NameCensus.

UK surname

Reach

An English surname derived from the Old English word "racu" meaning stream or brook.

In the 1881 census there were 251 people recorded with the Reach surname, ranking it #11,041 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 111, ranked #29,049, down from #11,041 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to St James, London parishes and St Pancras. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include North Dorset, Medway and Fenland.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Reach is 740 in 1861. Compared with 1881, the name has fallen by 55.8%.

1881 census count

251

Ranked #11,041

Modern count

111

2016, ranked #29,049

Peak year

1861

740 bearers

Map years

7

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Reach had 251 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #11,041 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 111 in 2016, ranked #29,049.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 740 in 1861.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Challenged Communities.

Reach surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Reach surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Reach 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 359 #6,583
1861 historical 740 #3,692
1881 historical 251 #11,041
1891 historical 453 #8,038
1901 historical 282 #12,145
1911 historical 228 #13,759
1997 modern 88 #28,611
1998 modern 96 #28,188
1999 modern 106 #26,885
2000 modern 110 #26,248
2001 modern 100 #27,402
2002 modern 103 #27,443
2003 modern 96 #28,381
2004 modern 92 #29,197
2005 modern 86 #30,094
2006 modern 91 #29,725
2007 modern 93 #29,777
2008 modern 102 #28,664
2009 modern 107 #28,483
2010 modern 113 #28,162
2011 modern 117 #27,334
2012 modern 120 #26,961
2013 modern 111 #28,856
2014 modern 108 #29,658
2015 modern 110 #29,157
2016 modern 111 #29,049

Geography

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Where Reachs are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around St James, London parishes, St Pancras, Manchester and Alyth. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to North Dorset, Medway, Fenland, County Durham and Bournemouth. 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 St James Suffolk
2 London parishes London 3
3 St Pancras London (North Districts)
4 Manchester Lancashire
5 Alyth Perth

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 North Dorset 002 North Dorset
2 Medway 003 Medway
3 Fenland 003 Fenland
4 County Durham 007 County Durham
5 Bournemouth 011 Bournemouth

Forenames

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First names often paired with Reach

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Reach

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

Baseline UK

Group

Challenged Communities

Nationally, the Reach surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Challenged Communities, within Baseline UK. This does not mean every Reach household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

Residents of these neighbourhoods typically live in households with dependent children, and there are fewer-than-average residents of normal retirement age or over. Identification with ethnic minorities, particularly Black, or Mixed or Multiple ethnicities is common. The rate of Christian religious affiliation is low. Housing predominantly consists of semi-detached houses, along with a significant number of terraced properties and flats. Overcrowded social housing is common, and private renting occurs at average UK levels. Those in employment work mainly in caring leisure and other services; process, plant and machine operation; or elementary occupations. Unemployment is high, and few individuals have degree level qualifications. Many of these neighbourhoods occur in commuter towns or less accessible areas of larger towns and cities.

Wider pattern

This Supergroup exemplifies the broad base to the UK’s social structure, encompassing as it does the average or modal levels of many neighbourhood characteristics, including all housing tenures, a range of levels of educational attainment and religious affiliations, and a variety of pre-retirement age structures. Yet, in combination, these mixes are each distinctive of the parts of the UK. Overall, terraced houses and flats are the most prevalent, as is employment in intermediate or low-skilled occupations. However, this Supergroup is also characterised by above average levels of unemployment and lower levels of use of English as the main language. Many neighbourhoods occur in south London and the UK’s other major urban centres.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Young Families and Mainstream Employment

Group

Terraced and Semi-Detached Suburbs

Within London, Reach 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

Reach is most concentrated in decile 3 for access to healthy assets and hazards. This places the surname towards the less healthy 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.

3
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Reach falls in decile 4 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.

4
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

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

Meaning and origin of Reach

The surname REACH is of English origin, deriving from the Old English word 'ræcc', meaning 'a brook or stream'. It is believed to have originated as a topographic name, referring to someone who lived near a small watercourse or stream.

The earliest recorded instance of the surname REACH can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as 'Rache'. This suggests that the name was already established in various parts of England by the late 11th century.

In the 13th century, the surname REACH was prevalent in the county of Worcestershire, where it was often associated with the village of Reach, located near the River Avon. This village likely derived its name from the same Old English root as the surname.

One notable early bearer of the surname REACH was John Reach (c. 1325 - 1398), a wealthy landowner and Member of Parliament for Worcestershire during the reign of King Edward III.

During the 16th and 17th centuries, the surname REACH was also found in various parts of southern England, including the counties of Somerset, Devon, and Cornwall. In these regions, the name was sometimes spelled as 'Reache' or 'Reche'.

A significant figure from this period was Barnaby Reach (1542 - 1621), an English clergyman and author who served as the Dean of Windsor and Registrar of the Order of the Garter under Queen Elizabeth I.

In the 18th century, the surname REACH gained prominence in the field of education with the birth of Benjamin Reach (1718 - 1798), a renowned schoolmaster and author of several influential textbooks on arithmetic and grammar.

Another noteworthy individual was Admiral Sir Erasmus Reach (1759 - 1824), a highly decorated British naval officer who served with distinction during the American Revolutionary War and the Napoleonic Wars.

By the 19th century, the surname REACH had spread across various parts of the British Empire, with notable bearers such as Alfred Reach (1840 - 1906), a renowned Australian cricketer and one of the first truly professional players in the sport's history.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Reach families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Reach 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 68 Reachs recorded in 1881 and an index of 22.80x.

