NameCensus.

UK surname

Overton

Derived from a place name meaning "upper town" or "over town" in Old English.

In the 1881 census there were 2,907 people recorded with the Overton surname, ranking it #1,541 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 4,004, ranked #1,694, down from #1,541 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to London parishes, Lambeth and Coventry Holy Trinity (incl. Radford), Coventry St Michael, Wyken. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Boston, North Kesteven and Doncaster.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Overton is 4,279 in 1999. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 37.7%.

1881 census count

2,907

Ranked #1,541

Modern count

4,004

2016, ranked #1,694

Peak year

1999

4,279 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Overton had 2,907 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #1,541 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 4,004 in 2016, ranked #1,694.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 4,225 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Rural Amenity.

Overton surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Overton surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Overton 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 1,943 #1,493
1861 historical 1,783 #1,625
1881 historical 2,907 #1,541
1891 historical 3,257 #1,461
1901 historical 3,776 #1,488
1911 historical 4,225 #1,230
1997 modern 4,110 #1,577
1998 modern 4,244 #1,581
1999 modern 4,279 #1,582
2000 modern 4,235 #1,587
2001 modern 4,143 #1,586
2002 modern 4,216 #1,589
2003 modern 4,091 #1,608
2004 modern 4,043 #1,626
2005 modern 3,920 #1,663
2006 modern 3,898 #1,671
2007 modern 3,879 #1,699
2008 modern 3,931 #1,687
2009 modern 4,004 #1,699
2010 modern 4,063 #1,706
2011 modern 4,042 #1,695
2012 modern 3,968 #1,695
2013 modern 4,105 #1,669
2014 modern 4,099 #1,681
2015 modern 4,059 #1,682
2016 modern 4,004 #1,694

Geography

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Where Overtons are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around London parishes, Lambeth and Coventry Holy Trinity (incl. Radford), Coventry St Michael, Wyken. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Boston, North Kesteven, Doncaster and Broadland. 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 Lambeth London (South Districts)
4 Coventry Holy Trinity (incl. Radford), Coventry St Michael, Wyken Warwickshire
5 London parishes London 2

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Boston 002 Boston
2 North Kesteven 006 North Kesteven
3 Boston 001 Boston
4 Doncaster 006 Doncaster
5 Broadland 002 Broadland

Forenames

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First names often paired with Overton

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Overton

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Overton, 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 Overton surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Rural Amenity, within Suburbanites and Peri-Urbanities. This does not mean every Overton 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

Older Residents in Owner-Occupied Suburbs

Group

London Fringe

Within London, Overton is most associated with areas classed as London Fringe, part of Older Residents in Owner-Occupied Suburbs. 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

Predominantly located in neighbourhoods on the outskirts of Greater London, residents of these neighbourhoods typically have their highest qualifications below degree (Level 4) level, with those still in work engaged in skilled trades and occupations in distribution, hotels and restaurants. There is low ethnic diversity in these neighbourhoods and high levels of Christian religious affiliation. Detached or terraced houses predominate, often with spare rooms.

Wider London pattern

The age distribution of these neighbourhoods is skewed towards the middle-aged and old, although few residents live alone or in communal establishments and numbers of dependent children are around average. Owner occupation is the norm, as is residence in detached or semi-detached houses. Residential densities are low and many households have spare rooms. Most residents were born in the UK and, aside from some identifying as members of Chinese or Indian ethnicities, identify as White. Mixed ethnicity households are rare. Incidence of married couples is higher than average and few individuals have never been married. A large proportion of individuals still in employment work in administrative and secretarial occupations, or in the construction industry. Few residents are students, and many households own more than one car.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Overton 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

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

Meaning and origin of Overton

The surname Overton is of English origin, derived from the Old English words "ofer" meaning "over" and "tun" meaning "enclosure" or "settlement". It is a locational surname, referring to someone who lived near or came from a town or village called Overton.

