NameCensus.

UK surname

Parrott

An occupational surname referring to someone who kept or trained parrots.

In the 1881 census there were 3,402 people recorded with the Parrott surname, ranking it #1,342 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 3,653, ranked #1,864, down from #1,342 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff, Patrington and London parishes. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Forest Heath, South Staffordshire and West Lindsey.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Parrott is 4,289 in 1911. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 7.4%.

1881 census count

3,402

Ranked #1,342

Modern count

3,653

2016, ranked #1,864

Peak year

1911

4,289 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Parrott had 3,402 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #1,342 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 3,653 in 2016, ranked #1,864.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 4,289 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Rural Amenity.

Parrott surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Parrott surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Parrott 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 2,169 #1,346
1861 historical 2,136 #1,362
1881 historical 3,402 #1,342
1891 historical 3,468 #1,373
1901 historical 4,035 #1,396
1911 historical 4,289 #1,209
1997 modern 3,978 #1,628
1998 modern 4,148 #1,626
1999 modern 4,152 #1,639
2000 modern 4,136 #1,639
2001 modern 4,029 #1,646
2002 modern 4,080 #1,656
2003 modern 3,906 #1,689
2004 modern 3,914 #1,696
2005 modern 3,788 #1,724
2006 modern 3,802 #1,721
2007 modern 3,782 #1,746
2008 modern 3,769 #1,761
2009 modern 3,832 #1,773
2010 modern 3,896 #1,781
2011 modern 3,845 #1,785
2012 modern 3,707 #1,816
2013 modern 3,744 #1,834
2014 modern 3,762 #1,838
2015 modern 3,720 #1,835
2016 modern 3,653 #1,864

Geography

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Where Parrotts are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff, Patrington, London parishes and Lenton, Radford, Papplewick, Nuthall, Greasley, Brewhouse Yard. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Forest Heath, South Staffordshire, West Lindsey, Breckland and Aylesbury Vale. 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 Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff Gloucestershire
2 Patrington Yorkshire, East Riding
3 London parishes London 1
4 London parishes London 3
5 Lenton, Radford, Papplewick, Nuthall, Greasley, Brewhouse Yard Nottinghamshire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Forest Heath 005 Forest Heath
2 South Staffordshire 001 South Staffordshire
3 West Lindsey 001 West Lindsey
4 Breckland 010 Breckland
5 Aylesbury Vale 008 Aylesbury Vale

Forenames

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First names often paired with Parrott

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Parrott

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

Parrott 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

Parrott falls in decile 6 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.

6
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

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

Meaning and origin of Parrott

The surname Parrott is of Anglo-Norman origin, derived from the Old French word "parro" meaning "parrot". It is believed to have originated as a nickname for someone who kept or traded in parrots, or perhaps someone with a ability to mimic speech like a parrot.

The name first appeared in England shortly after the Norman Conquest of 1066. One of the earliest recorded instances is found in the Pipe Rolls of Lincolnshire in 1176, where a Richard Parrot is mentioned. Another early record is from the Curia Regis Rolls of Oxfordshire in 1201, which lists a William Parroc.

In the 13th century, the surname appeared in various forms, such as Parrok, Parroke, and Parroc, reflecting the diverse regional dialects and spellings of the time. The modern spelling of Parrott emerged in the 16th century.

The Domesday Book, compiled in 1086, does not contain any record of the Parrott surname, suggesting it emerged later as a descriptive nickname.

Notable individuals with the surname Parrott throughout history include:

1. John Parrott (c. 1565 - 1648), an English colonist who arrived in Virginia in 1608 and became one of the first settlers of the Jamestown Colony.

2. Thomas Parrott (1617 - 1695), an English puritan minister and one of the founders of the New Haven Colony in Connecticut.

3. John Parrott (1768 - 1836), an American politician who served as a U.S. Representative from New Hampshire.

4. Enoch Greenleafe Parrott (1814 - 1879), an American inventor who patented several improvements to the cannon and projectiles used during the American Civil War.

5. Jasper Theodore Parrott (1898 - 1961), an American politician who served as the 27th Governor of North Dakota from 1949 to 1957.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Parrott families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Parrott 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. Middlesex leads with 507 Parrotts recorded in 1881 and an index of 1.53x.

County Total Index
Middlesex 507 1.53x
Yorkshire 376 1.14x
Bedfordshire 266 15.47x
Surrey 253 1.56x
Lincolnshire 190 3.58x
Cheshire 175 2.39x
Lancashire 148 0.38x
Buckinghamshire 144 7.17x
Gloucestershire 133 2.04x
Hertfordshire 110 4.81x
Kent 102 0.90x
Warwickshire 102 1.22x
Sussex 89 1.59x
Oxfordshire 83 4.05x
Hampshire 82 1.20x
Somerset 77 1.44x
Northamptonshire 62 1.99x
Huntingdonshire 53 8.04x
Berkshire 50 2.01x
Nottinghamshire 50 1.12x
Devon 46 0.67x
Norfolk 45 0.88x
Essex 42 0.64x
Staffordshire 39 0.35x
Leicestershire 36 0.98x
Derbyshire 15 0.29x
Durham 15 0.15x
Worcestershire 15 0.35x
Suffolk 14 0.35x
Pembrokeshire 11 1.04x
Glamorgan 10 0.17x
Wiltshire 10 0.34x
Lanarkshire 9 0.08x
Cornwall 8 0.21x
Cumberland 8 0.28x
Banffshire 6 0.87x
Monmouthshire 5 0.21x
Shropshire 4 0.14x
Dorset 3 0.14x
Herefordshire 3 0.22x
Montgomeryshire 3 0.39x
Royal Navy 3 0.76x
Channel Islands 1 0.10x
Northumberland 1 0.02x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Camberwell in Surrey leads with 51 Parrotts recorded in 1881 and an index of 2.40x.

