NameCensus.

UK surname

Sutor

An occupational surname derived from the Latin word 'sutor', meaning shoemaker or cobbler.

In the 1881 census there were 70 people recorded with the Sutor surname, ranking it #23,670 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 157, ranked #23,006, up from #23,670 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff, Dudley and Drainie. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Redditch, Stratford-on-Avon and Birmingham.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Sutor is 162 in 2013. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 124.3%.

1881 census count

70

Ranked #23,670

Modern count

157

2016, ranked #23,006

Peak year

2013

162 bearers

Map years

5

1901 to 2016

Key insights

  • Sutor had 70 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #23,670 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 157 in 2016, ranked #23,006.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 109 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Rural Amenity.

Sutor surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Sutor surname density by area, 2016 modern.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Sutor 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 47 #24,810
1861 historical 79 #23,702
1881 historical 70 #23,670
1891 historical 74 #27,538
1901 historical 104 #22,310
1911 historical 109 #21,611
1997 modern 143 #21,761
1998 modern 142 #22,406
1999 modern 144 #22,405
2000 modern 150 #21,781
2001 modern 151 #21,375
2002 modern 145 #22,392
2003 modern 147 #21,977
2004 modern 139 #22,891
2005 modern 130 #23,848
2006 modern 128 #24,267
2007 modern 131 #24,282
2008 modern 137 #23,883
2009 modern 148 #23,141
2010 modern 156 #22,886
2011 modern 156 #22,690
2012 modern 161 #22,157
2013 modern 162 #22,433
2014 modern 162 #22,624
2015 modern 156 #23,106
2016 modern 157 #23,006

Geography

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Where Sutors are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff, Dudley, Drainie, Edinburgh and Fraserburgh. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Redditch, Stratford-on-Avon and Birmingham. 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 Dudley Staffordshire
3 Drainie Elgin
4 Edinburgh Edinburgh
5 Fraserburgh Aberdeen

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Redditch 012 Redditch
2 Redditch 003 Redditch
3 Redditch 013 Redditch
4 Stratford-on-Avon 006 Stratford-on-Avon
5 Birmingham 026 Birmingham

Forenames

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First names often paired with Sutor

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Sutor

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Sutor, 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 Sutor surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Rural Amenity, within Suburbanites and Peri-Urbanities. This does not mean every Sutor 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

Professional Employment and Family Lifecycles

Group

Inner London Working Professionals

Within London, Sutor is most associated with areas classed as Inner London Working Professionals, part of Professional Employment and Family Lifecycles. 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

These primarily Inner London neighbourhoods are more densely populated than the Supergroup average. Residents have a younger over-all age profile than the Supergroup as a whole, and are less likely to be owner occupiers. Full time employment is more common than elsewhere in the Supergroup and multiple car ownership is uncommon. Chinese and non-EU-born European migrants are less in evidence than elsewhere in the Supergroup.

Wider London pattern

These neighbourhoods house people of all ages, predominantly of White British or European extraction. Resident turnover is low. Religious affiliation is less common than average and tends to be Christian if expressed. Homeownership, typically of terraced houses, is common but use of the social rented sector is not. Employment is typically in professional, managerial and associate professional or technical occupations. There are few full-time students. Level 4 qualifications are common. More households lack dependent children than have them which, considered alongside low levels of crowding and over-all age structure, indicates that many households may be post child-rearing and in late middle age. Incidence of disability is low, as is residence in communal establishments.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Sutor is most concentrated in decile 1 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.

1
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Sutor falls in decile 5 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.

5
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Sutor is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of 60-70 mbit/s.

The scale below places that band in context, from slower local download bands through to faster ones.

9
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - British

This describes the area pattern most associated with Sutor, not the ethnicity of every person with the surname.

Meaning and origin of Sutor

The surname SUTOR is of Scottish origin, derived from the Middle English word "soutar" or "souter", meaning a shoemaker or cobbler. This occupational surname emerged in the late 12th century and was particularly prominent in regions of Scotland such as Angus, Perthshire, and the Lothians.

