NameCensus.

UK surname

Tittle

A diminutive occupational surname for a small person or a nickname for someone with a small head.

In the 1881 census there were 165 people recorded with the Tittle surname, ranking it #14,559 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 157, ranked #23,006, down from #14,559 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Burslem, Ealing, Chiswick and Manchester. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Cheshire West and Chester, Liverpool and Calderdale.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Tittle is 196 in 2000. Compared with 1881, the name has stayed broadly stable by 4.8%.

1881 census count

165

Ranked #14,559

Modern count

157

2016, ranked #23,006

Peak year

2000

196 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Tittle had 165 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #14,559 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 192 in 1901.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Small Town Suburbia.

Tittle surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Tittle surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Tittle 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 127 #14,547
1861 historical 103 #20,650
1881 historical 165 #14,559
1891 historical 181 #16,065
1901 historical 192 #15,518
1911 historical 180 #15,961
1997 modern 187 #18,398
1998 modern 191 #18,624
1999 modern 195 #18,517
2000 modern 196 #18,431
2001 modern 190 #18,520
2002 modern 192 #18,767
2003 modern 179 #19,416
2004 modern 182 #19,306
2005 modern 179 #19,467
2006 modern 171 #20,131
2007 modern 166 #20,811
2008 modern 166 #20,966
2009 modern 162 #21,791
2010 modern 170 #21,560
2011 modern 172 #21,248
2012 modern 167 #21,598
2013 modern 164 #22,236
2014 modern 167 #22,180
2015 modern 167 #22,066
2016 modern 157 #23,006

Geography

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Where Tittles are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Burslem, Ealing, Chiswick, Manchester, Westbury-on-Trym, Henbury, Compton Greenfield and Swansea. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Cheshire West and Chester, Liverpool, Calderdale and Leeds. 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 Burslem Staffordshire
2 Ealing, Chiswick Middlesex (Exclusive Of London Districts)
3 Manchester Lancashire
4 Westbury-on-Trym, Henbury, Compton Greenfield Gloucestershire
5 Swansea Glamorganshire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Cheshire West and Chester 015 Cheshire West and Chester
2 Cheshire West and Chester 002 Cheshire West and Chester
3 Liverpool 058 Liverpool
4 Calderdale 027 Calderdale
5 Leeds 066 Leeds

Forenames

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First names often paired with Tittle

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Tittle

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

Retired Professionals

Group

Small Town Suburbia

Nationally, the Tittle surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Small Town Suburbia, within Retired Professionals. This does not mean every Tittle 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 is predominantly comprised of married couples with no resident dependent children, living in areas characterised neither by under-occupancy nor overcrowding throughout the UK in or adjacent to small towns. White ethnic groups and affiliation with Christianity predominates. Housing tends to be predominantly semi-detached or detached and workers are employed principally in managerial and professional occupations, with semi-skilled occupations also in evidence. These areas of the Supergroup are of higher population density.

Wider pattern

Typically married but no longer with resident dependent children, these well-educated households either remain working in their managerial, professional, administrative or other skilled occupations, or are retired from them – the modal individual age is beyond normal retirement age. Underoccupied detached and semi-detached properties predominate, and unpaid care is more prevalent than reported disability. The prevalence of this Supergroup outside most urban conurbations indicates that rural lifestyles prevail, typically sustained by using two or more cars per household.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

The Greater London Mix

Group

Social Rented Sector Professional Support Workers

Within London, Tittle 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

Tittle 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

Tittle 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 Tittle is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of 50-60 mbit/s.

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

8
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - British

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

Meaning and origin of Tittle

The surname Tittle is of English origin and is derived from the Old English word "titel", which means a small piece or fragment. This surname is believed to have originated in the 12th century and was likely initially given as a nickname to someone who was small in stature or had a petite frame.

The earliest recorded instance of the surname Tittle can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Norfolk, dating back to 1195, where a person named Walter Tittle was mentioned. This suggests that the name was already in use by the end of the 12th century.

In the 13th century, the surname Tittle appeared in various records, including the Feet of Fines for Essex in 1236, which mentioned a Robert Tittle. The Hundred Rolls of Cambridgeshire, compiled in 1273, also referenced a William Tittle.

