NameCensus.

UK surname

Spring

An English topographic surname for someone who lived near a spring or a natural well.

In the 1881 census there were 1,450 people recorded with the Spring surname, ranking it #2,873 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 1,836, ranked #3,455, down from #2,873 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff, London parishes and St Pancras. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include East Northamptonshire, Stroud and Central Bedfordshire.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Spring is 1,954 in 1999. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 26.6%.

1881 census count

1,450

Ranked #2,873

Modern count

1,836

2016, ranked #3,455

Peak year

1999

1,954 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Spring had 1,450 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #2,873 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 1,836 in 2016, ranked #3,455.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 1,879 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Challenged Communities.

Spring surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Spring surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Spring 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 983 #2,839
1861 historical 1,305 #2,185
1881 historical 1,450 #2,873
1891 historical 1,597 #2,786
1901 historical 1,669 #3,087
1911 historical 1,879 #2,629
1997 modern 1,863 #3,232
1998 modern 1,916 #3,269
1999 modern 1,954 #3,234
2000 modern 1,892 #3,314
2001 modern 1,855 #3,308
2002 modern 1,897 #3,316
2003 modern 1,838 #3,336
2004 modern 1,846 #3,326
2005 modern 1,785 #3,392
2006 modern 1,801 #3,373
2007 modern 1,816 #3,374
2008 modern 1,815 #3,410
2009 modern 1,853 #3,429
2010 modern 1,918 #3,388
2011 modern 1,851 #3,447
2012 modern 1,814 #3,454
2013 modern 1,852 #3,445
2014 modern 1,881 #3,428
2015 modern 1,839 #3,470
2016 modern 1,836 #3,455

Geography

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Where Springs are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff, London parishes, St Pancras and Northampton St Giles, Northampton St Sepulchre, Northampton Priory. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to East Northamptonshire, Stroud, Central Bedfordshire and Swale. 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 Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff Gloucestershire
2 London parishes London 1
3 London parishes London 3
4 St Pancras London (North Districts)
5 Northampton St Giles, Northampton St Sepulchre, Northampton Priory Northamptonshire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 East Northamptonshire 009 East Northamptonshire
2 Stroud 004 Stroud
3 East Northamptonshire 008 East Northamptonshire
4 Central Bedfordshire 006 Central Bedfordshire
5 Swale 010 Swale

Forenames

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First names often paired with Spring

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Spring

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

Baseline UK

Group

Challenged Communities

Nationally, the Spring surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Challenged Communities, within Baseline UK. This does not mean every Spring household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

Residents of these neighbourhoods typically live in households with dependent children, and there are fewer-than-average residents of normal retirement age or over. Identification with ethnic minorities, particularly Black, or Mixed or Multiple ethnicities is common. The rate of Christian religious affiliation is low. Housing predominantly consists of semi-detached houses, along with a significant number of terraced properties and flats. Overcrowded social housing is common, and private renting occurs at average UK levels. Those in employment work mainly in caring leisure and other services; process, plant and machine operation; or elementary occupations. Unemployment is high, and few individuals have degree level qualifications. Many of these neighbourhoods occur in commuter towns or less accessible areas of larger towns and cities.

Wider pattern

This Supergroup exemplifies the broad base to the UK’s social structure, encompassing as it does the average or modal levels of many neighbourhood characteristics, including all housing tenures, a range of levels of educational attainment and religious affiliations, and a variety of pre-retirement age structures. Yet, in combination, these mixes are each distinctive of the parts of the UK. Overall, terraced houses and flats are the most prevalent, as is employment in intermediate or low-skilled occupations. However, this Supergroup is also characterised by above average levels of unemployment and lower levels of use of English as the main language. Many neighbourhoods occur in south London and the UK’s other major urban centres.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Young Families and Mainstream Employment

Group

Social Rented Sector and Diverse Origins

Within London, Spring 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

Spring 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

Spring falls in decile 8 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.

8
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

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

Meaning and origin of Spring

The surname SPRING is of Anglo-Saxon origin, deriving from the Old English word "spring" meaning a source of water or a stream. It is believed to have originated in England during the medieval period, likely in areas with notable springs or streams.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the SPRING surname can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which documented landowners in England following the Norman Conquest. This suggests the name had already become established by the 11th century.

The surname may have also been occupational, referring to someone who lived near a spring or worked as a keeper or maintainer of a spring. Over time, the name evolved to become a hereditary surname passed down through generations.

In the 13th century, records show a Robert de la Sprynge in Somerset, England, in 1243. The "de la" prefix indicates the name was originally a locational surname, referring to someone from a place with a spring.

Notable individuals with the SPRING surname include Francis Spring (1701-1769), an English clergyman and academic who served as the President of Pembroke College, Oxford. Another was Gardiner Spring (1785-1873), an influential American Presbyterian minister and writer from Massachusetts.

In the 19th century, George Spring (1814-1895) was a British Royal Navy officer and explorer who participated in Arctic expeditions. His contemporary, Thomas Spring (1835-1909), was a British politician and Member of Parliament for East Suffolk.

One of the earliest recorded instances in Scotland is Archibald Spring (born around 1610), a merchant and magistrate in the town of Paisley. This suggests the surname had spread to other parts of the British Isles by the early modern period.

Throughout its history, the SPRING surname has maintained its connection to the natural feature of a spring or stream, reflecting the geographical origins and occupations of its earliest bearers.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Spring families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Spring 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 335 Springs recorded in 1881 and an index of 2.36x.

