NameCensus.

UK surname

Pierre

A French toponymic surname indicating someone who lived near a stone or rocky area, or a stone mason.

In the 1881 census there were 25 people recorded with the Pierre surname, ranking it #30,077 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 847, ranked #6,598, up from #30,077 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to No data. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Brent, Hammersmith and Fulham and Southwark.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Pierre is 847 in 2016. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 3288.0%.

1881 census count

25

Ranked #30,077

Modern count

847

2016, ranked #6,598

Peak year

2016

847 bearers

Map years

3

1998 to 2016

Key insights

  • Pierre had 25 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #30,077 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 847 in 2016, ranked #6,598.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 70 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Ethnically Diverse Families in Less Connected Locations.

Pierre surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Pierre surname density by area, 2016 modern.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Pierre 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 32 #27,570
1861 historical 22 #31,140
1881 historical 25 #30,077
1891 historical 49 #30,349
1901 historical 62 #27,252
1911 historical 70 #25,853
1997 modern 564 #8,501
1998 modern 596 #8,434
1999 modern 611 #8,345
2000 modern 624 #8,197
2001 modern 623 #8,048
2002 modern 644 #8,007
2003 modern 631 #8,001
2004 modern 640 #7,923
2005 modern 647 #7,800
2006 modern 667 #7,651
2007 modern 704 #7,393
2008 modern 736 #7,214
2009 modern 776 #7,059
2010 modern 831 #6,817
2011 modern 799 #6,961
2012 modern 783 #6,976
2013 modern 819 #6,808
2014 modern 830 #6,780
2015 modern 828 #6,735
2016 modern 847 #6,598

Geography

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Where Pierres are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around No data. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Brent, Hammersmith and Fulham, Southwark and Sheffield. 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 No data No data

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Brent 025 Brent
2 Brent 031 Brent
3 Hammersmith and Fulham 020 Hammersmith and Fulham
4 Southwark 019 Southwark
5 Sheffield 014 Sheffield

Forenames

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First names often paired with Pierre

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Pierre

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

Low-Skilled Migrant and Student Communities

Group

Ethnically Diverse Families in Less Connected Locations

Nationally, the Pierre surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Ethnically Diverse Families in Less Connected Locations, within Low-Skilled Migrant and Student Communities. This does not mean every Pierre 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 is often found in less central parts of London and other major towns and cities. Adults are more likely than the Supergroup average to have never been married and are typically aged less than 45 years. Many have young dependent children and individuals may have been born in Africa. There are many members identifying with a Black ethnic group, with the other ethnic groups (as listed in the glossary) also represented, though Chinese less so. Accommodation in flats, frequently socially rented, is common in these neighbourhoods. Part time employment is also common, and work is often in elementary occupations, while unemployment is also the highest within this Supergroup.

Wider pattern

Young adults, many of whom are students, predominate in these high-density and overcrowded neighbourhoods of rented terrace houses or flats. Most ethnic minorities are present in these communities, as are people born in European countries that are not part of the EU. Students aside, low skilled occupations predominate, and unemployment rates are above average. Overall, the mix of students and more sedentary households means that neighbourhood average numbers of children are not very high. The Mixed or Multiple ethnic group composition of neighbourhoods is often associated with low rates of affiliation to Christian religions. This Supergroup predominates in non-central urban locations the UK, particularly within England in the Midlands and the outskirts of west, south and north-east London.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Social Rented Sector Families with Children

Group

Social Rented Sector Pockets

Within London, Pierre is most associated with areas classed as Social Rented Sector Pockets, part of Social Rented Sector Families with Children. 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

Found in pockets across London, residents are less likely to live in private sector rentals and fewer adults are students. Fewer individuals work in transport and communications occupations relative to the Supergroup average. More individuals identify as Black and were born in Africa.

Wider London pattern

Residents of these neighbourhoods include sizable numbers identifying with ethnicities originating outside Europe, particularly in Africa or Bangladesh. The proportion of residents identifying as White, Indian or Pakistani is well below the London average. Neighbourhood age profiles are skewed towards younger adults, and above average numbers of families have children. Rates of use of English at home are below average. Marriage rates are low, and levels of separation or divorce are above average. Housing is predominantly in flats, and renting in the social rented sector the norm - few residents are owner occupiers. Housing is often overcrowded, and neighbourhoods are amongst the most densely populated in London. Disability rates are above average, although levels of unpaid care provision are about average. Employment is in caring, leisure, other service occupations, sales and customer service, or process, plant, and machine operation. Part time working and full-time student study are common. Levels of unemployment are slightly above average. Most residents have only Level 1 or 2 educational qualifications or have completed apprenticeships.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Pierre is most concentrated in decile 10 for access to healthy assets and hazards. This places the surname towards the healthier 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.

