NameCensus.

UK surname

Tidball

A variant of the occupational surname "Tidewell," referring to one who worked in a tidal area.

In the 1881 census there were 253 people recorded with the Tidball surname, ranking it #10,980 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 470, ranked #10,475, up from #10,980 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff, Shapwick (pt), Huntspill and Mark, Chapel Allerton, Weare, East Brent, South Brent. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Bridgend, Mendip and South Hams.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Tidball is 496 in 1999. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 85.8%.

1881 census count

253

Ranked #10,980

Modern count

470

2016, ranked #10,475

Peak year

1999

496 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Tidball had 253 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #10,980 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 470 in 2016, ranked #10,475.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 392 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Rural Amenity.

Tidball surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Tidball surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Tidball 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 114 #15,716
1861 historical 138 #16,365
1881 historical 253 #10,980
1891 historical 297 #11,192
1901 historical 370 #10,017
1911 historical 392 #9,421
1997 modern 457 #9,957
1998 modern 484 #9,841
1999 modern 496 #9,713
2000 modern 496 #9,689
2001 modern 487 #9,656
2002 modern 484 #9,869
2003 modern 462 #10,045
2004 modern 443 #10,442
2005 modern 442 #10,346
2006 modern 448 #10,269
2007 modern 452 #10,298
2008 modern 463 #10,204
2009 modern 470 #10,324
2010 modern 479 #10,370
2011 modern 483 #10,215
2012 modern 478 #10,190
2013 modern 486 #10,250
2014 modern 494 #10,170
2015 modern 482 #10,281
2016 modern 470 #10,475

Geography

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Where Tidballs are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff, Shapwick (pt), Huntspill, Mark, Chapel Allerton, Weare, East Brent, South Brent, Modbury, Bigbury, Ermington, Kingston and Knowstone. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Bridgend, Mendip, South Hams and Torridge. 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 Shapwick (pt), Huntspill Somerset
3 Mark, Chapel Allerton, Weare, East Brent, South Brent Somerset
4 Modbury, Bigbury, Ermington, Kingston Devon
5 Knowstone Devon

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Bridgend 001 Bridgend
2 Bridgend 002 Bridgend
3 Mendip 014 Mendip
4 South Hams 002 South Hams
5 Torridge 009 Torridge

Forenames

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First names often paired with Tidball

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Tidball

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

Established Homeowners with Children

Within London, Tidball is most associated with areas classed as Established Homeowners with Children, 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 predominantly British-born residents are typically married/in civil partnerships and own the properties in which they are raising their children. Parents are typically over 45, and many other residents are beyond normal retirement age. Detached and semi-detached houses predominate and multiple car ownership is common.

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

Tidball is most concentrated in decile 7 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.

7
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

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

Meaning and origin of Tidball

The surname Tidball originated in England in the late 12th century. It is derived from the Old English words "tid" meaning time and "ball" meaning ball or spherical object. The name likely referred to someone who kept or measured time, perhaps a bell ringer or an early clockmaker.

Tidball was first found in county records from Somerset and Gloucestershire in southwest England dating back to the late 1100s. Similar early spellings included Tidebal, Tydeball, and Tyddeball. The name does not appear in the famous Domesday Book of 1086 as it emerged slightly later.

One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Robert Tidball, a landowner in Somerset mentioned in tax records from 1272. In 1319, a John Tydeball is recorded as living in the village of Cheddar in Somerset.

The Tidball name spread gradually across southern England over the following centuries. Nicholas Tydball was born around 1425 in the town of Marshfield, Gloucestershire. He worked as a church bell ringer. Separate records show a Thomas Tiddeball was a clockmaker in Bristol in 1487.

Moving into the 1600s, Edward Tidball (1619-1695) was a well-known Puritan minister who preached in Wapping, London. He published several religious texts attacking the Church of England. Around the same time, Lieutenant Joseph Tidball (1628-1713) fought for Parliament forces in the English Civil War.

Later examples include the artist John Tidball (1768-1829) who painted portraits of British nobility, and Thomas Tidball (1794-1868), an officer in the Royal Horse Artillery who fought at the Battle of Waterloo against Napoleon in 1815.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Tidball families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Tidball 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. Somerset leads with 113 Tidballs recorded in 1881 and an index of 29.50x.

