NameCensus.

UK surname

Pilgrim

A surname referring to a person who had traveled to the Holy Land or other sacred places.

In the 1881 census there were 1,686 people recorded with the Pilgrim surname, ranking it #2,550 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 2,068, ranked #3,125, down from #2,550 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Chesterford, Great, London parishes and Lenton, Radford, Papplewick, Nuthall, Greasley, Brewhouse Yard. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Babergh, Braintree and Amber Valley.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Pilgrim is 2,245 in 1999. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 22.7%.

1881 census count

1,686

Ranked #2,550

Modern count

2,068

2016, ranked #3,125

Peak year

1999

2,245 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Pilgrim had 1,686 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #2,550 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 2,068 in 2016, ranked #3,125.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 2,216 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Rural Amenity.

Pilgrim surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Pilgrim surname density by area, 1881 census.

Loading map
Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Pilgrim 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 978 #2,853
1861 historical 1,019 #2,749
1881 historical 1,686 #2,550
1891 historical 1,836 #2,500
1901 historical 2,106 #2,549
1911 historical 2,216 #2,273
1997 modern 2,131 #2,899
1998 modern 2,231 #2,884
1999 modern 2,245 #2,891
2000 modern 2,216 #2,907
2001 modern 2,176 #2,893
2002 modern 2,210 #2,906
2003 modern 2,118 #2,960
2004 modern 2,128 #2,947
2005 modern 2,073 #2,980
2006 modern 2,068 #2,992
2007 modern 2,083 #3,004
2008 modern 2,097 #3,006
2009 modern 2,134 #3,036
2010 modern 2,171 #3,059
2011 modern 2,106 #3,098
2012 modern 2,032 #3,150
2013 modern 2,094 #3,119
2014 modern 2,085 #3,147
2015 modern 2,085 #3,117
2016 modern 2,068 #3,125

Geography

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Where Pilgrims are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Chesterford, Great, London parishes, Lenton, Radford, Papplewick, Nuthall, Greasley, Brewhouse Yard and St Marylebone. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Babergh, Braintree and Amber Valley. 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 Chesterford, Great Essex
2 London parishes London 1
3 London parishes London 3
4 Lenton, Radford, Papplewick, Nuthall, Greasley, Brewhouse Yard Nottinghamshire
5 St Marylebone London (North Districts)

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Babergh 007 Babergh
2 Babergh 008 Babergh
3 Braintree 003 Braintree
4 Braintree 004 Braintree
5 Amber Valley 008 Amber Valley

Forenames

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First names often paired with Pilgrim

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Pilgrim

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

Social Rented Sector Families with Children

Group

Social Rented Sector Pockets

Within London, Pilgrim 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

Pilgrim 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

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

Meaning and origin of Pilgrim

The surname Pilgrim originated in England during the Middle Ages. It derives from the Old English word "pil(e)grim," which referred to someone who had been on a pilgrimage, often to religious sites like Canterbury or Rome. The name likely developed as a way to identify individuals who had completed these spiritual journeys.

Many early instances of the name can be found in medieval records and documents. For example, a Robert Pelegrim is mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Northamptonshire in 1202. The surname also appears in the Hundred Rolls of 1273, which recorded landowners in various English counties.

One of the earliest recorded bearers of the name was John Pilgrim, born around 1350 in Norfolkshire. He was a merchant and landowner who is mentioned in several court records from the late 14th century. Another early bearer was Walter Pylgryme, born circa 1410 in Kent, who served as a messenger for King Henry V.

During the 16th and 17th centuries, the Pilgrim name continued to spread across England. Notable figures from this period include William Pilgrim (1529-1594), a Protestant martyr from Bedfordshire, and Ralph Pilgrim (1625-1678), a wealthy merchant from Essex.

The name gained particular prominence in the early 17th century with the Pilgrims, a group of English Puritans who sailed to America on the Mayflower in 1620. Several of the Pilgrim settlers, such as William Bradford (1590-1657) and Edward Winslow (1595-1655), bore this surname.

Other notable individuals with the Pilgrim surname over the centuries include Robert Pilgrim (1768-1835), an English engraver and artist, and George Pilgrim (1809-1891), a British naval officer who served in the Crimean War. Sir William Pilgrim (1886-1959) was a British civil servant and diplomat who served as Governor of Hong Kong from 1942 to 1946.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Pilgrim families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Pilgrim 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 334 Pilgrims recorded in 1881 and an index of 2.03x.

