meols, Wigan and Leigh. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Chorley, Warrington and Wigan.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Ormesher is 558 in 2010. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 163.9%.

1881 census count

194

Ranked #13,097

Modern count

512

2016, ranked #9,823

Peak year

2010

558 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Ormesher had 194 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #13,097 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 512 in 2016, ranked #9,823.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 481 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Inner Suburbs and Small Town Living.

Ormesher surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Ormesher surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Ormesher 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 109 #16,212
1861 historical 167 #13,956
1881 historical 194 #13,097
1891 historical 301 #11,092
1901 historical 422 #9,128
1911 historical 481 #8,062
1997 modern 535 #8,852
1998 modern 508 #9,473
1999 modern 530 #9,231
2000 modern 528 #9,251
2001 modern 519 #9,204
2002 modern 527 #9,285
2003 modern 533 #9,050
2004 modern 529 #9,134
2005 modern 504 #9,393
2006 modern 509 #9,355
2007 modern 522 #9,254
2008 modern 514 #9,445
2009 modern 534 #9,377
2010 modern 558 #9,260
2011 modern 537 #9,460
2012 modern 521 #9,589
2013 modern 539 #9,497
2014 modern 543 #9,497
2015 modern 528 #9,633
2016 modern 512 #9,823

Geography

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Where Ormeshers are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around North Meols, Wigan, Leigh, Ormskirk and Sefton. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Chorley, Warrington and Wigan. 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 North Meols Lancashire
2 Wigan Lancashire
3 Leigh Lancashire
4 Ormskirk Lancashire
5 Sefton Lancashire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Chorley 013 Chorley
2 Chorley 006 Chorley
3 Warrington 021 Warrington
4 Wigan 005 Wigan
5 Chorley 005 Chorley

Forenames

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First names often paired with Ormesher

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Ormesher

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

Inner Suburbs and Small Town Living

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

Read profile summary

Group profile

Families with resident dependent children (but not students) are common. Established family groups and White ethnicity predominate, as do individuals born in the UK. They are more likely than the Supergroup average to have been resident in their terraced, semi-detached, or detached houses for more than one year. Levels of multiple car ownership are high. Properties are owned and typically have surplus living space. Associate professionals and administrative occupations are prevalent, and parents are likely to be in middle age or approaching retirement. Educational attainment is above the Supergroup average. Scattered developments and concentrations are found in many small towns.

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

The Greater London Mix

Group

Social Rented Sector Professional Support Workers

Within London, Ormesher 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

Ormesher 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

Ormesher 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 Ormesher is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of 60-70 mbit/s.

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

9
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - British

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

Meaning and origin of Ormesher

The surname ORMESHER is believed to have originated in England, deriving from a locational name referring to a place called Ormskirk or Ormesby. The name likely dates back to the 12th or 13th century.

ORMESHER is thought to be a variant spelling of Ormskirk or Ormesby, which were Old English place names. Ormskirk comes from the Old Norse personal name Ormr combined with the Old Norse word kirkja, meaning "church." Ormesby stems from the Old Norse personal name Ormr and the Old English word by, meaning "farmstead" or "village."

The earliest known recorded instance of the surname ORMESHER appears in the Subsidy Rolls of Lancashire from 1332, where it is listed as "Ormesherde." This suggests that the name was well-established in the region by the 14th century.

In the 16th century, a notable figure bearing the surname ORMESHER was John Ormesher, a merchant and landowner from Lancashire who lived from around 1530 to 1602. Records indicate that he owned properties in Ormskirk and the surrounding areas.

Another early bearer of the name was William Ormesher, a yeoman farmer who was born in Ormesby, Yorkshire, in 1612. He is mentioned in parish records from the village of Ormesby in the early 17th century.

During the 17th century, a family of ORMESHERS resided in the village of Aughton near Ormskirk, Lancashire. The head of the household, Richard Ormesher, was born in 1645 and worked as a blacksmith.

In the 18th century, a notable figure with the surname ORMESHER was Thomas Ormesher, a wealthy merchant and landowner from Ormskirk. He was born in 1718 and is recorded as having owned several properties in the town and surrounding areas.

Throughout the centuries, the surname ORMESHER has maintained strong ties to the regions of Lancashire and Yorkshire, where the name originated from the Old English and Old Norse place names of Ormskirk and Ormesby.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Ormesher families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Ormesher 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 183 Ormeshers recorded in 1881 and an index of 8.15x.

County Total Index
Lancashire 183 8.15x
Cheshire 6 1.44x
Cambridgeshire 4 3.34x
Montgomeryshire 1 2.31x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Wigan in Lancashire leads with 30 Ormeshers recorded in 1881 and an index of 95.60x.

Place Total Index
Wigan 30 95.60x
Lathom 23 848.71x
Ormskirk 17 395.35x
Dalton In Wigan 10 3125.00x
Everton 10 13.97x
Skelmersdale 10 267.38x
Upholland 10 347.22x
Blackburn 8 13.39x
North Meols 7 31.85x
Bootle Cum Linacre 6 33.65x
Heskin 6 2400.00x
Adlington 5 238.10x
Standish With Langtree 5 180.51x
Barton Upon Irwell 4 23.67x
Chesterton 4 108.11x
Chorley 4 31.75x
Eccleston In Prescot 4 35.49x
Windle 4 31.67x
Little Bolton 3 10.39x
Pemberton 3 33.52x
Runcorn 3 31.15x
Westhoughton 3 50.08x
Hale 2 138.89x
Orell Ford 2 487.80x
Sefton 2 800.00x
Wrightington 2 204.08x
Billinge Chapel End 1 79.37x
Brinnington 1 25.64x
Farnworth 1 7.43x
Great Crosby 1 16.34x
Llanwddyn 1 344.83x
Preston 1 1.66x
Toxteth Park 1 1.32x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Elizabeth 15
Mary 14
Alice 11
Margaret 11
Ann 7
Ellen 6
Sarah 4
Jane 3
Ruth 3
Catherine 2
Elizth. 2
Martha 2
Agnes 1
Annie 1
Betsy 1
Betty 1
Clara 1
Eda 1
Eliza 1
Elizth.A. 1
Emma 1
Emmily 1
Esther 1
Grace 1
Helena 1
Jenny 1
Lydia 1
Margt. 1
Mgt. 1
Phobe 1
Susannah 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
John 15
William 10
Henry 9
James 9
Robert 9
Edward 8
Thomas 8
Richard 5
Joseph 3
Charles 2
Robt. 2
Adam 1
Arthur 1
Benjamin 1
D. 1
David 1
Ed. 1
Enoch 1
Harold 1
Hy. 1
Job 1
Jonathan 1
Michael 1
Rich. 1
Seth 1
Wm. 1

FAQ

Ormesher surname: questions and answers

How common was the Ormesher surname in 1881?

In 1881, 194 people were recorded with the Ormesher surname. That placed it at #13,097 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Ormesher surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 512 in 2016. That gives Ormesher a modern rank of #9,823.

What does the Ormesher surname mean?

An English habitational surname derived from Ormeshow, areas near Burnley, Lancashire.

What does the Ormesher map show?

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