NameCensus.

UK surname

Shirt

In the 1881 census there were 675 people recorded with the Shirt surname, ranking it #5,339 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 472, ranked #10,433, down from #5,339 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Rochdale, Glossop and Silkstone. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Derbyshire Dales, Barnsley and High Peak.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Shirt is 783 in 1891. Compared with 1881, the name has fallen by 30.1%.

1881 census count

675

Ranked #5,339

Modern count

472

2016, ranked #10,433

Peak year

1891

783 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Shirt had 675 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #5,339 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 472 in 2016, ranked #10,433.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 783 in 1891.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Rural Amenity.

Shirt surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Shirt surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Shirt 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 490 #5,099
1861 historical 622 #4,302
1881 historical 675 #5,339
1891 historical 783 #5,126
1901 historical 748 #5,954
1911 historical 781 #5,568
1997 modern 531 #8,900
1998 modern 538 #9,073
1999 modern 532 #9,208
2000 modern 510 #9,485
2001 modern 491 #9,604
2002 modern 486 #9,833
2003 modern 484 #9,717
2004 modern 477 #9,833
2005 modern 471 #9,867
2006 modern 479 #9,788
2007 modern 479 #9,873
2008 modern 478 #9,977
2009 modern 484 #10,101
2010 modern 497 #10,111
2011 modern 492 #10,072
2012 modern 479 #10,176
2013 modern 492 #10,138
2014 modern 493 #10,191
2015 modern 479 #10,327
2016 modern 472 #10,433

Geography

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Where Shirts are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Rochdale, Glossop, Silkstone, Sheffield and Chapel-en-le-Frith. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Derbyshire Dales, Barnsley and High Peak. 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 Rochdale Lancashire
2 Glossop Derbyshire
3 Silkstone Yorkshire, West Riding
4 Sheffield Yorkshire, West Riding
5 Chapel-en-le-Frith Derbyshire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Derbyshire Dales 001 Derbyshire Dales
2 Barnsley 007 Barnsley
3 Barnsley 013 Barnsley
4 High Peak 013 High Peak
5 Barnsley 017 Barnsley

Forenames

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First names often paired with Shirt

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Shirt

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

Rural Amenity

Nationally, the Shirt surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Rural Amenity, within Suburbanites and Peri-Urbanities. This does not mean every Shirt 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 comprises older parents or retirees, with no resident dependent children, and with the lowest residential densities in this Supergroup. Predominantly UK-born, residents typically live in detached houses, although others do live in semi-detached and terraced properties. The level of multiple car ownership is the highest in this Supergroup. Most houses are owner occupied although social renting is also present. Many concentrations occur in high amenity rural locations, such as Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

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

Young Families and Mainstream Employment

Group

Social Rented Sector and Diverse Origins

Within London, Shirt 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

Shirt is most concentrated in decile 5 for access to healthy assets and hazards. This places the surname near the middle of the scale.

Lower deciles point towards weaker access to healthy assets or stronger exposure to local hazards. Higher deciles point towards stronger access and fewer hazards.

5
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Shirt falls in decile 1 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.

1
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

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

1881 census detail

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Shirt families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Shirt 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. Derbyshire leads with 180 Shirts recorded in 1881 and an index of 17.46x.

County Total Index
Derbyshire 180 17.46x
Yorkshire 177 2.71x
Lancashire 165 2.11x
Cheshire 72 4.95x
Middlesex 38 0.58x
Worcestershire 14 1.63x
Staffordshire 12 0.54x
Surrey 5 0.16x
Cornwall 2 0.27x
Hampshire 2 0.15x
Midlothian 2 0.23x
Cumberland 1 0.18x
Devon 1 0.07x
Essex 1 0.08x
Gloucestershire 1 0.08x
Shropshire 1 0.18x
Warwickshire 1 0.06x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Ashton Under Lyne in Lancashire leads with 58 Shirts recorded in 1881 and an index of 33.97x.

