NameCensus.

UK surname

Skillings

A habitational surname denoting someone from a place named for dwellings or buildings.

In the 1881 census there were 114 people recorded with the Skillings surname, ranking it #18,324 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 183, ranked #20,813, down from #18,324 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to London parishes, Monkwearmouth and Thriplow. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Rossendale, King's Lynn and West Norfolk and South Holland.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Skillings is 233 in 2001. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 60.5%.

1881 census count

114

Ranked #18,324

Modern count

183

2016, ranked #20,813

Peak year

2001

233 bearers

Map years

7

1881 to 2016

Key insights

  • Skillings had 114 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #18,324 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 183 in 2016, ranked #20,813.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 190 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Inner Suburbs and Small Town Living.

Skillings surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Skillings surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Skillings 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 66 #21,617
1861 historical 49 #27,768
1881 historical 114 #18,324
1891 historical 100 #24,045
1901 historical 126 #19,970
1911 historical 190 #15,438
1997 modern 222 #16,508
1998 modern 226 #16,800
1999 modern 219 #17,203
2000 modern 227 #16,792
2001 modern 233 #16,260
2002 modern 223 #17,099
2003 modern 211 #17,513
2004 modern 198 #18,308
2005 modern 194 #18,512
2006 modern 192 #18,753
2007 modern 189 #19,146
2008 modern 184 #19,666
2009 modern 190 #19,656
2010 modern 184 #20,521
2011 modern 182 #20,495
2012 modern 179 #20,679
2013 modern 185 #20,575
2014 modern 182 #20,958
2015 modern 177 #21,220
2016 modern 183 #20,813

Geography

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Where Skillings' are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around London parishes, Monkwearmouth, Thriplow, Baconsthorpe and Edgefield. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Rossendale, King's Lynn and West Norfolk and South Holland. 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 3
2 Monkwearmouth Durham
3 Thriplow Hertfordshire
4 Baconsthorpe Norfolk
5 Edgefield Norfolk

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Rossendale 001 Rossendale
2 Rossendale 004 Rossendale
3 King's Lynn and West Norfolk 002 King's Lynn and West Norfolk
4 South Holland 011 South Holland
5 King's Lynn and West Norfolk 010 King's Lynn and West Norfolk

Forenames

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First names often paired with Skillings

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Skillings

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

Inner Suburbs and Small Town Living

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

Read profile summary

Group profile

Families with resident dependent children (but not students) are common. Established family groups and White ethnicity predominate, as do individuals born in the UK. They are more likely than the Supergroup average to have been resident in their terraced, semi-detached, or detached houses for more than one year. Levels of multiple car ownership are high. Properties are owned and typically have surplus living space. Associate professionals and administrative occupations are prevalent, and parents are likely to be in middle age or approaching retirement. Educational attainment is above the Supergroup average. Scattered developments and concentrations are found in many small towns.

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

The Greater London Mix

Group

Social Rented Sector Professional Support Workers

Within London, Skillings 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

Skillings is most concentrated in decile 6 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.

6
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Skillings 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 Skillings 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 Skillings, not the ethnicity of every person with the surname.

Meaning and origin of Skillings

The surname Skillings has its origins in England, and it is believed to have emerged in the late medieval period, around the 13th or 14th century. The name is derived from the Old English word "scilling," which means a shilling, a former English coin. It is likely that the name was initially given to someone who worked with or dealt in shillings, such as a tax collector or a moneylender.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Skillings can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire from the year 1268, where a certain Robert Skillings is mentioned. The name also appears in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire in 1327, where a John Skyllyng is listed.

During the 16th and 17th centuries, the name Skillings became more widespread across various regions of England. In 1594, a William Skillings was recorded in the parish records of St. Mary Abchurch in London. Another notable mention is found in the Hearth Tax Rolls of Oxfordshire from 1665, where a Thomas Skillings is listed as a resident of the village of Chinnor.

