NameCensus.

UK surname

Pettican

In the 1881 census there were 123 people recorded with the Pettican surname, ranking it #17,506 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 321, ranked #14,065, up from #17,506 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Bergholt, West, Great and Little Horksley and London parishes. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Colchester, Havering and East Riding of Yorkshire.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Pettican is 361 in 1998. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 161.0%.

1881 census count

123

Ranked #17,506

Modern count

321

2016, ranked #14,065

Peak year

1998

361 bearers

Map years

7

1881 to 2016

Key insights

  • Pettican had 123 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #17,506 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 321 in 2016, ranked #14,065.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 296 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Rural Amenity.

Pettican surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Pettican surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Pettican 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 73 #20,581
1861 historical 58 #26,585
1881 historical 123 #17,506
1891 historical 218 #14,023
1901 historical 278 #12,252
1911 historical 296 #11,569
1997 modern 345 #12,291
1998 modern 361 #12,280
1999 modern 349 #12,638
2000 modern 357 #12,380
2001 modern 352 #12,318
2002 modern 353 #12,512
2003 modern 333 #12,875
2004 modern 334 #12,897
2005 modern 319 #13,275
2006 modern 314 #13,474
2007 modern 319 #13,474
2008 modern 316 #13,661
2009 modern 319 #13,832
2010 modern 318 #14,136
2011 modern 317 #14,059
2012 modern 319 #13,898
2013 modern 332 #13,713
2014 modern 344 #13,426
2015 modern 333 #13,676
2016 modern 321 #14,065

Geography

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Where Petticans are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Bergholt, West, Great and Little Horksley, London parishes, Colchester St Botolph, St Mary at the Walls, St Giles, St Mary Magdalen, Holy Trinity, St Runwald, a and Birch, Easthorpe, Copford. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Colchester, Havering, East Riding of Yorkshire and Monmouthshire. 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 Bergholt, West Essex
2 Great and Little Horksley Essex
3 London parishes London 3
4 Colchester St Botolph, St Mary at the Walls, St Giles, St Mary Magdalen, Holy Trinity, St Runwald, a Essex
5 Birch, Easthorpe, Copford Essex

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Colchester 020 Colchester
2 Havering 028 Havering
3 East Riding of Yorkshire 041 East Riding of Yorkshire
4 Colchester 019 Colchester
5 Monmouthshire 010 Monmouthshire

Forenames

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First names often paired with Pettican

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Pettican

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

Young Families and Mainstream Employment

Group

Terraced and Semi-Detached Suburbs

Within London, Pettican is most associated with areas classed as Terraced and Semi-Detached Suburbs, 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

Mainly concentrated in suburban areas, these terraced and semi-detached developments are less overcrowded than the Supergroup average, and resident households are more likely to own two or more cars. There are fewer residents aged 25-44, and a larger share of residents employed in administrative and secretarial occupations. Residents are more likely to have been born in the UK, less likely to have been born in the EU or Africa, and much less likely to self-identify as Bangladeshi.

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

Pettican 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

Pettican falls in decile 7 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.

7
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

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

1881 census detail

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Pettican families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Pettican 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. Essex leads with 99 Petticans recorded in 1881 and an index of 41.80x.

County Total Index
Essex 99 41.80x
Middlesex 13 1.08x
Kent 4 0.98x
Lanarkshire 3 0.77x
Hertfordshire 2 2.42x
Somerset 1 0.52x
Suffolk 1 0.68x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Tollesbury in Essex leads with 14 Petticans recorded in 1881 and an index of 2372.88x.

Place Total Index
Tollesbury 14 2372.88x
Little Horkesley 13 16250.00x
Layer Marney 10 8333.33x
West Bergholt 10 2272.73x
Fingrinhoe 8 6153.85x
Langham 8 2857.14x
Boxted 5 1470.59x
Colchester St Martin 5 1162.79x
Fordham 5 1724.14x
Great Horkesley 5 1515.15x
Bethnal Green London 4 7.67x
Colchester St Botolph 4 199.01x
Abberton 3 3000.00x
Barony 3 3.06x
Dover St James 3 167.60x
Mile End Old Town 3 15.84x
Saffron Walden 3 120.00x
Whitechapel London 3 25.36x
Colchester St Giles 2 85.47x
Paddington London 2 4.53x
Bishops Hull 1 161.29x
Brenchley 1 68.49x
Broxbourne 1 60.98x
Burnham 1 114.94x
Colchester St Runwald 1 769.23x
Great Clacton 1 123.46x
Islington London 1 0.86x
Mile End 1 232.56x
Sudbury St Peter 1 125.00x
Ware 1 42.19x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Harriet 6
Mary 6
Sarah 6
Ellen 4
Eliza 3
Emily 3
Jane 3
Ann 2
Charlotte 2
Lucy 2
Susannah 2
Ada 1
Alice 1
Allice 1
Anna 1
Daisy 1
Edith 1
Eleanor 1
Elizabeth 1
Ester 1
Eva 1
Hariett 1
Harriett 1
Kate 1
Lavinia 1
Margaret 1
Maria 1
Nellie 1
Rebekah 1
Ruth 1
Susan 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
George 10
Charles 7
William 7
Thomas 6
Henry 3
James 3
Robert 3
Albert 2
Frederick 2
John 2
Samuel 2
Alfred 1
Arthur 1
Burkett 1
David 1
Edward 1
Ernest 1
Eugene 1
Frank 1
Harry 1
Isaac 1
Nelson 1
W. 1
Wm. 1

FAQ

Pettican surname: questions and answers

How common was the Pettican surname in 1881?

In 1881, 123 people were recorded with the Pettican surname. That placed it at #17,506 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Pettican surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 321 in 2016. That gives Pettican a modern rank of #14,065.

What does the Pettican map show?

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