NameCensus.

UK surname

Tabor

An English occupational surname referring to a drummer or one who plays the tabor, a small drum.

In the 1881 census there were 657 people recorded with the Tabor surname, ranking it #5,456 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 874, ranked #6,431, down from #5,456 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Stourton, Cherry Hinton and St Leonard Shoreditch. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include South Cambridgeshire, South Somerset and Rochford.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Tabor is 911 in 2014. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 33.0%.

1881 census count

657

Ranked #5,456

Modern count

874

2016, ranked #6,431

Peak year

2014

911 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Tabor had 657 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #5,456 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 874 in 2016, ranked #6,431.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 769 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Rural Amenity.

Tabor surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Tabor surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Tabor 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 479 #5,198
1861 historical 350 #7,295
1881 historical 657 #5,456
1891 historical 531 #7,061
1901 historical 760 #5,877
1911 historical 769 #5,636
1997 modern 811 #6,466
1998 modern 851 #6,432
1999 modern 866 #6,389
2000 modern 858 #6,406
2001 modern 818 #6,528
2002 modern 843 #6,506
2003 modern 817 #6,541
2004 modern 841 #6,399
2005 modern 827 #6,432
2006 modern 832 #6,412
2007 modern 837 #6,454
2008 modern 860 #6,362
2009 modern 910 #6,205
2010 modern 894 #6,424
2011 modern 887 #6,382
2012 modern 863 #6,446
2013 modern 895 #6,370
2014 modern 911 #6,316
2015 modern 890 #6,372
2016 modern 874 #6,431

Geography

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Where Tabors are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Stourton, Cherry Hinton, St Leonard Shoreditch, London parishes and Peterborough St John the Baptist. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to South Cambridgeshire, South Somerset, Rochford, Bridgend and Cambridge. 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 Stourton Wiltshire
2 Cherry Hinton Cambridgeshire
3 St Leonard Shoreditch London (East Districts)
4 London parishes London 3
5 Peterborough St John the Baptist Northamptonshire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 South Cambridgeshire 011 South Cambridgeshire
2 South Somerset 002 South Somerset
3 Rochford 010 Rochford
4 Bridgend 002 Bridgend
5 Cambridge 011 Cambridge

Forenames

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First names often paired with Tabor

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Tabor

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

European Enclaves

Within London, Tabor is most associated with areas classed as European Enclaves, 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

Many residents of these accessible neighbourhoods have wide-ranging non-UK European origins. Typically residing in privately rented flats, many residents live alone and are beyond normal retirement age. There are more students than elsewhere in the Supergroup, some of which live in communal establishments. Household residents are often drawn from different ethnic groups.

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

Tabor 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

Tabor falls in decile 6 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.

6
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

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

Meaning and origin of Tabor

The surname Tabor originated in England, with records dating back to the late 11th century. It is derived from the Old English word "tabor," which referred to a small drum used in medieval times. The name likely originated as an occupational surname for a drummer or drummer-maker.

In the Domesday Book of 1086, a record of landowners in England compiled by order of William the Conqueror, there are several entries for individuals with the surname Tabor or similar spellings, such as Taborere or Taborour. These early records suggest the name was already established in various parts of England by the late 11th century.

One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Tabor was Robert le Taborur, who was mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire in 1170. The Pipe Rolls were medieval financial records kept by the English Exchequer.

In the 13th century, the surname Tabor appeared in various forms, including Taborur, Tabborer, and Taburrer, reflecting the variations in spelling common during that period. Some early bearers of the name included William le Taburer, mentioned in the Curia Regis Rolls of Lincolnshire in 1207, and Henry le Tabborer, recorded in the Assize Rolls of Warwickshire in 1279.

The surname Tabor may also have derived from place names, such as Tabor Hill in Buckinghamshire or Tabor Manor in Gloucestershire. In these cases, the name likely referred to someone who lived near or was associated with these locations.

Notable individuals with the surname Tabor throughout history include:

1. John Tabor (c. 1370-1450), an English landowner and Member of Parliament for Somerset in the 15th century. 2. Sir Robert Tabor (c. 1500-1558), an English merchant and Lord Mayor of London in 1557. 3. William Tabor (c. 1520-1593), an English Protestant clergyman who served as Dean of St. Asaph's Cathedral in Wales. 4. Henry Tabor (1584-1654), an English colonist and one of the founders of the town of Taunton, Massachusetts, in the early 17th century. 5. Francis Tabor (1769-1835), an English Quaker and abolitionist who worked to end the slave trade in the British Empire.

While the surname Tabor has its roots in medieval England, it has since spread to other parts of the world, carried by migration and immigration over the centuries.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Tabor families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Tabor 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. Cambridgeshire leads with 100 Tabors recorded in 1881 and an index of 24.63x.

