NameCensus.

UK surname

Penlington

In the 1881 census there were 250 people recorded with the Penlington surname, ranking it #11,070 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 473, ranked #10,409, up from #11,070 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Wrexham, Manchester and Liverpool. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Denbighshire, Cheshire West and Chester and Flintshire.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Penlington is 475 in 1911. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 89.2%.

1881 census count

250

Ranked #11,070

Modern count

473

2016, ranked #10,409

Peak year

1911

475 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Penlington had 250 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #11,070 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 473 in 2016, ranked #10,409.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 475 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Spacious Rural Living.

Penlington surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Penlington surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Penlington 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 190 #10,852
1861 historical 194 #12,310
1881 historical 250 #11,070
1891 historical 355 #9,721
1901 historical 404 #9,426
1911 historical 475 #8,144
1997 modern 437 #10,299
1998 modern 465 #10,155
1999 modern 468 #10,160
2000 modern 471 #10,073
2001 modern 474 #9,847
2002 modern 473 #10,043
2003 modern 433 #10,614
2004 modern 442 #10,459
2005 modern 437 #10,437
2006 modern 431 #10,600
2007 modern 437 #10,578
2008 modern 442 #10,573
2009 modern 455 #10,575
2010 modern 465 #10,618
2011 modern 466 #10,495
2012 modern 465 #10,422
2013 modern 465 #10,569
2014 modern 470 #10,557
2015 modern 471 #10,467
2016 modern 473 #10,409

Geography

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Where Penlingtons are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Wrexham, Manchester, Liverpool, West Derby and Walton-on-the-Hill. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Denbighshire, Cheshire West and Chester, Flintshire and Conwy. 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 Wrexham Denbighshire
2 Manchester Lancashire
3 Liverpool Lancashire
4 West Derby Lancashire
5 Walton-on-the-Hill Lancashire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Denbighshire 017 Denbighshire
2 Cheshire West and Chester 044 Cheshire West and Chester
3 Flintshire 015 Flintshire
4 Conwy 010 Conwy
5 Denbighshire 006 Denbighshire

Forenames

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First names often paired with Penlington

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Penlington

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Penlington, 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 Penlington surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Spacious Rural Living, within Retired Professionals. This does not mean every Penlington 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

The Greater London Mix

Group

Social Rented Sector Professional Support Workers

Within London, Penlington 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

Penlington is most concentrated in decile 3 for access to healthy assets and hazards. This places the surname towards the less healthy 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.

3
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

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

1881 census detail

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Penlington families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Penlington 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 80 Penlingtons recorded in 1881 and an index of 2.75x.

County Total Index
Lancashire 80 2.75x
Cheshire 70 12.95x
Staffordshire 23 2.78x
Shropshire 16 7.56x
Flintshire 13 19.75x
Middlesex 13 0.53x
Denbighshire 8 8.65x
Yorkshire 8 0.33x
Worcestershire 7 2.19x
Warwickshire 5 0.81x
Berkshire 2 1.09x
Norfolk 2 0.53x
Surrey 2 0.17x
Essex 1 0.21x
Royal Navy 1 3.43x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. West Derby in Lancashire leads with 19 Penlingtons recorded in 1881 and an index of 22.35x.

Place Total Index
West Derby 19 22.35x
Nantwich 13 207.01x
Audley Talk O Th Hill 12 805.37x
Liverpool 12 6.80x
Eccleston In Prescot 10 68.54x
Poulton Cum Spital 10 3030.30x
Tranmere 8 40.28x
Kirkdale 7 14.32x
Moreton Say 7 1296.30x
Wistaston 7 2058.82x
Worcester All Sts 7 378.38x
Hatherton 6 2222.22x
Tilston 6 1935.48x
Adlington 5 183.82x
Bickenhill 5 1162.79x
Church Stretton 5 352.11x
Kensington London 5 3.67x
Malpas 5 625.00x
St Pancras London 5 2.54x
Dodworth 4 158.73x
Everton 4 4.32x
Hanmer Willington 4 1481.48x
Leeds 4 2.92x
Mold 4 67.00x
Openshaw 4 29.39x
Pownall Fee 4 165.29x
Urmston 4 212.77x
Whitchurch 4 97.32x
Audlem 3 236.22x
Audley 3 36.67x
Balterley 3 1363.64x
Hanmer 3 588.24x
Islington London 3 1.26x
Stoke Upon Trent 3 3.42x
Whiston 3 132.16x
Windle 3 18.35x
Wrexham Abbot 3 129.31x
Wrexham Regis 3 43.67x
Birkenhead 2 4.64x
Cookham 2 34.90x
Llangollen 2 217.39x
Manchester 2 1.53x
Cheetham 1 4.61x
Chester St Michael 1 156.25x
Chester St Oswald 1 10.21x
Church Hulme 1 181.82x
Colchester St Giles 1 20.92x
Deopham 1 277.78x
Frimley 1 29.41x
Garston 1 11.67x
Hanmer Halghton 1 294.12x
Hawarden 1 19.34x
Hulme 1 1.65x
Liscard 1 10.27x
Little Meolse 1 129.87x
Macclesfield 1 4.16x
Marham 1 158.73x
Much Woolton 1 25.38x
Newington 1 1.11x
Newton In Makerfield 1 11.24x
Prescot 1 19.05x
Royal Navy 1 4.01x
Stretford 1 6.26x
Whittington 1 59.17x
Wolstanton 1 3.98x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 16
Alice 9
Elizabeth 9
Ann 8
Sarah 8
Hannah 6
Ellen 5
Margaret 5
Annie 4
Eliza 4
Jane 4
Anne 3
Catherine 3
Isabella 3
Lucy 3
Martha 3
Ada 2
Amy 2
Deborah 2
Edith 2
Louisa 2
Nellie 2
A.E. 1
Agnes 1
Anna 1
Bridget 1
Dinah 1
Elizab. 1
Emily 1
Emma 1
Fany 1
Francis 1
Fry 1
Harriet 1
Harriett 1
Hellen 1
Isabelle 1
Jessie 1
Lydia 1
M.H. 1
M.J.F. 1
Maria 1
Phoebe 1
Ruth 1
Srah 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
James 14
Thomas 13
John 12
William 11
Joseph 9
Edward 6
Alfred 5
George 5
Henry 4
Harry 3
Robert 3
Albert 2
Alexander 2
Arthur 2
Benjamin 2
Benjn. 2
Eugene 2
Samuel 2
Stanley 2
Thos. 2
Wm. 2
Benjiman 1
Charles 1
Ernest 1
Frederick 1
Georg 1
Jesse 1
Jonathan 1
Peter 1
Rob.N. 1
Robt.H. 1
Sarah 1
Septimus 1
Syms 1
Tom 1
Uriah 1
Walter 1
Will.Albert 1

FAQ

Penlington surname: questions and answers

How common was the Penlington surname in 1881?

In 1881, 250 people were recorded with the Penlington surname. That placed it at #11,070 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Penlington surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 473 in 2016. That gives Penlington a modern rank of #10,409.

What does the Penlington map show?

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