NameCensus.

UK surname

Ryding

From a place name derived from the Old English word "ryding" meaning a small clearing or riding path.

In the 1881 census there were 413 people recorded with the Ryding surname, ranking it #7,794 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 408, ranked #11,711, down from #7,794 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to North Meols, Standish and Preston. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include West Lancashire, Wigan and Chorley.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Ryding is 527 in 1911. Compared with 1881, the name has stayed broadly stable by 1.2%.

1881 census count

413

Ranked #7,794

Modern count

408

2016, ranked #11,711

Peak year

1911

527 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Ryding had 413 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #7,794 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 408 in 2016, ranked #11,711.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 527 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Small Town Suburbia.

Ryding surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Ryding surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Ryding 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 293 #7,783
1861 historical 260 #9,516
1881 historical 413 #7,794
1891 historical 390 #9,058
1901 historical 423 #9,113
1911 historical 527 #7,533
1997 modern 461 #9,886
1998 modern 460 #10,232
1999 modern 458 #10,325
2000 modern 462 #10,212
2001 modern 441 #10,412
2002 modern 432 #10,801
2003 modern 428 #10,709
2004 modern 426 #10,768
2005 modern 434 #10,502
2006 modern 429 #10,645
2007 modern 426 #10,809
2008 modern 415 #11,145
2009 modern 425 #11,161
2010 modern 428 #11,352
2011 modern 419 #11,422
2012 modern 410 #11,518
2013 modern 406 #11,790
2014 modern 423 #11,488
2015 modern 416 #11,561
2016 modern 408 #11,711

Geography

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Where Rydings are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around North Meols, Standish, Preston, Blackburn and Penwortham. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to West Lancashire, Wigan and Chorley. 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 North Meols Lancashire
2 Standish Lancashire
3 Preston Lancashire
4 Blackburn Lancashire
5 Penwortham Lancashire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 West Lancashire 002 West Lancashire
2 Wigan 005 Wigan
3 Chorley 013 Chorley
4 Wigan 006 Wigan
5 West Lancashire 001 West Lancashire

Forenames

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First names often paired with Ryding

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Ryding

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

Small Town Suburbia

Nationally, the Ryding surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Small Town Suburbia, within Retired Professionals. This does not mean every Ryding household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

This Group is predominantly comprised of married couples with no resident dependent children, living in areas characterised neither by under-occupancy nor overcrowding throughout the UK in or adjacent to small towns. White ethnic groups and affiliation with Christianity predominates. Housing tends to be predominantly semi-detached or detached and workers are employed principally in managerial and professional occupations, with semi-skilled occupations also in evidence. These areas of the Supergroup are of higher population density.

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

The Greater London Mix

Group

Social Rented Sector Professional Support Workers

Within London, Ryding is most associated with areas classed as Social Rented Sector Professional Support Workers, part of The Greater London Mix. 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 located in Inner London, these neighbourhoods retain a diverse employment structure, with some concentration in associated professional and technical occupations rather than skilled trades or construction. Social renting is more common and levels of homeownership are low. Many residents identify as Black. There is a lower than average rate of marriage or civil partnership, few that are very old (85 or over) and higher than average incidence of disability.

Wider London pattern

A Supergroup embodying London's diversity in many respects, apart from low numbers of residents identifying as of Bangladeshi, Indian, Pakistani or Other (non-Chinese) Asian ethnicity. There is lower than average prevalence of families with dependent children, while there are above average occurrences of never-married individuals and single-person households. The age distribution is skewed towards younger, single residents and couples without children, with many individuals identifying as of mixed or multiple ethnicity. Social rented or private rented housing is slightly more prevalent than average, and many residents live in flats. Individuals typically work in professional and associated roles in public administration, education or health rather than in elementary occupations in agriculture, energy, water, construction or manufacturing. Incidence of students is slightly below average. Individuals declaring no religion are more prevalent than average and non-use of English at home is below average.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Ryding is most concentrated in decile 2 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.

2
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Ryding falls in decile 2 for neighbourhood deprivation. This puts the surname towards the more deprived end of the index.

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

2
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

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

Meaning and origin of Ryding

The surname RYDING originated in England, particularly in the northern counties of Yorkshire and Lancashire. It is derived from the Old English word "ryding," which means a clearing or open space in a forest or woodland area. This suggests that the name may have originated as a place name referring to a settlement located in a forest clearing.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname RYDING can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a comprehensive survey of landholdings across much of England and parts of Wales. The name is listed as "de Ridding," which was a common early spelling variation.

The RYDING surname is also closely associated with several place names in Yorkshire and Lancashire, such as Rydinge, Rydyngges, and Ryddynge. These place names likely originated from the Old English word "ryding" and may have been the original locations where families with this surname resided.

One notable individual with the surname RYDING was Thomas Ryding (c. 1540-1616), who was an English Catholic priest and martyr. He was executed during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I for his refusal to renounce his Catholic faith.