The name is thought to have its roots in the Old English word "sutere", which itself stems from the Latin "sutor", meaning a shoemaker or one who stitches and repairs shoes. The earliest recorded spelling of the surname in Scotland can be found in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, which lists Adam le Soutere from Berwickshire.

During the medieval period, the SUTOR name appeared in various Scottish records and charters. In 1399, a certain John Sutoure is mentioned in the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland. The Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of landowners in England compiled in 1086, does not include any individuals with the SUTOR surname, suggesting that the name originated primarily in Scotland.

Notable individuals bearing the SUTOR surname throughout history include John Sutor (c. 1420-1480), a Scottish theologian and philosopher who taught at the University of St Andrews. Another prominent figure was Sir William Sutor (1520-1598), a Scottish merchant and philanthropist who served as Lord Provost of Edinburgh from 1592 to 1598.

In the 17th century, Robert Sutor (1609-1672) was a Scottish minister and author who wrote extensively on religious subjects. A century later, James Sutor (1770-1835) was a Scottish architect known for designing several churches and public buildings in Edinburgh and the surrounding areas.

One of the most famous individuals with the SUTOR surname was Andrew Sutor (1828-1888), a Scottish-born engineer and inventor who played a crucial role in the development of early incandescent light bulbs and electrical systems. He worked closely with Thomas Edison and held several patents related to electric lighting and power distribution.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Sutor families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Sutor 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. Morayshire leads with 18 Sutors recorded in 1881 and an index of 174.76x.

County Total Index
Morayshire 18 174.76x
Worcestershire 15 17.32x
Aberdeenshire 7 11.40x
Lancashire 6 0.76x
Warwickshire 6 3.59x
Northamptonshire 5 8.02x
Middlesex 3 0.45x
Sussex 2 1.79x
Cheshire 1 0.68x
Gloucestershire 1 0.77x
Hampshire 1 0.74x
Inverness-shire 1 5.05x
Leicestershire 1 1.36x
Nairnshire 1 49.51x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Dudley in Worcestershire leads with 10 Sutors recorded in 1881 and an index of 94.97x.

Place Total Index
Dudley 10 94.97x
Knockando 9 2142.86x
Fraserburgh 7 404.62x
Studley 6 833.33x
Cheetham 5 85.18x
Northampton St Giles 5 210.08x
Rothes 4 800.00x
St Andrews Lhanbryd 4 1250.00x
Worcester All Sts 3 600.00x
St Marylebone London 2 5.65x
Ardclach 1 400.00x
Bodiam 1 1428.57x
Cheadle 1 35.71x
Cheltenham 1 9.97x
Elgin 1 50.00x
Elton 1 36.76x
Inverness 1 20.08x
Limehouse London 1 13.74x
Lutterworth 1 222.22x
Newport 1 135.14x
Norton By Kempsey 1 526.32x
Redditch 1 56.82x
Walberton 1 714.29x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Alice 2
Amy 2
Ann 2
Emma 2
Florence 2
Sarah 2
Annie 1
Bessie 1
Cathatine 1
Elisabeth 1
Eliza 1
Elizabeth 1
Emily 1
Fanny 1
Frances 1
Jane 1
Kezia 1
Louisa 1
Martha 1
Mary 1
Terese 1

Top male names

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

Top occupations

Occupational titles are kept as recorded and later transcribed, so related jobs, spelling variants and mistakes stay separate. Scholar was the census term for a child in education. That means the other rows often tell you more about adult work in Sutor households.

FAQ

Sutor surname: questions and answers

How common was the Sutor surname in 1881?

In 1881, 70 people were recorded with the Sutor surname. That placed it at #23,670 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Sutor surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 157 in 2016. That gives Sutor a modern rank of #23,006.

What does the Sutor surname mean?

An occupational surname derived from the Latin word 'sutor', meaning shoemaker or cobbler.

What does the Sutor map show?

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