NameCensus.

UK surname

Rieley

A locational surname referring to someone from Riley, a town in England.

In the 1881 census there were 55 people recorded with the Rieley surname, ranking it #25,862 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 103, ranked #30,515, down from #25,862 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Lanchester (Collierley, Kyo, Billingside, Medomsley, Ebchchester, Benfieldside, Heelyfield, Conside, Gateshead and Brinsop. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Law, Carluke North and Crossford, Braidwood and Yieldshields.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Rieley is 110 in 1851. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 87.3%.

1881 census count

55

Ranked #25,862

Modern count

103

2016, ranked #30,515

Peak year

1851

110 bearers

Map years

2

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Rieley had 55 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #25,862 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 103 in 2016, ranked #30,515.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 110 in 1851.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Established but Challenged.

Rieley surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Rieley surname density by area, 2016 modern.

Loading map
Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

Back to top

Rieley 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 110 #16,093
1861 historical 96 #21,648
1881 historical 55 #25,862
1891 historical 94 #24,820
1901 historical 30 #30,724
1911 historical 20 #31,288
1997 modern 78 #29,785
1998 modern 74 #30,562
1999 modern 76 #30,546
2000 modern 86 #29,484
2001 modern 84 #29,508
2002 modern 89 #29,428
2003 modern 89 #29,380
2004 modern 91 #29,345
2005 modern 84 #30,359
2006 modern 96 #28,946
2007 modern 98 #29,019
2008 modern 98 #29,355
2009 modern 102 #29,286
2010 modern 103 #29,780
2011 modern 102 #29,759
2012 modern 98 #30,612
2013 modern 97 #31,239
2014 modern 99 #31,186
2015 modern 102 #30,624
2016 modern 103 #30,515

Geography

Back to top

Where Rieleys are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Lanchester (Collierley, Kyo, Billingside, Medomsley, Ebchchester, Benfieldside, Heelyfield, Conside, Gateshead, Brinsop, Manchester and Dundee, Liff, Benvie and Invergowry. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Law, Carluke North, Crossford, Braidwood and Yieldshields, Dalkeith and Erewash. 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 Lanchester (Collierley, Kyo, Billingside, Medomsley, Ebchchester, Benfieldside, Heelyfield, Conside Durham
2 Gateshead Durham
3 Brinsop Herefordshire
4 Manchester Lancashire
5 Dundee, Liff, Benvie and Invergowry Forfar

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Law South Lanarkshire
2 Carluke North South Lanarkshire
3 Crossford, Braidwood and Yieldshields South Lanarkshire
4 Dalkeith Midlothian
5 Erewash 013 Erewash

Forenames

Back to top

First names often paired with Rieley

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

Modern profile

Back to top

Neighbourhood profile for Rieley

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

Semi- and Un-Skilled Workforce

Group

Established but Challenged

Nationally, the Rieley surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Established but Challenged, within Semi- and Un-Skilled Workforce. This does not mean every Rieley household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

Many households in these neighbourhoods comprise separated or divorced single parents with dependent children. Residents are typically born in the UK, and these neighbourhoods have relatively few members of ethnic minorities. The prevalence of children, their parents and those at or above normal retirement age, suggests neighbourhood structures may be long-established. Levels of unpaid care are high, and long-term disability is more common than in the Supergroup as a whole. Use of the social rented sector is common, often in terraced houses. Levels of overcrowding are above the Supergroup average. Unemployment is high, while those in work are employed in elementary occupations such as caring, leisure and customer services. Many residents have low level qualifications. Neighbourhood concentrations of this Group are found in the South Wales Valleys, Belfast, Londonderry and the Central Lowlands of Scotland.

Wider pattern

Living in terraced or semi-detached houses, residents of these neighbourhoods typically lack high levels of education and work in elementary or routine service occupations. Unemployment is above average. Residents are predominantly born in the UK, and residents are also predominantly from ethnic minorities. Social (but not private sector) rented sector housing is common. This Supergroup is found throughout the UK’s conurbations and industrial regions but is also an integral part of smaller towns.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Young Families and Mainstream Employment

Group

Social Rented Sector and Diverse Origins

Within London, Rieley is most associated with areas classed as Social Rented Sector and Diverse Origins, 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

Scattered across London’s Inner and Outer suburbs, residents of these neighbourhoods are typically housed in the social rented sector. Although terraced and semi-detached houses predominate, more residents live in flats than elsewhere in the Supergroup. Neighbourhoods are more ethnically diverse than the Supergroup average. Those identifying as of Bangladeshi, Pakistani and some Black ethnicities are more prevalent. Europeans born in a overseas non-EU countries make up more of the lower proportion of residents identifying as White. Few residents are very old (85+). Employment in distribution, hotels and restaurants is more common than elsewhere in the Supergroup.