Place Total Index
Camberwell 51 2.40x
Aston 45 1.95x
Hemel Hempstead 37 35.88x
Lambeth 37 1.28x
Mile End Old Town 33 6.30x
Hackney London 30 1.61x
Patrington 30 192.68x
Bedford St Peter 26 58.22x
Radford 26 11.43x
Salford 25 2.16x
St Pancras London 25 0.94x
Westminster St John 25 6.18x
Paddington London 24 1.97x
Clerkenwell London 23 2.93x
Frome 23 17.99x
St Marylebone London 23 1.30x
Sutton In Macclesfield 23 30.24x
Bedford St Paul 22 18.66x
Islington London 22 0.68x
Aylesbury 21 23.61x
Brandon 21 76.53x
Birmingham 20 0.72x
Chelsea London 20 2.00x
St George Hanover 20 4.61x
Bow London 19 4.49x
Cardington 19 135.81x
Dunstable 19 35.96x
Holy Trinity 19 2.40x
Wootton 19 128.03x
Bedford St Mary 18 40.65x
Hatfield 18 38.79x
Kensington London 18 0.98x
Luton 18 6.05x
Milton Ernest 18 375.78x
Wellington 18 24.84x
Bowling 17 5.22x
Brightside Bierlow 17 2.63x
Marston Moretaine 17 126.87x
Battersea 16 1.31x
Great Staughton 16 125.10x
Kimbolton 16 115.19x
Normanton 16 16.18x
Sutton 16 13.67x
Bethnal Green London 15 1.04x
Peterborough 15 6.63x
Portsea 15 1.12x
Sherington 15 218.34x
Ashton Under Lyne 14 1.63x
Downham Market 14 39.91x
Dukinfield 14 4.13x
Hendon 14 11.72x
Loughborough 14 8.38x
Sculcoates 14 2.68x
Southowram 14 13.94x
Aldsworth 13 296.13x
Beckenham 13 8.78x
Bradford 13 1.63x
Ecclesfield 13 5.39x
Leighton Buzzard 13 17.58x
Poplar London 13 2.07x
Tranmere 13 4.83x
Whitchurch 13 157.77x
Deptford St Paul 12 1.37x
Horton In Bradford 12 2.34x
Leeds 12 0.65x
Mablethorpe 12 164.61x
Newington 12 0.98x
Trotton 12 260.30x
Walthamstow 12 5.09x
West Ham 12 0.83x
Aldershot 11 4.82x
Attercliffe Cum Darnall 11 3.59x
Beddington 11 17.58x
Brighton 11 0.97x
Elton 11 8.08x
Hulme 11 1.34x
Northampton Priory St 11 5.87x
Pudsey 11 6.25x
West Derby 11 0.95x
Willesden 11 3.51x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 196
Sarah 143
Elizabeth 124
Emma 77
Ann 69
Eliza 63
Jane 62
Ellen 56
Annie 51
Alice 48
Emily 43
Hannah 31
Harriet 30
Louisa 30
Charlotte 25
Martha 25
Caroline 24
Ada 22
Margaret 22
Maria 22
Edith 20
Fanny 19
Catherine 18
Harriett 16
Susan 16
Florence 14
Lucy 14
Anne 13
Frances 13
Kate 13
Rose 13
Agnes 12
Clara 12
Elizth. 12
Amelia 11
Amy 9
Gertrude 9
Lydia 8
Rachel 8
Isabella 7
Julia 7
Laura 7
Rebecca 7
Sophia 7
Beatrice 6
Eleanor 6
Ethel 6
Minnie 6
Ruth 6
Selina 6

Top male names

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

Name Count
William 218
John 190
George 147
Thomas 114
James 104
Joseph 66
Henry 65
Charles 62
Frederick 46
Arthur 43
Edward 42
Alfred 40
Albert 31
Robert 30
Samuel 27
Richard 25
Walter 24
Frank 23
Harry 21
Ernest 18
Benjamin 17
Edwin 13
Herbert 12
Wm. 12
Francis 11
Peter 9
David 8
Stephen 8
Daniel 6
Jesse 6
Tom 6
Willm. 6
Edwd. 5
Fredrick 5
Matthew 5
Thos. 5
Chas. 4
Geo. 4
Horace 4
Mark 4
Amos 3
Anthony 3
Eli 3
Harold 3
Isaac 3
Jas. 3
Robt. 3
Saml. 3
Simon 3
Sydney 3

FAQ

Parrott surname: questions and answers

How common was the Parrott surname in 1881?

In 1881, 3,402 people were recorded with the Parrott surname. That placed it at #1,342 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Parrott surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 3,653 in 2016. That gives Parrott a modern rank of #1,864.

What does the Parrott surname mean?

An occupational surname referring to someone who kept or trained parrots.

What does the Parrott map show?

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