County Total Index
Middlesex 335 2.36x
Surrey 105 1.52x
Gloucestershire 103 3.70x
Lancashire 93 0.55x
Lincolnshire 90 3.97x
Bedfordshire 63 8.58x
Cambridgeshire 56 6.23x
Northamptonshire 55 4.12x
Essex 50 1.79x
Yorkshire 47 0.33x
Buckinghamshire 37 4.31x
Monmouthshire 36 3.51x
Sussex 36 1.51x
Kent 33 0.68x
Warwickshire 32 0.89x
Huntingdonshire 30 10.65x
Suffolk 26 1.51x
Hampshire 25 0.86x
Leicestershire 25 1.59x
Aberdeenshire 20 1.52x
Hertfordshire 19 1.94x
Devon 18 0.61x
Glamorgan 16 0.65x
Oxfordshire 16 1.83x
Cheshire 14 0.45x
Durham 11 0.26x
Rutland 10 9.60x
Berkshire 9 0.85x
Derbyshire 9 0.41x
Nottinghamshire 7 0.37x
Staffordshire 6 0.13x
Lanarkshire 4 0.09x
Cornwall 3 0.19x
Dorset 2 0.21x
Herefordshire 2 0.34x
Kincardineshire 2 1.16x
Norfolk 2 0.09x
Royal Navy 2 1.18x
Somerset 2 0.09x
Isle of Man 1 0.38x
Morayshire 1 0.45x
Worcestershire 1 0.05x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Islington London in Middlesex leads with 50 Springs recorded in 1881 and an index of 3.64x.

Place Total Index
Islington London 50 3.64x
Bristol St Philip Jacob 36 13.75x
Clapham 31 17.48x
St Pancras London 31 2.72x
Liverpool 23 2.25x
Uxbridge 23 141.89x
Ballingdon Cum Brundon 21 593.22x
Irthlingborough 20 152.91x
Northampton Priory St 20 24.98x
Camberwell 19 2.10x
Kensington London 19 2.41x
Lambeth 19 1.54x
Painswick 19 96.59x
Sandy 19 146.72x
Holy Trinity 17 5.03x
Chatteris 16 69.81x
Hackney London 16 2.01x
Hillingdon 16 35.38x
Poplar London 16 5.98x
Deptford St Paul 14 3.75x
Sculcoates 14 6.28x
Huntingdon St Mary 13 184.66x
Leicester St Margaret 13 3.39x
March 13 43.22x
Westoning 13 407.52x
Aston 12 1.22x
Paddington London 12 2.30x
Shoreditch London 12 1.95x
Toxteth Park 11 1.93x
West Ham 11 1.78x
Birmingham 10 0.84x
Caldicot 10 147.06x
Cheltenham 10 4.66x
Finchley 10 18.39x
Greetham 10 353.36x
Leamington Priors 10 11.36x
Macclesfield 10 7.19x
Ridgmont 10 276.24x
Stoke Poges 10 95.60x
Bedford St Paul 9 17.87x
Everton 9 1.68x
Gedney 9 97.19x
Little Bolton 9 4.16x
Llanvaches 9 833.33x
Redbourn 9 84.27x
St George Hanover 9 4.86x
Swansea Town 9 4.44x
Walton On Hill 9 9.87x
Woodford 9 28.40x
Aberdeen St Nicholas 8 3.26x
Brighton 8 1.66x
Great Grimsby 8 5.56x
Moulton 8 107.82x
Newington 8 1.53x
Portsea 8 1.40x
Soham 8 41.39x
St George Martyr 8 33.46x
St Marylebone London 8 1.06x
St Woollos 8 6.99x
Tattershall Thorpe 8 533.33x
Wycombe 8 12.52x
Battersea 7 1.34x
Chelsea London 7 1.64x
Gloucester St Nicholas 7 54.35x
Great Catworth 7 239.73x
Hagworthingham 7 297.87x
Hampstead London 7 3.17x
Iver 7 63.35x
Mumby 7 224.36x
Plymouth St Andrew 7 3.08x
Pyrton 7 254.55x
Shepperton 7 111.82x
Skegness 7 107.69x
Southfleet 7 156.25x
Southwark St George Martyr 7 2.45x
Sudbury All Sts 7 133.08x
Sudbury St Peter 7 73.92x
Tottenham 7 3.10x
Westminster St 7 13.39x
Willesden 7 5.24x

Top female names

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

Top male names

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

Name Count
William 83
John 60
Thomas 48
Henry 43
James 41
Charles 40
George 38
Joseph 21
Frederick 20
Alfred 19
Samuel 18
Arthur 17
Harry 14
Walter 14
Albert 13
Robert 12
Edward 10
Frank 10
Richard 10
Edwin 9
Ernest 8
Fred 7
Herbert 7
Francis 6
Jas. 5
Tom 5
Benjamin 4
Fredrick 4
Thos. 4
Andrew 3
David 3
Leonard 3
Sidney 3
Wm. 3
Auther 2
Chas. 2
Cornelius 2
Daniel 2
Ebenezer 2
Harold 2
Jesse 2
Jonathan 2
Josiah 2
Martin 2
Medford 2
Paul 2
Percy 2
Philip 2
Stephen 2
Edmund 1

FAQ

Spring surname: questions and answers

How common was the Spring surname in 1881?

In 1881, 1,450 people were recorded with the Spring surname. That placed it at #2,873 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Spring surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 1,836 in 2016. That gives Spring a modern rank of #3,455.

What does the Spring surname mean?

An English topographic surname for someone who lived near a spring or a natural well.

What does the Spring map show?

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