NameCensus.

UK surname

Panks

A variant spelling of the English surname Banks, derived from an occupation near a riverbank or slope.

In the 1881 census there were 94 people recorded with the Panks surname, ranking it #20,467 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 284, ranked #15,323, up from #20,467 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Grimstone, Doncaster and St Marylebone. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include King's Lynn and West Norfolk, Newham and Rotherham.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Panks is 303 in 2002. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 202.1%.

1881 census count

94

Ranked #20,467

Modern count

284

2016, ranked #15,323

Peak year

2002

303 bearers

Map years

6

1891 to 2016

Key insights

  • Panks had 94 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #20,467 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 284 in 2016, ranked #15,323.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 141 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Spacious Rural Living.

Panks surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Panks surname density by area, 2016 modern.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Panks 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 50 #24,274
1861 historical 91 #22,206
1881 historical 94 #20,467
1891 historical 138 #19,411
1901 historical 134 #19,288
1911 historical 141 #18,571
1997 modern 279 #14,175
1998 modern 277 #14,646
1999 modern 301 #13,926
2000 modern 295 #14,070
2001 modern 299 #13,758
2002 modern 303 #13,909
2003 modern 290 #14,134
2004 modern 287 #14,286
2005 modern 289 #14,166
2006 modern 290 #14,202
2007 modern 282 #14,618
2008 modern 282 #14,748
2009 modern 282 #15,059
2010 modern 276 #15,637
2011 modern 269 #15,800
2012 modern 284 #15,090
2013 modern 285 #15,313
2014 modern 282 #15,537
2015 modern 277 #15,622
2016 modern 284 #15,323

Geography

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Where Panks' are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Grimstone, Doncaster, St Marylebone, Wootton, South and St Mary Islington. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to King's Lynn and West Norfolk, Newham and Rotherham. 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 Grimstone Norfolk
2 Doncaster Yorkshire, West Riding
3 St Marylebone London (North Districts)
4 Wootton, South Norfolk
5 St Mary Islington London (North Districts)

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 King's Lynn and West Norfolk 012 King's Lynn and West Norfolk
2 Newham 032 Newham
3 King's Lynn and West Norfolk 006 King's Lynn and West Norfolk
4 Rotherham 018 Rotherham
5 King's Lynn and West Norfolk 015 King's Lynn and West Norfolk

Forenames

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First names often paired with Panks

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Panks

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

Spacious Rural Living

Nationally, the Panks surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Spacious Rural Living, within Retired Professionals. This does not mean every Panks household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

These predominantly ageing households typically have no resident dependent children. Most are owner-occupiers and live in detached houses in low density residential developments (although renting is more common than in the rest of the Supergroup). White ethnicity predominates. Residents are typically beyond retirement age but those still in work have managerial, professional or skilled trade occupations. White ethnicity and Christian religious affiliation predominate. Neighbourhoods are located throughout rural UK.

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

Young Families and Mainstream Employment

Group

Social Rented Sector and Diverse Origins

Within London, Panks is most associated with areas classed as Social Rented Sector and Diverse Origins, part of Young Families and Mainstream Employment. 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

Scattered across London’s Inner and Outer suburbs, residents of these neighbourhoods are typically housed in the social rented sector. Although terraced and semi-detached houses predominate, more residents live in flats than elsewhere in the Supergroup. Neighbourhoods are more ethnically diverse than the Supergroup average. Those identifying as of Bangladeshi, Pakistani and some Black ethnicities are more prevalent. Europeans born in a overseas non-EU countries make up more of the lower proportion of residents identifying as White. Few residents are very old (85+). Employment in distribution, hotels and restaurants is more common than elsewhere in the Supergroup.

Wider London pattern

Many families in these neighbourhoods have young children. Housing is principally in the social rented sector, in terraced or semi-detached units. While over-all residential densities are low, overcrowding is also prevalent locally. Residents are drawn from a range of ethnic minorities, with many identifying as Black and above average numbers born in Africa. Numbers identifying as of Chinese, Indian or White ethnicity are below average. Levels of proficiency in English are below average. Levels of separation or divorce and incidence of disability are both above average. Education is typically limited to Level 1, 2, or apprenticeship qualifications. Few residents work in professional or managerial occupations but the employment structure is otherwise diverse: it includes skilled trades, caring, leisure and other service occupations, sales and customer service occupations, construction, and work as process, plant, and machine operatives.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Panks is most concentrated in decile 7 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.