Overton is a common place name found in various parts of England, with records indicating settlements of this name dating back to the 11th century. The earliest known mention of the surname Overton is found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it is recorded as "Ovretone" in Hampshire.

During the Middle Ages, the name Overton was predominantly concentrated in the counties of Hampshire, Wiltshire, and Shropshire, where several villages and parishes bore this name. The earliest recorded bearer of the surname Overton is William de Overton, who is mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Shropshire in 1199.

One notable Overton was John Overton (1601-1663), an English clergyman and author who served as the Bishop of Norwich. Another was Richard Overton (c. 1599-1664), an English pamphleteer and Leveller during the English Civil War, known for his writings advocating religious freedom and political reform.

In the 18th century, Robert Overton (1718-1793) was a prominent English architect who designed several notable buildings in London, including the Church of St. Mary's in Marylebone and the Seamen's Hospital in Deptford.

In the United States, one of the earliest recorded bearers of the Overton surname was John Overton (1766-1833), a prominent lawyer and politician from Tennessee. He served as a judge on the Tennessee Supreme Court and was a close friend of President Andrew Jackson.

Another notable American with this surname was Walter Hampton Overton (1892-1983), a distinguished artist and painter from Texas, known for his landscape and still life works depicting the American Southwest.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Overton families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Overton 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. Lincolnshire leads with 405 Overtons recorded in 1881 and an index of 8.94x.

County Total Index
Lincolnshire 405 8.94x
Middlesex 340 1.20x
Warwickshire 300 4.20x
Shropshire 267 10.90x
Yorkshire 234 0.83x
Surrey 206 1.49x
Norfolk 196 4.50x
Staffordshire 179 1.87x
Lancashire 147 0.44x
Kent 78 0.81x
Leicestershire 78 2.48x
Durham 63 0.75x
Worcestershire 58 1.57x
Wiltshire 32 1.28x
Sussex 30 0.63x
Hampshire 29 0.50x
Essex 27 0.48x
Herefordshire 26 2.24x
Northamptonshire 23 0.86x
Gloucestershire 17 0.31x
Glamorgan 15 0.30x
Cheshire 14 0.22x
Suffolk 13 0.38x
Cumberland 11 0.45x
Hertfordshire 11 0.56x
Nottinghamshire 11 0.29x
Oxfordshire 11 0.63x
Northumberland 10 0.24x
Cambridgeshire 9 0.50x
Berkshire 8 0.38x
Brecknockshire 8 1.41x
Derbyshire 8 0.18x
Midlothian 6 0.16x
Monmouthshire 5 0.24x
Denbighshire 4 0.37x
Isle of Man 4 0.76x
Lanarkshire 4 0.04x
Flintshire 3 0.39x
Pembrokeshire 3 0.33x
Radnorshire 3 1.31x
Somerset 3 0.07x
Cornwall 2 0.06x
Devon 1 0.02x
Dorset 1 0.05x
East Lothian 1 0.27x
Montgomeryshire 1 0.15x
Rutland 1 0.48x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Birmingham in Warwickshire leads with 101 Overtons recorded in 1881 and an index of 4.24x.

