NameCensus.

UK surname

Pollen

A surname derived from the Middle English word for fine particles released by plants.

In the 1881 census there were 86 people recorded with the Pollen surname, ranking it #21,449 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 187, ranked #20,488, up from #21,449 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Northfleet, Malmesbury St Paul and London parishes. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Copeland, East Hampshire and Shropshire.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Pollen is 203 in 2014. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 117.4%.

1881 census count

86

Ranked #21,449

Modern count

187

2016, ranked #20,488

Peak year

2014

203 bearers

Map years

7

1861 to 2016

Key insights

  • Pollen had 86 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #21,449 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 187 in 2016, ranked #20,488.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 117 in 1891.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Spacious Rural Living.

Pollen surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Pollen surname density by area, 2016 modern.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Pollen 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 79 #19,712
1861 historical 114 #19,011
1881 historical 86 #21,449
1891 historical 117 #21,658
1901 historical 115 #21,050
1911 historical 104 #22,209
1997 modern 177 #19,018
1998 modern 180 #19,298
1999 modern 188 #18,931
2000 modern 188 #18,916
2001 modern 180 #19,161
2002 modern 190 #18,889
2003 modern 174 #19,760
2004 modern 180 #19,424
2005 modern 174 #19,783
2006 modern 168 #20,368
2007 modern 178 #19,887
2008 modern 190 #19,246
2009 modern 196 #19,274
2010 modern 195 #19,762
2011 modern 187 #20,132
2012 modern 186 #20,141
2013 modern 196 #19,790
2014 modern 203 #19,504
2015 modern 191 #20,205
2016 modern 187 #20,488

Geography

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Where Pollens are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Northfleet, Malmesbury St Paul, London parishes and Arbroath and St. Vigeans. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Copeland, East Hampshire, Shropshire, Cotswold and Runnymede. 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 Northfleet Kent
2 Malmesbury St Paul Wiltshire
3 London parishes London 1
4 Arbroath and St. Vigeans Forfar
5 London parishes London 3

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Copeland 006 Copeland
2 East Hampshire 009 East Hampshire
3 Shropshire 029 Shropshire
4 Cotswold 001 Cotswold
5 Runnymede 004 Runnymede

Forenames

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First names often paired with Pollen

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Pollen

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

Professional Employment and Family Lifecycles

Group

Inner London Working Professionals

Within London, Pollen is most associated with areas classed as Inner London Working Professionals, part of Professional Employment and Family Lifecycles. 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

These primarily Inner London neighbourhoods are more densely populated than the Supergroup average. Residents have a younger over-all age profile than the Supergroup as a whole, and are less likely to be owner occupiers. Full time employment is more common than elsewhere in the Supergroup and multiple car ownership is uncommon. Chinese and non-EU-born European migrants are less in evidence than elsewhere in the Supergroup.

Wider London pattern

These neighbourhoods house people of all ages, predominantly of White British or European extraction. Resident turnover is low. Religious affiliation is less common than average and tends to be Christian if expressed. Homeownership, typically of terraced houses, is common but use of the social rented sector is not. Employment is typically in professional, managerial and associate professional or technical occupations. There are few full-time students. Level 4 qualifications are common. More households lack dependent children than have them which, considered alongside low levels of crowding and over-all age structure, indicates that many households may be post child-rearing and in late middle age. Incidence of disability is low, as is residence in communal establishments.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Pollen 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

Pollen falls in decile 8 for neighbourhood deprivation. This puts the surname towards the less deprived end of the index.

Decile 1 represents the more deprived end of the scale. Decile 10 represents the less deprived end.

8
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

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

Meaning and origin of Pollen

The surname Pollen is believed to have originated in England during the late medieval period. It is derived from the Old English word "pollen," which means "a small piece of land" or "a small field." The name was likely first used to describe someone who lived on or worked on a small plot of land.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Pollen can be found in the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire from 1273, where a person named Walter Pollen is mentioned. This document, which was essentially a census of landowners and their properties, suggests that the name was well-established in the region by the 13th century.

In the 14th century, the name appears in various legal and ecclesiastical records. For example, a Richard Pollen is mentioned in the Subsidy Rolls of Staffordshire from 1327, indicating that the family had spread to other parts of England by that time.