10
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Pierre falls in decile 3 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.

3
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Pierre is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of 50-60 mbit/s.

The scale below places that band in context, from slower local download bands through to faster ones.

8
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
Other Ethnic Group

This describes the area pattern most associated with Pierre, not the ethnicity of every person with the surname.

Meaning and origin of Pierre

The surname Pierre has its origins in France and is derived from the Old French word "pierre," meaning "stone" or "rock." This surname was likely given to someone who lived near a prominent rock formation or who worked as a stonemason or quarryman.

The name can be traced back to the Medieval period in France, with some of the earliest recorded instances appearing in the 12th and 13th centuries. For example, records from the Abbey of Saint-Denis in Paris mention a "Petrus Petri" (Peter Pierre) in 1173.

In the 13th century, the surname Pierre appeared in the famous Domesday Book, a manuscript record of landholders in England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. This suggests that individuals with the surname Pierre may have traveled from France to England during the Norman Conquest.

One of the earliest known bearers of the surname Pierre was Jean Pierre, a French nobleman who lived in the 14th century. He was a prominent figure in the court of King Charles V of France and served as the Grand Chamberlain of France.

Another notable individual with the surname Pierre was François Pierre, a French architect and engineer who lived from 1616 to 1703. He is best known for his work on the Palace of Versailles and the Church of the Invalides in Paris.

In the 19th century, Isidore Pierre was a renowned French sculptor who created works such as the statue of Napoleon I in the courtyard of the Louvre Museum. He lived from 1805 to 1886.

Jean-Baptiste Pierre, born in 1833 and died in 1905, was a French painter known for his landscapes and portraits. He was a member of the Académie des Beaux-Arts and received numerous awards for his work.

Pierre Curie, born in 1859 and died in 1906, was a French physicist and pioneer in the study of radioactivity. Along with his wife, Marie Curie, he won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1903 for their groundbreaking research on radioactivity.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Pierre families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Pierre 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 8 Pierres recorded in 1881 and an index of 2.93x.

County Total Index
Middlesex 8 2.93x
Lanarkshire 4 4.53x
Channel Islands 3 37.08x
Sussex 3 6.52x
Hampshire 2 3.58x
Kent 2 2.15x
Devon 1 1.76x
Dunbartonshire 1 13.64x
Glamorgan 1 2.10x
Surrey 1 0.75x
Worcestershire 1 2.81x
Yorkshire 1 0.37x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Avondale in Lanarkshire leads with 4 Pierres recorded in 1881 and an index of 769.23x.

Place Total Index
Avondale 4 769.23x
Shoreditch London 3 25.36x
Brighton 2 21.55x
St Helier 2 76.05x
St Luke London 2 45.66x
Aldershot 1 53.48x
Banstead 1 277.78x
Cardiff St Mary 1 38.17x
Devonport 1 153.85x
Dover St Mary Virgin 1 111.11x
Dumbarton 1 98.04x
Eastbourne 1 47.17x
Eling 1 175.44x
Great Malvern 1 135.14x
Greenwich 1 23.04x
Kensington London 1 6.59x
Ratcliffe London 1 66.23x
St George Hanover 1 28.09x
St John 1 666.67x
York St Maurice 1 196.08x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Elizabeth 2
Victorine 2
Annie 1
Leocadia 1
Liontine 1
Marguerite 1
Maria 1
Mary 1
Rosa 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
Alfred 2
Alexander 1
Allix 1
Amedge 1
Daniel 1
Henry 1
Joseph 1
Leon 1
Lewis 1
Louis 1
Perrachaud 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 Pierre households.

FAQ

Pierre surname: questions and answers

How common was the Pierre surname in 1881?

In 1881, 25 people were recorded with the Pierre surname. That placed it at #30,077 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Pierre surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 847 in 2016. That gives Pierre a modern rank of #6,598.

What does the Pierre surname mean?

A French toponymic surname indicating someone who lived near a stone or rocky area, or a stone mason.

What does the Pierre map show?

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