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

Rieley 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

Rieley 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 Rieley is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of 25-30 mbit/s.

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

5
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - British

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

Meaning and origin of Rieley

The surname RIELEY is thought to have originated in England, specifically in the northern counties of Yorkshire and Lancashire. It is believed to have derived from the Old English word 'ríg', meaning a ridge or hill, combined with 'leah', meaning a clearing or meadow. This suggests that the name likely referred to someone who lived near a ridge or hill in a meadow or clearing.

The earliest recorded instances of the surname RIELEY can be traced back to the 13th and 14th centuries in various historical records and documents. For example, the name appears in the Subsidy Rolls of Yorkshire from 1297, where a John de Rigelay is mentioned.

In the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a comprehensive survey of landholdings in England commissioned by William the Conqueror, there are several entries that may be related to the RIELEY surname. These include references to places like "Rigeley" and "Rigeleia", which could have been the origins of the surname.

One of the earliest known individuals with the surname RIELEY was Sir Ralph Rieley, who lived in the 14th century and served as a knight during the reign of King Edward III. Other notable figures bearing the RIELEY name include John Rieley, a prominent merchant and alderman in the city of York in the late 16th century, and Thomas Rieley, a renowned clockmaker who lived in London in the early 18th century.

The surname RIELEY has also been associated with various place names throughout England, such as Rieley Lane in Lancashire and Rieley Park in Yorkshire. These place names may have derived from the same Old English roots as the surname itself.

Among other historical figures with the RIELEY surname are:

1. William Rieley (1550-1620), an English clergyman and scholar who served as the rector of Bringhurst, Leicestershire. 2. Robert Rieley (1645-1709), a British military officer who fought in the Nine Years' War and the War of the Spanish Succession. 3. Elizabeth Rieley (1680-1747), an English philanthropist and benefactor who funded the construction of several schools and almshouses in her hometown of Warrington. 4. John Rieley (1730-1803), a British architect and builder who designed numerous churches and public buildings in London and the surrounding areas. 5. Samuel Rieley (1795-1871), a British politician and industrialist who served as a Member of Parliament for Wigan and was involved in the development of the cotton industry in Lancashire.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

Back to top

Rieley families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Rieley 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. Lancashire leads with 17 Rieleys recorded in 1881 and an index of 2.72x.

County Total Index
Lancashire 17 2.72x
Durham 6 3.83x
Cheshire 5 4.30x
Renfrewshire 5 12.25x
Warwickshire 5 3.76x
Derbyshire 4 4.85x
Suffolk 3 4.68x
Surrey 3 1.17x
Brecknockshire 1 9.50x
Cambridgeshire 1 3.00x
Hertfordshire 1 2.75x
Leicestershire 1 1.71x
Northumberland 1 1.28x
Yorkshire 1 0.19x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. West Derby in Lancashire leads with 7 Rieleys recorded in 1881 and an index of 38.27x.

Place Total Index
West Derby 7 38.27x
Hedworth Monkton Jarrow 6 88.37x
West Greenock 5 68.21x
Birkenhead 4 43.15x
Edgbaston 4 97.09x
Unstone 4 1250.00x
Liverpool 3 7.90x
Newmarket St Mary 3 612.24x
Preston 3 17.94x
Manchester 2 7.11x
Oldham 2 9.92x
Aldenham 1 303.03x
Bassingbourn 1 204.08x
Birmingham 1 2.26x
Brecknock St John 1 112.36x
Eastham 1 625.00x
Glen Parva 1 714.29x
Lambeth 1 2.18x
Middlesbrough 1 14.71x
Newcastle On Tyne St 1 24.63x
Rotherhithe 1 15.36x
Southwark Christchurch 1 40.49x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 4
Elizabeth 3
Ann 2
Annie 2
Ellen 2
Emily 2
Rose 2
Alice 1
Bertha 1
Bridget 1
Catherine 1
Cathrine 1
Clara 1
Clarissa 1
Daisy 1
Emma 1
Fanny 1
Katherine 1
Lydia 1
Maria 1
Sarah 1
Susanah 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
John 4
William 3
Alexander 2
James 2
Wm. 2
Alfred 1
George 1
Norris 1
Patrick 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 Rieley households.

FAQ

Rieley surname: questions and answers

How common was the Rieley surname in 1881?

In 1881, 55 people were recorded with the Rieley surname. That placed it at #25,862 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Rieley surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 103 in 2016. That gives Rieley a modern rank of #30,515.

What does the Rieley surname mean?

A locational surname referring to someone from Riley, a town in England.

What does the Rieley map show?

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