NameCensus.

UK surname

Pleasance

In the 1881 census there were 391 people recorded with the Pleasance surname, ranking it #8,090 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 449, ranked #10,816, down from #8,090 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to London parishes, Cambridge: All Saints and Cambridge: St Andrew the Less, St Andrew the Great, Holy Trinity, St Benedict. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Fenland, South Holland and Maldon.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Pleasance is 646 in 1911. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 14.8%.

1881 census count

391

Ranked #8,090

Modern count

449

2016, ranked #10,816

Peak year

1911

646 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Pleasance had 391 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #8,090 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 449 in 2016, ranked #10,816.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 646 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Spacious Rural Living.

Pleasance surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Pleasance surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Pleasance 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 188 #10,939
1861 historical 231 #10,572
1881 historical 391 #8,090
1891 historical 461 #7,937
1901 historical 559 #7,443
1911 historical 646 #6,476
1997 modern 467 #9,788
1998 modern 488 #9,780
1999 modern 481 #9,958
2000 modern 476 #10,004
2001 modern 463 #10,009
2002 modern 476 #9,999
2003 modern 452 #10,258
2004 modern 467 #10,013
2005 modern 469 #9,892
2006 modern 465 #9,988
2007 modern 469 #10,028
2008 modern 472 #10,074
2009 modern 469 #10,344
2010 modern 466 #10,595
2011 modern 446 #10,863
2012 modern 444 #10,775
2013 modern 452 #10,795
2014 modern 453 #10,830
2015 modern 450 #10,819
2016 modern 449 #10,816

Geography

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Where Pleasances are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around London parishes, Cambridge: All Saints, Cambridge: St Andrew the Less, St Andrew the Great, Holy Trinity, St Benedict and Gillingham, Grange, Lidsing. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Fenland, South Holland, Maldon, Mid Suffolk and Rotherham. 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 London parishes London 3
2 Cambridge: All Saints Cambridgeshire
3 Cambridge: St Andrew the Less, St Andrew the Great, Holy Trinity, St Benedict Cambridgeshire
4 Gillingham, Grange, Lidsing Kent
5 London parishes London 2

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Fenland 003 Fenland
2 South Holland 007 South Holland
3 Maldon 001 Maldon
4 Mid Suffolk 009 Mid Suffolk
5 Rotherham 001 Rotherham

Forenames

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First names often paired with Pleasance

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Pleasance

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

Young Families and Mainstream Employment

Group

Terraced and Semi-Detached Suburbs

Within London, Pleasance 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

Pleasance is most concentrated in decile 8 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.

8
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

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

1881 census detail

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Pleasance families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Pleasance 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. Suffolk leads with 126 Pleasances recorded in 1881 and an index of 27.12x.

County Total Index
Suffolk 126 27.12x
Cambridgeshire 51 21.11x
Middlesex 51 1.34x
Yorkshire 44 1.16x
Kent 23 1.77x
Lancashire 20 0.44x
Surrey 15 0.81x
Derbyshire 13 2.18x
Gloucestershire 9 1.20x
Berkshire 8 2.79x
Northamptonshire 8 2.23x
Hertfordshire 7 2.66x
Norfolk 6 1.02x
Essex 2 0.27x
Hampshire 2 0.26x
Nottinghamshire 2 0.39x
Bedfordshire 1 0.51x
Cheshire 1 0.12x
Royal Navy 1 2.20x
Sussex 1 0.16x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Norton in Suffolk leads with 45 Pleasances recorded in 1881 and an index of 4639.18x.

Place Total Index
Norton 45 4639.18x
Cotton 17 2575.76x
Islington London 16 4.33x
Gillingham 15 55.91x
All Saints Cambridge 12 705.88x
Glemsford 11 337.42x
Soham 11 211.54x
Soothill 10 73.26x
Bristol Christchurch 9 825.69x
St Andrewthe Less 9 32.61x
St Giles Cambridge 8 256.41x
Wellingborough 8 44.35x
Bethnal Green London 7 4.22x
Castleton 7 15.49x
Charsfield 7 1250.00x
Haughley 7 603.45x
Shoreditch London 7 4.23x
Bradford 6 6.56x
Long Melford 6 138.89x
Southwark St John 6 51.41x
Staveley 6 56.60x
Abingdon St Helen 5 59.74x
Alverthorpe Cum Thornes 5 36.42x
Cockfield 5 409.84x
Greasbrough 5 100.20x
Lackford 5 2173.91x
Old Newton 5 561.80x
Sawbridgeworth 5 125.63x
Sheffield 5 4.16x
Southwark St George Martyr 5 6.51x
Tupton 5 277.78x
West Derby 5 3.78x
Hornsey 4 8.29x
Hulme 4 4.23x
Pendleton In Salford 4 7.42x
Cherry Hinton 3 263.16x
Feltwell Feltwell Anchor 3 280.37x
Holy Trinity Cambridge 3 114.50x
Ixworth 3 229.01x
Leeds 3 1.41x
Poplar London 3 4.17x
Sculcoates 3 5.01x
St Marylebone London 3 1.47x
Tostock 3 652.17x
Battersea 2 1.43x
Clewer 2 17.05x
Edensor 2 540.54x
Heston 2 15.79x
Holy Trinity 2 2.20x
Kensington London 2 0.94x
Littleport 2 43.29x
Paddington London 2 1.43x
Portsea 2 1.31x
Radford 2 7.66x
Rochester St Margaret 2 14.58x
Rochester St Nicholas 2 49.38x
Strood 2 26.95x
The Holy Sepulchre 2 338.98x
Tonbridge 2 4.26x
Woodbridge 2 33.67x
Attercliffe Cum Darnall 1 2.84x
Birkenhead 1 1.49x
Bury St Edmunds St Mary 1 11.47x
Chipping Barnet 1 21.74x
Cople 1 166.67x
Finningham 1 181.82x
Gilston 1 277.78x
Hoyland Nether 1 10.79x
Kirby Cane 1 181.82x
Lamberhurst 1 61.73x
Leigh 1 38.17x
Little Stambridge 1 476.19x
New Windsor 1 10.40x
Newington 1 0.71x
Royal Navy 1 2.57x
Sudbury St Gregory 1 26.88x
Thorndon All Sts 1 120.48x
Westminster St 1 7.11x
Westminster St John 1 2.15x
Wimbledon 1 4.79x

Top female names

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

Top male names

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

FAQ

Pleasance surname: questions and answers

How common was the Pleasance surname in 1881?

In 1881, 391 people were recorded with the Pleasance surname. That placed it at #8,090 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Pleasance surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 449 in 2016. That gives Pleasance a modern rank of #10,816.

What does the Pleasance map show?

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