County Total Index
Cambridgeshire 100 24.63x
Middlesex 88 1.37x
Essex 68 5.37x
Wiltshire 62 10.94x
Surrey 42 1.34x
Hampshire 37 2.82x
Somerset 36 3.49x
Northamptonshire 32 5.31x
Kent 28 1.28x
Lincolnshire 19 1.85x
Warwickshire 18 1.11x
Lancashire 15 0.20x
Yorkshire 14 0.22x
Huntingdonshire 9 7.07x
Berkshire 8 1.66x
Cheshire 7 0.49x
Dorset 7 1.66x
Sussex 7 0.65x
Buckinghamshire 6 1.55x
Devon 6 0.45x
Glamorgan 6 0.54x
Lanarkshire 6 0.29x
Leicestershire 6 0.84x
Shropshire 5 0.90x
Oxfordshire 4 1.01x
Suffolk 4 0.51x
Worcestershire 4 0.48x
Gloucestershire 3 0.24x
Norfolk 3 0.30x
Angus 2 0.34x
Derbyshire 2 0.20x
Hertfordshire 2 0.45x
Cornwall 1 0.14x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Cherry Hinton in Cambridgeshire leads with 48 Tabors recorded in 1881 and an index of 2513.09x.

Place Total Index
Cherry Hinton 48 2513.09x
Peterborough 22 50.41x
Shoreditch London 22 7.92x
St Andrewthe Less 21 45.28x
Stourton 19 1557.38x
Islington London 17 2.74x
Fugglestone St Peter 11 491.07x
Grantchester 11 434.78x
Salford 11 4.92x
Lambeth 10 1.79x
Penton Grafton 10 980.39x
Wivenhoe 10 199.20x
Battersea 9 3.82x
Cheam 9 269.46x
Hinxton 9 1200.00x
Kensington London 9 2.53x
West Ham 9 3.22x
Yaxley 9 302.01x
Brightlingsea 8 110.65x
Pinchbeck 8 121.77x
St Helens 8 83.77x
Bishopstone 7 259.26x
Leamington 7 65.36x
North Barrow 7 2692.31x
Bocking 6 78.84x
Brighton 6 2.75x
Harlow 6 110.09x
Leamington Priors 6 15.09x
Leicester St Margaret 6 3.46x
Lewisham 6 5.15x
Little Chart 6 983.61x
Maryhill 6 14.79x
North Cadbury 6 304.57x
St Martin In Fields 6 15.64x
St Pancras London 6 1.16x
Wombwell 6 32.40x
Armley 5 17.85x
Boston 5 16.08x
Bourn 5 60.39x
Britford 5 133.69x
Chester St Oswald 5 19.52x
Colchester St Mary At 5 111.61x
Horsemonden 5 156.74x
Hougham 5 38.46x
Milborne Port 5 121.07x
Reading St Mary 5 12.98x
St Botolph Aldgate 5 57.14x
Sutton 5 1562.50x
Tormoham 5 8.86x
Warminster 5 40.26x
Andover 4 32.23x
Caversham 4 50.51x
Egham 4 20.87x
Maldon St Peter 4 62.02x
Neath Upper 4 136.99x
Northampton Priory St 4 11.06x
Romsey Infra 4 89.89x
South Newton 4 270.27x
St Edward Cambridge 4 310.08x
Woodford 4 412.37x
Braintree 3 26.41x
Carshalton 3 25.10x
Caundle Stourton 3 365.85x
Cheriton 3 33.67x
Datchet 3 113.21x
Great Baddow 3 66.67x
Hackney London 3 0.83x
Holdenhurst 3 8.71x
Long Itchington 3 118.58x
Lyncombe Widcombe 3 11.11x
Monk Sherborne 3 288.46x
Northampton St Giles 3 13.07x
Rayne 3 337.08x
St Anne Soho London 3 8.20x
St Mary Extra 3 28.38x
Twickenham 3 10.92x
Upton Cum Chalvey 3 19.43x
West Pennard 3 180.72x
Ashby St Mary 2 454.55x
Normanton 2 23.61x

Top female names

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

Name Count
George 37
John 30
William 27
Charles 24
Henry 20
James 18
Frederick 11
Thomas 11
Alfred 8
Arthur 8
Albert 7
Edward 7
Robert 7
Walter 7
Samuel 6
Joseph 5
Francis 4
Frank 4
Harry 4
Wm. 4
Ernest 3
Fred 3
Benjamin 2
Clement 2
Daniel 2
Edgar 2
Edwd. 2
Fredrick 2
Geo. 2
Jas. 2
Lording 2
Percy 2
Richard 2
Andrew 1
Bertram 1
Carlyle 1
Cecil 1
David 1
Donald 1
Edmund 1
Edwin 1
Ellen 1
Eustace 1
Henery 1
Hubert 1
Isaac 1
Jesse 1
Jessie 1
Jonathan 1
Wm.H. 1

FAQ

Tabor surname: questions and answers

How common was the Tabor surname in 1881?

In 1881, 657 people were recorded with the Tabor surname. That placed it at #5,456 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Tabor surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 874 in 2016. That gives Tabor a modern rank of #6,431.

What does the Tabor surname mean?

An English occupational surname referring to a drummer or one who plays the tabor, a small drum.

What does the Tabor map show?

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