NameCensus.

UK surname

Scragg

A surname deriving from a person of scraggy or lean appearance.

In the 1881 census there were 972 people recorded with the Scragg surname, ranking it #4,001 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 1,048, ranked #5,561, down from #4,001 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Prestbury, Norton-in-the-Moors and Wolstanton. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Staffordshire Moorlands.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Scragg is 1,312 in 1911. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 7.8%.

1881 census count

972

Ranked #4,001

Modern count

1,048

2016, ranked #5,561

Peak year

1911

1,312 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Scragg had 972 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #4,001 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 1,048 in 2016, ranked #5,561.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 1,312 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Small Town Suburbia.

Scragg surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Scragg surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Scragg 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 497 #5,031
1861 historical 513 #5,102
1881 historical 972 #4,001
1891 historical 919 #4,499
1901 historical 1,251 #3,956
1911 historical 1,312 #3,635
1997 modern 1,081 #5,152
1998 modern 1,228 #4,787
1999 modern 1,216 #4,865
2000 modern 1,163 #5,032
2001 modern 1,160 #4,955
2002 modern 1,198 #4,910
2003 modern 1,180 #4,872
2004 modern 1,171 #4,913
2005 modern 1,141 #4,974
2006 modern 1,119 #5,065
2007 modern 1,120 #5,107
2008 modern 1,112 #5,174
2009 modern 1,123 #5,230
2010 modern 1,140 #5,272
2011 modern 1,119 #5,303
2012 modern 1,081 #5,366
2013 modern 1,075 #5,487
2014 modern 1,068 #5,550
2015 modern 1,051 #5,570
2016 modern 1,048 #5,561

Geography

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Where Scraggs are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Prestbury, Norton-in-the-Moors, Wolstanton, London parishes and Manchester. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Staffordshire Moorlands. 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 Prestbury Cheshire
2 Norton-in-the-Moors Staffordshire
3 Wolstanton Staffordshire
4 London parishes London 3
5 Manchester Lancashire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Staffordshire Moorlands 005 Staffordshire Moorlands
2 Staffordshire Moorlands 001 Staffordshire Moorlands
3 Staffordshire Moorlands 006 Staffordshire Moorlands
4 Staffordshire Moorlands 013 Staffordshire Moorlands
5 Staffordshire Moorlands 007 Staffordshire Moorlands

Forenames

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First names often paired with Scragg

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Scragg

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Scragg, 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 Scragg surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Small Town Suburbia, within Retired Professionals. This does not mean every Scragg 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, Scragg 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

Scragg 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

Scragg falls in decile 7 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.

7
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

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

Meaning and origin of Scragg

The surname Scragg is an English name that originated in the medieval period. It is believed to be derived from the Old English word "scragga," which means a lean, scrawny person or animal. This suggests that the name may have been initially used as a nickname for someone who was particularly thin or skinny.

The name Scragg can be traced back to various counties in England, including Yorkshire, Lancashire, and Cheshire. Some of the earliest records of the name date back to the 13th and 14th centuries, appearing in historical documents such as tax rolls, parish registers, and manorial records.

One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Robert Scragg, who was mentioned in the Court Rolls of the Manor of Wakefield in Yorkshire in 1275. Another early reference is found in the Subsidy Rolls of Lancashire from 1332, which lists a John Scragg as a taxpayer.

The surname Scragg has also been associated with certain place names, particularly in the north of England. For example, there is a hamlet called Scragg in the township of Saddleworth, near Oldham in Lancashire. This place name may have influenced the spelling and pronunciation of the surname in that region.

Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the surname Scragg. One of the most famous was Sir William Scragg (c. 1618-1701), an English judge and politician who served as Lord Mayor of London in 1668. Another notable figure was William Scragg (1622-1660), an English soldier who fought for the Parliamentarians during the English Civil War.

Other individuals of note include John Scragg (c. 1620-1670), an English historian and author who wrote a chronicle of the Civil War, and Thomas Scragg (1688-1753), a British naval officer who served during the War of the Spanish Succession and the War of the Austrian Succession.

Additionally, the surname Scragg has been recorded in various spellings over the centuries, such as Scragge, Scraggy, and Scrage, reflecting regional variations and phonetic adaptations.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Scragg families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Scragg 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. Staffordshire leads with 266 Scraggs recorded in 1881 and an index of 8.31x.

County Total Index
Staffordshire 266 8.31x
Cheshire 247 11.80x
Lancashire 214 1.90x
Surrey 48 1.04x
Warwickshire 43 1.80x
Oxfordshire 35 5.98x
Middlesex 20 0.21x
Hampshire 16 0.82x
Derbyshire 13 0.88x
Worcestershire 13 1.05x
Northamptonshire 12 1.35x
Yorkshire 10 0.11x
Devon 6 0.30x
Kent 6 0.19x
Gloucestershire 5 0.27x
Buckinghamshire 4 0.70x
Essex 4 0.21x
Cumberland 3 0.37x
Shropshire 3 0.37x
Caernarfonshire 1 0.26x
Northumberland 1 0.07x
Somerset 1 0.07x
Suffolk 1 0.09x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Wolstanton in Staffordshire leads with 61 Scraggs recorded in 1881 and an index of 62.75x.