7
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Panks falls in decile 5 for neighbourhood deprivation. This puts the surname near the middle of the scale.

Decile 1 represents the more deprived end of the scale. Decile 10 represents the less deprived end.

5
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Panks 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 Panks, not the ethnicity of every person with the surname.

Meaning and origin of Panks

The surname PANKS is of English origin, first appearing in the late 16th century. It is believed to be derived from the Old English word "panca" or "panc", meaning a small hill or mound. This suggests the name may have initially referred to someone who lived near or on a small hill.

The earliest known record of the surname PANKS dates back to 1597 in the parish records of St. Mary's Church in Warwickshire, England. An entry mentions a Thomas Panks who was baptized in that year. Other early spellings of the name include Pank, Pankis, and Pankys.

In the 17th century, the PANKS surname appeared in various records across central and southern England. One notable figure was John Panks, a farmer from Oxfordshire who was mentioned in the Hearth Tax returns of 1665. Another early record is of a William Panks, born in 1620 in Gloucestershire, whose descendants can be traced to the neighboring county of Wiltshire.

During the 18th century, the PANKS name spread further across England and into other parts of the British Isles. In 1734, a James Panks was recorded as a merchant in the city of Bristol, while a Robert Panks served as a magistrate in the town of Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk, in 1776.

One of the earliest known instances of the PANKS surname in North America dates back to 1720, when a family settled in the British colony of Virginia. In the following decades, other PANKS families emigrated to various parts of the United States and Canada.

Notable individuals with the PANKS surname throughout history include:

1. Sir William Panks (1763-1845), a British naval officer who served during the Napoleonic Wars. 2. Elizabeth Panks (1831-1901), an English author and poet from Derbyshire. 3. Henry Panks (1857-1928), a prominent architect from Yorkshire who designed several notable buildings in Leeds and York. 4. Joseph Panks (1879-1956), an Australian politician who served as a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly. 5. Margaret Panks (1906-1992), a Scottish educator and advocate for women's rights, who played a key role in establishing the first all-girls school in Glasgow.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Panks families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Panks 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. Norfolk leads with 61 Panks' recorded in 1881 and an index of 43.28x.

County Total Index
Norfolk 61 43.28x
Middlesex 15 1.64x
Lincolnshire 8 5.46x
Suffolk 3 2.69x
Surrey 3 0.67x
Staffordshire 2 0.65x
Cumberland 1 1.27x
Warwickshire 1 0.43x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Grimston in Norfolk leads with 29 Panks' recorded in 1881 and an index of 8055.56x.

Place Total Index
Grimston 29 8055.56x
Roydon In Freebridge Lynn 12 20000.00x
South Wootton 8 13333.33x
Pointon 7 5000.00x
St Marylebone London 7 14.30x
Islington London 5 5.63x
Salhouse 5 2500.00x
Benhall 3 1500.00x
Newington 3 8.86x
Clenchwarton 2 952.38x
Great Yarmouth 2 17.12x
Hilderstone 2 1666.67x
Aston 1 1.57x
Great Grimsby 1 10.75x
Harrington 1 105.26x
Hunstanton 1 208.33x
Kings Lynn St Margaret 1 23.64x
Limehouse London 1 9.94x
Norwood 1 47.62x
St Anne Soho London 1 19.08x
Thornham 1 500.00x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 11
Elizabeth 5
Ellen 3
Sarah 3
Caroline 2
Edith 2
Emma 2
Hannah 2
Kate 2
Maria 2
Martha 2
Rhudey 2
Susannah 2
Alice 1
Anne 1
Annie 1
Betsy 1
Charlotte 1
Eliza 1
Elizth. 1
Evelina 1
Fanny 1
Florence 1
Floria 1
Honor 1
Infant 1
Maud 1
Minnie 1
Prudence 1
Winifred 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
Henry 8
William 4
Charles 3
Edward 3
Frederick 3
James 3
George 2
John 2
Arthur 1
Crisp 1
Ernest 1
Francis 1
Joseph 1
Matthew 1
Saml. 1
Thomas 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 Panks households.

FAQ

Panks surname: questions and answers

How common was the Panks surname in 1881?

In 1881, 94 people were recorded with the Panks surname. That placed it at #20,467 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Panks surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 284 in 2016. That gives Panks a modern rank of #15,323.

What does the Panks surname mean?

A variant spelling of the English surname Banks, derived from an occupation near a riverbank or slope.

What does the Panks map show?

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