County Total Index
Middlesex 334 2.03x
Essex 281 8.66x
Surrey 210 2.62x
Norfolk 146 5.77x
Nottinghamshire 81 3.65x
Yorkshire 78 0.48x
Suffolk 70 3.49x
Cambridgeshire 63 6.05x
Bedfordshire 58 6.81x
Kent 55 0.98x
Leicestershire 47 2.58x
Lincolnshire 31 1.18x
Berkshire 30 2.43x
Hertfordshire 28 2.47x
Lancashire 27 0.14x
Hampshire 25 0.74x
Gloucestershire 24 0.74x
Northamptonshire 23 1.49x
Huntingdonshire 11 3.37x
Buckinghamshire 9 0.91x
Cheshire 8 0.22x
Wiltshire 8 0.55x
Somerset 7 0.26x
Oxfordshire 6 0.59x
Staffordshire 4 0.07x
Sussex 4 0.14x
Warwickshire 4 0.10x
Devon 3 0.09x
Durham 3 0.06x
Midlothian 2 0.09x
Northumberland 2 0.08x
Aberdeenshire 1 0.07x
Anglesey 1 0.34x
Carmarthenshire 1 0.14x
Dorset 1 0.09x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Islington London in Middlesex leads with 53 Pilgrims recorded in 1881 and an index of 3.32x.

Place Total Index
Islington London 53 3.32x
St Marylebone London 34 3.87x
Camberwell 32 3.05x
Great Chesterford 30 583.66x
Nottingham St Mary 30 5.23x
St Pancras London 29 2.19x
Mile End Old Town 24 9.24x
West Ham 24 3.35x
Bermondsey 23 4.70x
Lambeth 23 1.60x
Reading St Mary 23 23.26x
North Walsham 22 120.68x
Hackney London 21 2.28x
Battersea 19 3.14x
Bures St Mary 19 388.55x
Newington 19 3.13x
Ridgmont 19 452.38x
Hinckley 18 41.62x
Belchamp Walter 17 489.91x
Clerkenwell London 17 4.38x
Eling 16 46.87x
St Andrewthe Less 15 12.60x
Wereham 15 433.53x
Bacton 14 536.40x
Hockley 14 397.73x
Croydon 13 2.92x
Langley 13 577.78x
Leeds 13 1.41x
Lewisham 13 4.34x
Bedford St Paul 12 20.54x
Cheltenham 12 4.82x
Ewell 12 70.92x
Greenwich 12 4.58x
Maidstone 12 7.18x
Clapham 11 5.35x
Great Cornard 11 242.83x
Kensington London 11 1.20x
Paddington London 11 1.82x
Bow London 10 4.78x
Bulwell 10 20.75x
Harpley 10 418.41x
Holbeach 10 34.14x
Leicester All Sts 10 27.93x
Tottenham 10 3.82x
Towcester 10 62.70x
Bocking 9 46.11x
Ely Holy Trinity St Mary 9 19.81x
Great Wilbraham 9 292.21x
Halifax 9 3.76x
Halstead 9 23.77x
Shoreditch London 9 1.26x
South Mimms 9 39.91x
St George Hanover 9 4.19x
Ballingdon Cum Brundon 8 194.65x
Braintree 8 27.44x
Buckworth 8 634.92x
Chelmsford 8 14.36x
Kingston On Thames 8 4.16x
Runcorn 8 9.56x
Chesterton 7 21.79x
East Barnet 7 31.12x
Great Bookham 7 113.64x
Henbury 7 44.47x
Holy Trinity 7 1.79x
Lamarsh 7 451.61x
Layer Marney 7 440.25x
Little Yeldham 7 429.45x
Norwich St Augustine 7 68.63x
Saffron Walden 7 20.41x
Winthorpe 7 486.11x
Banbury 6 29.50x
Bethnal Green London 6 0.84x
Black Notley 6 160.00x
Brightside Bierlow 6 1.88x
Castle Hedingham 6 102.56x
Chipping Barnet 6 30.26x
Great Bircham 6 230.77x
Hornsey 6 2.88x
Manchester 6 0.68x
Toddington 6 49.14x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 93
Elizabeth 69
Sarah 58
Alice 38
Emma 38
Emily 35
Jane 31
Eliza 28
Ann 26
Annie 22
Martha 22
Ellen 21
Charlotte 15
Caroline 13
Maria 13
Susan 13
Fanny 12
Florence 12
Edith 9
Hannah 9
Louisa 9
Lucy 9
Margaret 9
Matilda 9
Ada 8
Anna 8
Harriet 8
Agnes 7
Amelia 7
Clara 7
Rose 7
Frances 6
Kate 6
Minnie 6
Sophia 6
Harriett 5
Rebecca 5
Susannah 5
Anne 4
Elizth. 4
Esther 4
Flora 4
Gertrude 4
Isabella 4
Julia 4
Catherine 3
May 3
Nellie 3
Ruth 3
Violet 3

Top male names

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

FAQ

Pilgrim surname: questions and answers

How common was the Pilgrim surname in 1881?

In 1881, 1,686 people were recorded with the Pilgrim surname. That placed it at #2,550 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Pilgrim surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 2,068 in 2016. That gives Pilgrim a modern rank of #3,125.

What does the Pilgrim surname mean?

A surname referring to a person who had traveled to the Holy Land or other sacred places.

What does the Pilgrim map show?

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