Place Total Index
Wolstanton 61 62.75x
Stoke Upon Trent 42 12.37x
Birmingham 27 3.39x
Macclesfield 26 27.95x
Manchester 26 5.14x
Monks Coppenhall 24 30.39x
Ashton Under Lyne 23 9.35x
Oxford St Ebbe 21 121.88x
Burslem 20 21.82x
Norton In Moors 20 118.06x
Wolstanton Oldcott 20 172.56x
Elton In Congleton 19 1061.45x
Crumpsall 16 60.33x
Salford 16 4.84x
Broughton In Salford 14 13.61x
Burland 14 657.28x
Wheelock 14 542.64x
Preston 13 4.32x
Smallthorne 13 109.43x
Aston 12 1.82x
Bollington In 12 64.41x
Buglawton 12 238.10x
Ipstones 12 260.87x
Wolstanton Chatterly 12 364.74x
Brackley St Peter 11 179.74x
Wolstanton Chesterton 11 67.24x
Liverpool 10 1.46x
Newton In Northwich 10 156.99x
Preston On Hill 10 549.45x
Kings Norton 9 8.11x
Sandbach 9 50.42x
Audley 8 25.26x
Burton Upon Trent 8 10.68x
Chorlton On Medlock 8 4.48x
Fifield 8 1000.00x
Henbury Cum Pexhall 8 563.38x
Odd Rode 8 77.15x
Poole 8 1666.67x
Birkenhead 7 4.20x
Dorking 7 22.57x
Epsom 7 31.10x
Nether Hallam 7 5.51x
Sutton In Macclesfield 7 32.23x
Walton On Hill 7 11.48x
Abinger 6 156.25x
Astley 6 69.12x
Bramshott 6 125.26x
Crondall 6 57.47x
Hulme 6 2.55x
Longdon 6 135.44x
Newton Abbot St Mary 6 36.23x
Reigate Foreign 6 12.00x
Rugeley 6 26.12x
Ardwick 5 4.93x
Burnley 5 5.28x
Camberwell 5 0.83x
Cheetham 5 5.96x
Church Lawton 5 186.57x
Euxton 5 134.05x
Heaton Norris 5 7.81x
Oldham 5 1.38x
Toxteth Park 5 1.31x
Wolstanton Thursfield 5 128.87x
Wolverhampton 5 2.03x
Beddington 4 22.38x
Bethnal Green London 4 0.97x
Castleton 4 3.56x
Chester St Michael 4 161.94x
Dutton 4 272.11x
Flixton 4 69.44x
Gawsworth 4 209.42x
Glossop Dale 4 5.75x
Kensington London 4 0.76x
Lambeth 4 0.48x
Newton 4 4.61x
Steeple Aston 4 181.00x
Stockport Etchells 4 89.69x
Westerham 4 53.62x
Widnes 4 4.93x
Wootton Wawen 4 53.12x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 77
Sarah 44
Elizabeth 37
Ann 31
Emma 16
Hannah 16
Jane 14
Martha 14
Emily 13
Alice 11
Annie 11
Eliza 10
Harriet 10
Maria 9
Edith 7
Ellen 7
Fanny 7
Florence 6
Margaret 6
Ada 5
Lucy 5
Louisa 4
Selina 4
Agnes 3
Beatrice 3
Betsy 3
Caroline 3
Charlotte 3
Harriett 3
Isabella 3
Julia 3
Ruth 3
Sophia 3
Anne 2
Catherine 2
Christiana 2
Francis 2
Gertrude 2
Helena 2
Jemima 2
Jessie 2
Louise 2
Phebe 2
Rachel 2
Betty 1
Birtha 1
Elizbth.A. 1
Elizth. 1
Ella 1
Theresa 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
William 62
John 60
James 42
Joseph 36
Samuel 30
Thomas 28
George 24
Charles 15
Henry 14
Arthur 12
Richard 12
Walter 12
Robert 9
Alfred 8
Edward 8
Edwin 7
Frank 7
Frederick 6
Peter 6
Albert 5
Ernest 4
Hugh 4
Harry 3
Herbert 3
Wm. 3
Aaron 2
Caleb 2
Daniel 2
David 2
Edmund 2
Frederic 2
Fredk. 2
Jabez 2
Job 2
Louis 2
Martin 2
Mary 2
Percy 2
Ralph 2
Allan 1
Charley 1
Collin 1
Cornellus 1
Francis 1
Fred 1
Fredk.R. 1
Fredk.W. 1
Jas.R. 1
Jesse 1
Joel 1

FAQ

Scragg surname: questions and answers

How common was the Scragg surname in 1881?

In 1881, 972 people were recorded with the Scragg surname. That placed it at #4,001 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Scragg surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 1,048 in 2016. That gives Scragg a modern rank of #5,561.

What does the Scragg surname mean?

A surname deriving from a person of scraggy or lean appearance.

What does the Scragg map show?

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