Place Total Index
Birmingham 101 4.24x
Aston 54 2.74x
Wolverhampton 53 7.20x
St Pancras London 50 2.19x
Battersea 41 3.93x
Leicester St Margaret 34 4.44x
Coventry Holy Trinity 33 15.46x
Islington London 30 1.09x
Walsall Foreign 28 5.66x
Shifnal 27 40.61x
Lambeth 26 1.05x
Mile End Old Town 26 5.81x
Worthen 26 99.92x
Kenilworth 22 54.59x
Sibsey 21 205.48x
Paddington London 20 1.92x
Camberwell 19 1.05x
Louth 19 18.29x
Sculcoates 19 4.27x
Croydon 18 2.35x
Bilsby 17 342.74x
Hammersmith London 17 2.43x
Leicester St Mary 17 6.69x
St George Hanover 16 4.32x
Walsall Borough 16 21.54x
West Ham 16 1.30x
Harbury 15 129.20x
Leamington Priors 15 8.53x
Wainfleet All Sts 15 113.64x
Bridgnorth St Leonard 14 50.41x
Brighton 14 1.45x
Bromfield 14 255.47x
Coventry St Michael 14 6.10x
Leeds 14 0.88x
Manchester 14 0.93x
Oulton 14 380.43x
Poplar London 14 2.62x
St Botolph Bishopsgate 14 34.90x
St Nicholas Lincoln 14 32.31x
Wrockwardine 14 26.00x
Bromley London 13 2.08x
Burslem 13 4.74x
Great Grimsby 13 4.52x
Hornsey 13 3.63x
Leintwardine 13 109.80x
Newington 13 1.24x
Oldham 13 1.20x
Salford 13 1.31x
Shoreditch London 13 1.06x
South Shields 13 17.30x
Sutton In Keighley 13 81.76x
Wellington 13 9.44x
Skellingthorpe 12 171.18x
Spittlegate 12 19.14x
Swaffham 12 33.84x
Whickham 12 15.46x
Widnes 12 4.95x
Culmington 11 203.70x
Hackney London 11 0.69x
Kensington London 11 0.70x
Lilleshall 11 29.38x
Ashby By Partney 10 833.33x
Branston 10 71.99x
Bridgnorth St Mary 10 41.86x
Cottingham 10 16.52x
Deptford St Paul 10 1.34x
Everton 10 0.93x
Great Cressingham 10 218.82x
Holy Trinity 10 1.48x
Horncastle 10 21.38x
Ibstock 10 43.78x
Margate St John Baptist 10 5.65x
Sevenoaks 10 12.75x
St Marylebone London 10 0.66x
Teddington London 10 15.57x
Keighley 9 3.01x
Kings Lynn St Margaret 9 6.88x
Norwich St Stephen 9 22.49x
Potter Newton 9 18.16x
Whilton 9 261.63x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 181
Sarah 94
Elizabeth 93
Jane 59
Alice 57
Ann 57
Eliza 53
Emma 50
Annie 45
Ellen 39
Harriet 31
Emily 29
Hannah 26
Florence 25
Fanny 24
Martha 23
Clara 20
Maria 20
Louisa 19
Ada 18
Caroline 17
Charlotte 17
Lucy 15
Margaret 15
Rebecca 15
Rose 15
Susan 15
Edith 14
Anne 13
Susannah 11
Catherine 10
Esther 10
Kate 10
Sophia 10
Amelia 9
Betsy 9
Eleanor 8
Frances 8
Anna 7
Elizth. 7
Harriett 7
Agnes 6
Betsey 6
Laura 6
Mabel 6
Ethel 5
Isabella 5
Jemima 5
Julia 5
Lydia 5

Top male names

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

Name Count
William 190
John 170
George 109
Thomas 91
James 90
Charles 65
Henry 59
Joseph 42
Arthur 39
Robert 38
Samuel 37
Edward 28
Walter 27
Alfred 24
Frederick 24
Harry 23
Richard 18
Benjamin 13
Herbert 13
Ernest 12
Albert 11
David 11
Francis 10
Edwin 7
Frank 6
Thos. 6
Wm. 6
Clement 5
Fredk. 5
Fredrick 5
Geo. 5
Isaac 5
Jacob 5
Tom 5
Chas. 4
Horace 4
Willm. 4
Enoch 3
Fred 3
H. 3
Jesse 3
Stephen 3
Willie 3
Christopher 2
Jabez 2
Job 2
Jos. 2
Leopold 2
Louis 2
Mark 2

FAQ

Overton surname: questions and answers

How common was the Overton surname in 1881?

In 1881, 2,907 people were recorded with the Overton surname. That placed it at #1,541 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Overton surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 4,004 in 2016. That gives Overton a modern rank of #1,694.

What does the Overton surname mean?

Derived from a place name meaning "upper town" or "over town" in Old English.

What does the Overton map show?

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