NameCensus.

UK surname

Roder

A habitational surname derived from a placename meaning "a clearing" or "a pasture."

In the 1881 census there were 75 people recorded with the Roder surname, ranking it #22,893 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 88, ranked #32,396, down from #22,893 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to London parishes, Poole St James and Withyham. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Mid Suffolk, Havering and Tewkesbury.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Roder is 107 in 1861. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 17.3%.

1881 census count

75

Ranked #22,893

Modern count

88

2016, ranked #32,396

Peak year

1861

107 bearers

Map years

1

1861 to 1861

Key insights

  • Roder had 75 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #22,893 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 88 in 2016, ranked #32,396.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 107 in 1861.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Ageing Communities.

Roder surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Roder surname density by area, 1861 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Roder 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 38 #26,502
1861 historical 107 #20,008
1881 historical 75 #22,893
1891 historical 93 #24,965
1901 historical 67 #26,703
1911 historical 72 #25,642
1997 modern 87 #28,749
1998 modern 89 #29,026
1999 modern 85 #29,578
2000 modern 84 #29,706
2001 modern 84 #29,508
2002 modern 88 #29,534
2003 modern 83 #30,088
2004 modern 82 #30,468
2005 modern 86 #30,094
2006 modern 82 #30,933
2007 modern 89 #30,383
2008 modern 85 #31,247
2009 modern 88 #31,352
2010 modern 92 #31,366
2011 modern 102 #29,759
2012 modern 92 #31,528
2013 modern 94 #31,656
2014 modern 93 #32,025
2015 modern 91 #32,153
2016 modern 88 #32,396

Geography

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Where Roders are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around London parishes, Poole St James, Withyham, Rawmarsh, Wath-on-Dearn (Swinton) and Manchester. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Mid Suffolk, Havering, Tewkesbury and Ealing. 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 1
2 Poole St James Dorset
3 Withyham Sussex
4 Rawmarsh, Wath-on-Dearn (Swinton) Yorkshire, West Riding
5 Manchester Lancashire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Mid Suffolk 004 Mid Suffolk
2 Havering 026 Havering
3 Havering 018 Havering
4 Tewkesbury 005 Tewkesbury
5 Ealing 039 Ealing

Forenames

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First names often paired with Roder

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Roder

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

Ageing Communities

Nationally, the Roder surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Ageing Communities, within Suburbanites and Peri-Urbanities. This does not mean every Roder household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

Many residents are of normal retirement age or above and live in communal establishments, and there are few dependent children. The dominant property type is a mix of retirement flats and detached houses. Those in work are likely to be employed in managerial and professional occupations, and many residents are educated to degree level. Levels of owner occupation are high, but the private rental sector is also present. Rural locations predominate.

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

Older Residents in Owner-Occupied Suburbs

Group

London Fringe

Within London, Roder is most associated with areas classed as London Fringe, part of Older Residents in Owner-Occupied Suburbs. 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

Predominantly located in neighbourhoods on the outskirts of Greater London, residents of these neighbourhoods typically have their highest qualifications below degree (Level 4) level, with those still in work engaged in skilled trades and occupations in distribution, hotels and restaurants. There is low ethnic diversity in these neighbourhoods and high levels of Christian religious affiliation. Detached or terraced houses predominate, often with spare rooms.

Wider London pattern

The age distribution of these neighbourhoods is skewed towards the middle-aged and old, although few residents live alone or in communal establishments and numbers of dependent children are around average. Owner occupation is the norm, as is residence in detached or semi-detached houses. Residential densities are low and many households have spare rooms. Most residents were born in the UK and, aside from some identifying as members of Chinese or Indian ethnicities, identify as White. Mixed ethnicity households are rare. Incidence of married couples is higher than average and few individuals have never been married. A large proportion of individuals still in employment work in administrative and secretarial occupations, or in the construction industry. Few residents are students, and many households own more than one car.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Roder 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

Roder falls in decile 9 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.