County Total Index
Somerset 113 29.50x
Devon 73 14.73x
Glamorgan 9 2.17x
Gloucestershire 7 1.50x
Middlesex 7 0.29x
Lancashire 6 0.21x
Monmouthshire 5 2.91x
Surrey 5 0.43x
Yorkshire 5 0.21x
Wiltshire 4 1.90x
Leicestershire 3 1.14x
Essex 2 0.43x
Warwickshire 2 0.33x
Hampshire 1 0.21x
Hertfordshire 1 0.61x
Staffordshire 1 0.12x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Huntspill in Somerset leads with 37 Tidballs recorded in 1881 and an index of 2356.69x.

Place Total Index
Huntspill 37 2356.69x
Wedmore 22 883.53x
Knowstone 10 2857.14x
Lundy Island 10 6666.67x
Wellington 10 192.68x
Cullompton 8 370.37x
Hawkridge 8 11428.57x
Bleadon 7 1400.00x
Bristol St Philip Jacob 7 15.93x
Ide 7 1296.30x
Heaton 6 504.20x
Shoreditch London 6 5.82x
Battersea 5 5.71x
Burnham 5 171.23x
Leeds 5 3.75x
Milverton 5 354.61x
Newport 5 60.90x
Tiverton 5 58.62x
West Teignmouth 5 131.93x
Bedminster 4 11.11x
Penarth 4 98.77x
Stawley 4 3333.33x
Warkleigh 4 2105.26x
Westbury 4 81.47x
Witheridge 4 476.19x
Yealmpton 4 526.32x
Ashby De La Zouch 3 49.02x
Llandaff 3 21.75x
Mark 3 337.08x
Tormoham 3 14.31x
Exeter Holy Trinity 2 103.09x
Exmoor 2 769.23x
Pinhoe 2 454.55x
Radford Semele 2 444.44x
Stoke Canon 2 571.43x
Aldershot 1 6.12x
Bampton 1 65.79x
Berrow 1 277.78x
Churchill 1 163.93x
Collumpton 1 434.78x
Cowbridge 1 100.00x
Digswell 1 555.56x
Exminster 1 56.18x
Harberton 1 88.50x
Instow 1 188.68x
Kingswinford 1 3.43x
Leyton 1 12.36x
Llangynwyd Middle 1 188.68x
Lyncombe Widcombe 1 9.97x
Poltimore 1 416.67x
Shepton Mallet 1 23.26x
Skilgate 1 555.56x
St Gabriel Fenchurch 1 1111.11x
Tavistock 1 17.73x
West Ham 1 0.96x
Wrington 1 77.52x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 15
Elizabeth 10
Sarah 8
Emily 6
Jane 6
Ann 5
Eliza 5
Emma 5
Florence 4
Louisa 4
Charlotte 3
Hannah 3
Amelia 2
Edith 2
Elizebth 2
Ellen 2
Minnie 2
Alice 1
Anna 1
Anne 1
Cealia 1
Clara 1
Dolly 1
Eda 1
Elizath. 1
Ethel 1
Evelina 1
Fannie 1
Harriett 1
Henrietta 1
Hester 1
Isabella 1
Kezia 1
Lilley 1
Lillian 1
Lily 1
Lucy 1
Lydia 1
Margaret 1
Martha 1
Olive 1
Pemla 1
Susanna 1
Tammy 1
Zillah 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
William 20
John 18
Thomas 9
George 8
Henry 7
James 6
Walter 6
Richard 5
Robert 5
Edwin 4
Alfred 3
Charles 3
Francis 3
Frank 3
Ernest 2
Fred 2
Michael 2
Oliver 2
Phillip 2
A... 1
Albert 1
Allan 1
Arthur 1
Cecil 1
Earnest 1
Earnet 1
Ebenezer 1
Edgar 1
Edward 1
Gilbert 1
Gregory 1
Joseph 1
Mark 1
Philip 1
Samuel 1
Shortman 1
Tom 1
Wm.Chas. 1
Wm.Heal 1

FAQ

Tidball surname: questions and answers

How common was the Tidball surname in 1881?

In 1881, 253 people were recorded with the Tidball surname. That placed it at #10,980 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Tidball surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 470 in 2016. That gives Tidball a modern rank of #10,475.

What does the Tidball surname mean?

A variant of the occupational surname "Tidewell," referring to one who worked in a tidal area.

What does the Tidball map show?

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