Another early bearer of the RYDING surname was William Ryding (c. 1590-1669), who was a member of the Society of Friends, also known as Quakers. He was an influential figure in the early years of the Quaker movement and was imprisoned several times for his religious beliefs.

In the 18th century, John Ryding (1700-1783) was a renowned clockmaker from Halifax, Yorkshire. He established a successful clockmaking business and his clocks are highly prized by collectors today.

During the Victorian era, Samuel Ryding (1835-1915) was a prominent industrialist and philanthropist from Yorkshire. He made his fortune in the textile industry and was known for his charitable works, including the establishment of a technical college in his hometown.

Another notable figure with the RYDING surname was Ernest William Ryding (1886-1981), a British colonial administrator who served in various roles in British East Africa (now Kenya and Tanzania) during the early 20th century.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Ryding families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Ryding 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 348 Rydings recorded in 1881 and an index of 7.37x.

County Total Index
Lancashire 348 7.37x
Yorkshire 25 0.63x
Glamorgan 9 1.30x
Durham 8 0.68x
Middlesex 5 0.13x
Hertfordshire 4 1.46x
Staffordshire 4 0.30x
Bedfordshire 2 0.97x
Derbyshire 1 0.16x
Midlothian 1 0.19x
Warwickshire 1 0.10x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Preston in Lancashire leads with 62 Rydings recorded in 1881 and an index of 49.07x.

Place Total Index
Preston 62 49.07x
North Meols 55 118.97x
Standish With Langtree 33 567.01x
Walton Le Dale 25 197.01x
Farington 20 727.27x
Kirkham 16 256.41x
Penwortham 15 669.64x
Leyland 14 170.32x
Pemberton 14 74.35x
Blackburn 10 7.96x
Manchester 9 4.24x
Neath 9 63.83x
Gomersal 8 43.45x
Oswaldtwistle 8 47.93x
Sheffield 8 6.37x
Nether Hallam 7 13.12x
Rishton 7 126.35x
Horwich 6 116.50x
Stretford 6 23.09x
Washington 6 120.97x
Accrington 4 9.32x
Great Harwood 4 46.84x
Mile End Old Town 4 6.37x
Over Darwen 4 10.60x
Watford 4 18.81x
West Bromwich 4 5.20x
Bretherton 3 312.50x
Halliwell 3 17.45x
Lydiate 3 204.08x
Reddish 3 46.15x
Warton 3 555.56x
Alston 2 90.91x
Chorley 2 7.55x
Clayton Le Woods 2 454.55x
Everton 2 1.33x
Failsworth 2 18.52x
Hulme 2 2.03x
Hylton 2 95.69x
Kempston 2 42.74x
Layton With Warbreck 2 11.54x
Oldham 2 1.31x
Woodplumpton 2 118.34x
Aston 1 0.36x
Balderstone 1 151.52x
Bow London 1 1.97x
Bradford 1 1.05x
Fulwood 1 19.61x
Hope 1 222.22x
Inveresk 1 6.93x
Rumworth 1 14.81x
Thornhill 1 8.69x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 40
Elizabeth 17
Margaret 15
Jane 14
Ellen 12
Ann 10
Sarah 10
Alice 7
Emily 4
Isabella 4
Eliza 3
Hannah 3
Nancy 3
Nanny 3
Agnes 2
Clara 2
Edith 2
Emma 2
Esther 2
Henrietta 2
Isabel 2
Lucy 2
Maude 2
Sophia 2
Anne 1
Annie 1
Betsy 1
Betty 1
Carlonnie 1
Catharine 1
Catherine 1
Cisly 1
Clema 1
Deborah 1
Elizt. 1
Elizth. 1
Elizth.Ann 1
Elizth.Ellen 1
Fanny 1
Florence 1
Grace 1
Gwladys 1
Hester 1
Lydia 1
Margery 1
Margt. 1
Maria 1
Maud 1
Priscilla 1
Victoria 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
William 38
John 34
Thomas 20
James 15
Richard 12
Robert 11
Henry 8
Wm. 7
Joseph 5
Charles 4
Hugh 4
Edward 3
George 3
Peter 3
Samuel 3
Walter 3
Albert 2
Alfred 2
Daniel 2
Francis 2
Frank 2
Herbert 2
Pearson 2
Roger 2
Arthur 1
Baby 1
Christopher 1
Clement 1
Fred 1
Frederick 1
G. 1
Harry 1
Israel 1
Jacob 1
Lambert 1
Marshall 1
Michael 1
Rd. 1
Reginald 1
Squire 1
Stephen 1

FAQ

Ryding surname: questions and answers

How common was the Ryding surname in 1881?

In 1881, 413 people were recorded with the Ryding surname. That placed it at #7,794 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Ryding surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 408 in 2016. That gives Ryding a modern rank of #11,711.

What does the Ryding surname mean?

From a place name derived from the Old English word "ryding" meaning a small clearing or riding path.

What does the Ryding map show?

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