9
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Roder 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 - Other

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

Meaning and origin of Roder

The surname RODER originated in Germany during the medieval period. It is derived from the Old German word "rod" or "rot", meaning "to clear land" or "to prepare land for cultivation". The name likely referred to an occupation, denoting someone who cleared forests or prepared land for agricultural use.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name RODER can be found in the Codex Traditionum Westfalicarum, a medieval manuscript from the 9th century, which mentions a landowner named Rothari Roder. This suggests that the name was already in use during the Carolingian era in the region of Westphalia, Germany.

In the 11th century, the name RODER appears in the Traditiones et Antiquitates Fuldenses, a collection of documents from the Benedictine abbey of Fulda. This record mentions a man named Cuno Roder, who donated land to the abbey in the year 1057.

During the 13th century, the name RODER can be found in various records from the region of Franconia, in present-day Bavaria, Germany. One notable example is the appearance of Johannes Roder, a burgher (citizen) of the town of Rothenburg ob der Tauber, in the town's records from 1289.

In the 14th century, the name RODER was also present in the Duchy of Saxony. The Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae Regiae mentions a nobleman named Dietrich Roder, who was a vassal of the Duke of Saxony in the year 1327.

Historically, the name RODER was associated with various places, such as Rodersdorf (now Rohrbach) in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, and Roderhausen, a district of the city of Paderborn in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.

Some notable individuals with the surname RODER throughout history include:

1. Heinrich Roder (c. 1455 - c. 1518), a German printer and publisher from Würzburg, known for publishing early printed works.

2. Johann Roder (c. 1525 - 1592), a German humanist scholar and author from Nuremberg, who wrote on various subjects, including mathematics and astronomy.

3. Christoph Roder (1619 - 1682), a German composer and organist from Erfurt, known for his sacred music compositions.

4. Johann Georg Roder (1688 - 1759), a German painter from Nuremberg, renowned for his portraits and religious artworks.

5. Karl Gottlieb Roder (1812 - 1883), a German architect from Dresden, who designed several notable buildings in the city, including the Semperoper opera house.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Roder families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Roder 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 27 Roders recorded in 1881 and an index of 3.74x.

County Total Index
Middlesex 27 3.74x
Sussex 16 13.15x
Yorkshire 10 1.40x
Cumberland 7 11.27x
Lancashire 3 0.35x
Dorset 2 4.22x
Buckinghamshire 1 2.29x
Essex 1 0.70x
Glamorgan 1 0.80x
Kent 1 0.41x
Renfrewshire 1 1.79x
Shropshire 1 1.60x
Stirlingshire 1 3.76x
Surrey 1 0.28x
Warwickshire 1 0.55x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Withyam in Sussex leads with 13 Roders recorded in 1881 and an index of 2500.00x.

Place Total Index
Withyam 13 2500.00x
Bethnal Green London 8 25.52x
Hackney London 8 19.77x
Rawmarsh 8 316.21x
Crosscanonby 7 341.46x
St George In East 7 142.57x
Bromley London 3 18.89x
Chorlton On Medlock 2 14.71x
Poole St James 2 112.36x
Rye 2 172.41x
Brightside Bierlow 1 7.13x
Cardiff St Mary 1 14.45x
Chailey 1 263.16x
Denny 1 70.42x
Edgbaston 1 17.73x
Gorton 1 12.42x
Great Marlow 1 84.75x
Northfleet 1 46.08x
Paisley Middle Church 1 30.67x
Putney 1 30.40x
Rotherham 1 24.81x
Shifnal 1 59.17x
St Marylebone London 1 2.60x
West Ham 1 3.18x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 6
Sarah 3
Ann 2
Annie 2
Elizabeth 2
Emma 2
Margaret 2
Ada 1
Adline 1
Alice 1
Auguste 1
Catherine 1
Emily 1
Florence 1
Frances 1
Hannah 1
Harriet 1
Jemima 1
Lilian 1
Louisa 1
Louise 1
M. 1
Maggie 1
Marian 1

Top male names

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

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 Roder households.

FAQ

Roder surname: questions and answers

How common was the Roder surname in 1881?

In 1881, 75 people were recorded with the Roder surname. That placed it at #22,893 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Roder surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 88 in 2016. That gives Roder a modern rank of #32,396.

What does the Roder surname mean?

A habitational surname derived from a placename meaning "a clearing" or "a pasture."

What does the Roder map show?

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