The Pollen surname may also be related to certain place names in England, such as Pollington in Yorkshire, which was recorded as "Pollingtun" in the Domesday Book of 1086. This could suggest that the name originated as a locational surname, referring to someone who came from or lived near that particular place.

One notable figure in history with the surname Pollen was Sir John Pollen (1784-1863), a British naval officer who served during the Napoleonic Wars and later became a Member of Parliament. Another was Richard Pollen (1786-1838), an English clergyman and author who wrote several works on religion and theology.

Other notable individuals with the Pollen surname include:

1. John Pollen (1820-1902), an English architect who designed several notable buildings in London and the surrounding areas. 2. Reverend John Hungerford Pollen (1858-1925), an English historian and author who wrote extensively on the Catholic Church in England. 3. Anne Pollen (1919-2003), a British actress and playwright known for her work in the theater and on television. 4. Hubert Pollen (1892-1988), a British artist and printmaker who was part of the etching revival movement in the early 20th century. 5. Thomas Pollen (1730-1799), an English merchant and banker who was a prominent figure in the City of London during the late 18th century.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Pollen families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Pollen 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 24 Pollens recorded in 1881 and an index of 2.80x.

County Total Index
Middlesex 24 2.80x
Surrey 12 2.87x
Kent 8 2.73x
Sussex 8 5.53x
Angus 7 8.80x
Wiltshire 7 9.22x
Essex 4 2.36x
Lancashire 4 0.39x
Lincolnshire 3 2.19x
Warwickshire 3 1.39x
Glamorgan 2 1.34x
Gloucestershire 2 1.19x
Channel Islands 1 3.93x
Hertfordshire 1 1.69x
Lanarkshire 1 0.36x
Royal Navy 1 9.78x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Rotherhithe in Surrey leads with 10 Pollens recorded in 1881 and an index of 94.34x.

Place Total Index
Rotherhithe 10 94.34x
Arbroath 7 265.15x
Kensington London 7 14.67x
Brighton 6 20.55x
Milton In Gravesend 6 136.67x
Westminster St John 6 57.42x
Grays Thurrock 4 254.78x
Malmesbury St Paul 4 615.38x
Barrow In Furness 3 21.66x
Chirton 3 3000.00x
Edgbaston 3 44.71x
Immingham 3 3750.00x
St Andrew Holborn 3 103.09x
Bermondsey 2 7.83x
Poplar London 2 12.35x
Aighton Bailey 1 204.08x
Bristol 1 625.00x
Bristol St Augustine 1 36.76x
Cardiff St John 1 20.49x
Chelsea London 1 3.87x
Eltham 1 58.14x
Gillingham 1 16.56x
Hackney London 1 2.08x
Hamilton 1 12.92x
Lewes St John Under 1 500.00x
Ore 1 92.59x
Royal Navy 1 11.44x
Shoreditch London 1 2.69x
St Albans 1 82.64x
St George Hanover 1 8.93x
St Marylebone London 1 2.18x
St Peter Port 1 21.28x
Westminster St James 1 11.34x
Ystradyfodwg 1 7.63x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 7
Frances 3
Elizabeth 2
Harriett 2
Margaret 2
Rose 2
Susan 2
Alice 1
Anne 1
Annie 1
Constance 1
Edith 1
Eliza 1
Ellen 1
Evelyn 1
Helen 1
Jane 1
Kate 1
Katherine 1
Laura 1
Lillie 1
Louisa 1
Margeret 1
Maria 1
Marion 1
Sarah 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
George 5
John 5
Arthur 4
Thomas 4
William 4
Charles 2
Ernest 2
Richard 2
Robert 2
Walter 2
Andrew 1
Anthony 1
Augustus 1
Clement 1
Geo.Richard 1
James 1
Rob. 1

FAQ

Pollen surname: questions and answers

How common was the Pollen surname in 1881?

In 1881, 86 people were recorded with the Pollen surname. That placed it at #21,449 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Pollen surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 187 in 2016. That gives Pollen a modern rank of #20,488.

What does the Pollen surname mean?

A surname derived from the Middle English word for fine particles released by plants.

What does the Pollen map show?

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