Place Total Index
Ashton Under Lyne 58 33.97x
Chapel En Le Frith 46 488.84x
Ecclesall Bierlow 42 31.65x
Disley Stanley 32 427.81x
Royton 29 121.34x
Nether Hallam 25 28.32x
Fairfield 19 275.76x
Barnsley 16 23.77x
Chinley Bugsworth 16 590.41x
Edale 16 2105.26x
Droylsden 15 58.85x
Hope 15 2000.00x
Crigglestone 14 222.93x
Dronfield 14 105.98x
Glossop Dale 13 26.93x
Stayley 13 78.27x
Radcliffe 12 31.86x
Cawthorne In Wortley 11 418.25x
Rowley Regis 11 17.76x
Ludworth 10 206.19x
St Pancras London 10 1.89x
Bethnal Green London 9 3.15x
Dukinfield 9 13.40x
Stourbridge 9 40.69x
Doncaster 8 16.78x
Manchester 8 2.28x
Openshaw 8 21.86x
Gorton 7 9.53x
Newton In Ashton Under 7 48.81x
South Hiendley 7 853.66x
Derby St Alkmund 6 19.42x
Peak Forest 6 535.71x
Sheffield 6 2.89x
Buxton 5 57.34x
Chadderton 5 13.09x
Hunslet 5 4.91x
Northfield 5 30.66x
Tinsley 5 219.30x
Wingfield South 5 181.16x
Attercliffe Cum Darnall 4 6.58x
Derby All Sts 4 46.46x
Islington London 4 0.63x
Liverpool 4 0.84x
Liversedge 4 13.77x
Stockport 4 5.35x
Yeardsley Cum Whaley 4 139.37x
Ardwick 3 4.26x
Hammersmith London 3 1.85x
Haughton 3 26.32x
Hulme 3 1.84x
Kensington London 3 0.82x
Mirfield 3 8.38x
Newington 3 1.23x
North Meols 3 3.92x
Barugh 2 36.30x
Brightside Bierlow 2 1.56x
Butterworth 2 10.50x
Ecclesfield 2 4.18x
Edinburgh St Cuthberts 2 0.56x
Fowey 2 58.48x
Halifax 2 2.09x
Hipperholme Cum 2 6.98x
Knottingley 2 17.44x
Lambeth 2 0.35x
Pocklington 2 32.47x
Redcar 2 38.61x
St George Bloomsbury 2 5.29x
Tintwistle 2 25.74x
Whiston 2 63.69x
Audley 1 4.55x
Bradford 1 0.63x
Chorlton Cum Hardy 1 19.31x
Chorlton On Medlock 1 0.81x
Derby St Peter 1 3.05x
Oldham 1 0.40x
Shoreditch London 1 0.35x
Stapleton 1 4.08x
Staveley 1 5.46x
West Derby 1 0.44x
Wortley In Bramley 1 1.94x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 48
Elizabeth 30
Sarah 30
Ann 23
Hannah 20
Annie 15
Ellen 13
Jane 11
Harriet 9
Martha 9
Eliza 8
Emily 8
Emma 8
Edith 6
Charlotte 5
Fanny 5
Maria 5
Alice 4
Bertha 4
Clara 4
Esther 4
Lucy 4
Rachel 4
Sophia 4
Harriett 3
Isabella 3
Louisa 3
Margaret 3
Ruth 3
Agnes 2
Amelia 2
Caroline 2
Dorcas 2
Elizth. 2
Flora 2
Lily 2
Nancy 2
Naomi 2
Olive 2
Phoebe 2
Anne 1
Catherine 1
Ephey 1
Florence 1
Laura 1
Lenora 1
Lettuce 1
Lizzie 1
Louria 1
Susanna 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
John 35
George 34
William 30
James 27
Joseph 20
Thomas 15
Charles 12
Henry 12
Samuel 12
Richard 8
Robert 8
Benjamin 5
Herbert 5
Walter 5
Alfred 4
Arthur 4
Edwin 4
Fred 4
Frederick 4
Harry 4
Isaac 4
Daniel 3
Edward 3
Frank 3
Benjn. 2
David 2
Ernest 2
Francis 2
Joe 2
Sam 2
Stephen 2
Theodore 2
Wright 2
Elias 1
Elizabeth 1
Ellis 1
Erasmus 1
Fredk.A. 1
Gale 1
Geo. 1
Harris 1
Herry 1
Hy. 1
Jos 1
Jossua 1
Percy 1
Peter 1
Ross 1
Rowland 1
Wrong 1

FAQ

Shirt surname: questions and answers

How common was the Shirt surname in 1881?

In 1881, 675 people were recorded with the Shirt surname. That placed it at #5,339 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Shirt surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 472 in 2016. That gives Shirt a modern rank of #10,433.

What does the Shirt map show?

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