County Total Index
Suffolk 68 22.80x
Middlesex 42 1.72x
Angus 17 7.49x
Essex 11 2.28x
Lancashire 11 0.38x
Norfolk 10 2.66x
Perthshire 10 9.10x
Surrey 10 0.84x
Midlothian 9 2.74x
Aberdeenshire 8 3.53x
Yorkshire 7 0.29x
Cambridgeshire 6 3.87x
Cheshire 6 1.11x
Renfrewshire 6 3.16x
Northamptonshire 5 2.17x
Banffshire 4 7.88x
Devon 3 0.59x
Berkshire 2 1.09x
Dorset 2 1.24x
Kent 2 0.24x
Monmouthshire 2 1.13x
Worcestershire 2 0.63x
Buckinghamshire 1 0.68x
Caithness 1 2.98x
Glamorgan 1 0.23x
Hampshire 1 0.20x
Hertfordshire 1 0.59x
Kirkcudbrightshire 1 2.82x
Leicestershire 1 0.37x
Warwickshire 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. Bury St Edmunds St James in Suffolk leads with 28 Reachs recorded in 1881 and an index of 351.32x.

Place Total Index
Bury St Edmunds St James 28 351.32x
Bury St Edmunds St Mary 25 446.43x
Alyth 9 304.05x
St Pancras London 9 4.57x
West Ham 9 8.43x
Duddingston 7 106.38x
Glenisla 7 1060.61x
Lumphanan 7 736.84x
Westminster St John 7 23.47x
Willesden 7 30.33x
Bardwell 6 937.50x
Eastwood 6 51.33x
Liff Benvie 6 17.43x
West Lynn 6 1250.00x
Bermondsey 5 6.86x
Grundisburgh 5 724.64x
Holy Trinity 5 8.57x
Manchester 5 3.83x
Heigham 4 19.79x
Northampton St Giles 4 45.61x
St Marylebone London 4 3.06x
Wardleworth 4 24.10x
Dundee 3 3.54x
Hyde 3 18.81x
March 3 57.80x
Paddington London 3 3.33x
Shoreditch London 3 2.83x
Battersea 2 2.22x
Beckenham 2 18.32x
Chesterton 2 41.84x
Clewer 2 26.56x
Enfield 2 12.45x
Kensington London 2 1.47x
Kings Norton 2 6.98x
Odd Rode 2 74.63x
Rathven 2 20.96x
St Woollos 2 10.13x
Wimborne 2 103.09x
Barden In Skipton 1 303.03x
Barking 1 7.07x
Beddington 1 21.69x
Beyton 1 344.83x
Boyndie 1 59.52x
Camberwell 1 0.64x
Chudleigh 1 61.73x
Clayton 1 16.84x
Coney Weston 1 588.24x
Dawlish 1 26.32x
Edgbaston 1 5.22x
Edinburgh St Marys 1 15.67x
Everton 1 1.08x
Exeter St Lawrence 1 263.16x
Eye 1 51.81x
Fordyce 1 27.40x
Friern Barnet 1 18.55x
Glencorse 1 79.37x
Hackney London 1 0.73x
Hemel Hempstead 1 13.16x
Islington London 1 0.42x
Kenmore 1 76.34x
Leicester St Margaret 1 1.51x
Leochel Cushnie 1 98.04x
Merthyr Tydfil 1 2.44x
Montrose 1 7.27x
Portsea 1 1.02x
Romford 1 13.09x
Southwark Christchurch 1 8.72x
Southwick 1 454.55x
St Andrew Holborn 1 12.05x
St Giles Cambridge 1 50.00x
Sudbury St Peter 1 61.35x
Tarvin Pryors Hayes 1 138.89x
Tottenham 1 2.56x
Urr 1 21.69x
West Derby 1 1.18x
Whitchurch 1 163.93x
Wick 1 9.23x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 18
Elizabeth 7
Sarah 7
Alice 6
Ann 5
Emma 4
Jane 4
Martha 4
Annie 3
Eliza 3
Harriett 3
Kate 3
Margaret 3
Agnes 2
Anne 2
Charlotte 2
Edith 2
Ethel 2
Gertrude 2
Hannah 2
Jessie 2
Sophia 2
Caroline 1
Catharine 1
Clara 1
Donna 1
Edney 1
Elizth. 1
Ellen 1
Fanny 1
Flora 1
Florence 1
Frances 1
Grace 1
Helena 1
Ilaine 1
Jesse 1
Joan 1
Joanna 1
Julia 1
Lavinia 1
Louisa 1
Louise 1
M.A. 1
Manis 1
Margt. 1
Maria 1
Marian 1
Rosehann 1
Susan 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
John 9
James 8
George 5
Henry 5
William 5
Robert 4
Thomas 4
Harry 3
Joseph 3
Thos. 3
Chas. 2
Edward 2
Patrick 2
Alexander 1
Alfred 1
Charles 1
Edwd. 1
Edwin 1
Ernest 1
Francis 1
Franck 1
Frank 1
Fred 1
Frederick 1
Fredk. 1
Herbert 1
Herick 1
J. 1
Maria 1
Richard 1
Robt.R. 1
Sydney 1
Wm. 1

FAQ

Reach surname: questions and answers

How common was the Reach surname in 1881?

In 1881, 251 people were recorded with the Reach surname. That placed it at #11,041 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Reach surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 111 in 2016. That gives Reach a modern rank of #29,049.

What does the Reach surname mean?

An English surname derived from the Old English word "racu" meaning stream or brook.

What does the Reach map show?

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