As for notable individuals bearing the Skillings surname, one of the earliest was Sir John Skillings (c. 1540-1610), an English merchant and philanthropist who served as the Lord Mayor of London in 1595. He was a member of the Worshipful Company of Mercers and was known for his charitable contributions to various institutions.

Another significant figure was Walter Skillings (1647-1720), an English Quaker minister and author who was born in Dorset. He wrote several religious works, including "A Testimony Concerning the Life and Death of Christopher Holder" (1688) and "An Exhortation to Youth" (1692).

In the 18th century, John Skillings (1735-1809) was a notable English architect who designed several churches and public buildings in London and the surrounding areas. One of his most famous works was the Church of St. Martin-in-the-Fields in London, which he rebuilt in the neoclassical style in 1726.

Moving to the 19th century, Henry Skillings (1812-1879) was an English artist and engraver who became known for his landscape paintings and etchings of rural scenes in England and Wales.

Finally, in the 20th century, Robert Skillings (1910-1986) was a British mathematician and statistician who made significant contributions to the field of multivariate analysis. He worked as a professor at the University of Cambridge and published several influential papers on statistical theory.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Skillings families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Skillings 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. Norfolk leads with 49 Skillings' recorded in 1881 and an index of 28.66x.

County Total Index
Norfolk 49 28.66x
Durham 29 8.77x
Berkshire 9 10.78x
Northumberland 9 5.44x
Hampshire 5 2.19x
Middlesex 5 0.45x
Yorkshire 4 0.36x
Lancashire 2 0.15x
Cambridgeshire 1 1.42x
Suffolk 1 0.74x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Bishopwearmouth in Durham leads with 15 Skillings' recorded in 1881 and an index of 52.84x.

Place Total Index
Bishopwearmouth 15 52.84x
Baconsthorpe 14 12727.27x
Monkwearmouth Shore 9 139.32x
Sandhurst 9 555.56x
Wallsend 8 152.38x
Edgefield 6 3333.33x
Aldershot 5 65.53x
Kyo 5 320.51x
Guestwick 4 5714.29x
Holt 4 689.66x
Holy Trinity St Mary 4 238.10x
Saxthorpe 4 3076.92x
Wiveton 4 5714.29x
St Pancras London 3 3.35x
North Tuddenham 2 1538.46x
West Winch 2 1250.00x
Wigan 2 10.85x
Aylsham 1 98.04x
Briningham 1 1000.00x
Brinton 1 1666.67x
Briston 1 312.50x
Chelsea London 1 2.99x
Elvenden 1 833.33x
Great Snoring 1 555.56x
Hindolveston 1 400.00x
Hunworth 1 1250.00x
Norwich St Peter Mancroft 1 116.28x
Paddington London 1 2.45x
South Lynn 1 51.81x
Tynemouth 1 11.29x
Wisbech St Peter 1 28.33x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Elizabeth 7
Mary 7
Ann 6
Sarah 6
Alice 2
Annie 2
Eliza 2
Emma 2
Isabella 2
Louisa 2
Margaret 2
Maria 2
Agnes 1
Amelia 1
Beatrice 1
Edith 1
Elizth. 1
Emily 1
Harriett 1
Laura 1
Leah 1
Martha 1
Rosette 1
Susanah 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
James 8
John 8
George 5
Thomas 5
Edmund 4
Henry 4
Joseph 3
Samuel 3
William 3
Alfred 2
Allen 1
Andrew 1
Arthur 1
Benjamin 1
Benjiman 1
Bertram 1
Charles 1
Edmond 1
Elisha 1
Fredk. 1
Robert 1
Robt. 1
Shadrack 1
Thos. 1
Walter 1

FAQ

Skillings surname: questions and answers

How common was the Skillings surname in 1881?

In 1881, 114 people were recorded with the Skillings surname. That placed it at #18,324 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Skillings surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 183 in 2016. That gives Skillings a modern rank of #20,813.

What does the Skillings surname mean?

A habitational surname denoting someone from a place named for dwellings or buildings.

What does the Skillings map show?

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