One notable early bearer of the surname Tittle was John Tittle, a landowner and tenant farmer who lived in the village of Great Wilbraham, Cambridgeshire, in the late 14th century. Records from the Manor Court Rolls of Great Wilbraham mention John Tittle several times between 1380 and 1395.

In the 15th century, the surname Tittle was found in various parts of England, including Kent, where a John Tittle was recorded in the Subsidy Rolls of 1428. The Lay Subsidy Rolls of Wiltshire in 1472 also mentioned a Thomas Tittle.

One of the earliest known individuals with the surname Tittle was William Tittle, who was born in Gloucestershire in 1512. He was a renowned scholar and author, known for his work on English grammar and rhetoric.

Another notable bearer of the surname was Robert Tittle, born in Lincolnshire in 1596. He was a successful merchant and entrepreneur who established a thriving textile business in London.

In the 17th century, the surname Tittle was found in various parts of England, including Yorkshire, where a Richard Tittle was born in 1623. He later became a prominent landowner and served as a local magistrate.

The surname Tittle continued to be found throughout England in the 18th and 19th centuries, with bearers of the name residing in various counties, including Dorset, Somerset, and Lancashire.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Tittle families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Tittle 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. Cheshire leads with 47 Tittles recorded in 1881 and an index of 13.23x.

County Total Index
Cheshire 47 13.23x
Lancashire 40 2.09x
Staffordshire 24 4.42x
Gloucestershire 14 4.44x
Middlesex 9 0.56x
Glamorgan 8 2.85x
Devon 7 2.09x
Durham 7 1.46x
Midlothian 6 2.78x
Essex 2 0.63x
Somerset 1 0.39x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Salford in Lancashire leads with 30 Tittles recorded in 1881 and an index of 53.41x.

Place Total Index
Salford 30 53.41x
Crowton 17 6538.46x
Burslem 13 83.55x
Ealing 9 62.59x
Bideford 7 194.99x
Marston 7 1296.30x
Stranton 7 43.42x
Swansea Town 7 30.47x
Inveresk 6 102.74x
Stoke Upon Trent 6 10.41x
Westbury On Trym 6 56.13x
Acton In Northwich 5 1515.15x
Bristol St James St Paul 5 47.53x
Worsley 5 42.48x
Knutsford Nether 4 186.05x
Aston Grange 3 15000.00x
Audley 3 55.76x
Bristol St Paul In 3 35.67x
Farnworth 2 17.48x
Lymm 2 77.52x
Runcorn 2 24.42x
West Ham 2 2.85x
Wolstanton Chesterton 2 71.94x
Audlem 1 119.05x
Barton Upon Irwell 1 6.95x
Chester St John Baptist 1 15.65x
Dunham On The Hill 1 666.67x
Great Boughton 1 81.97x
Hapsford 1 2500.00x
Liverpool 1 0.86x
Newton In Makerfield 1 17.09x
Preston On Hill 1 322.58x
Stoke St Gregory 1 126.58x
Swansea St Thomas 1 35.46x
Weaverham Cum Milton 1 106.38x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Sarah 9
Mary 8
Alice 6
Ann 5
Elizabeth 4
Emma 3
Annie 2
Elizth. 2
Ellen 2
Emily 2
Florence 2
Hannah 2
Marion 2
Pauline 2
Ada 1
Allice 1
Amelia 1
Caroline 1
Catherine 1
Celia 1
Eliza 1
Emelia 1
Esther 1
Flora 1
Frances 1
Jane 1
Johana 1
Julia 1
Lila 1
Lilian 1
Lilley 1
Lizzie 1
Lucy 1
Lydia 1
Margaret 1
Margrate 1
Maria 1
Martha 1
Matilda 1
Rosea 1
Roseanne 1
Susan 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
John 15
George 6
Joseph 6
Thomas 6
William 5
Samuel 4
David 3
James 3
Richard 3
Alfred 2
Charles 2
Frederick 2
Henry 2
Richd. 2
Robert 2
Abslem 1
Benjamin 1
Edmund 1
Edward 1
Enoch 1
Ernest 1
Fred 1
Geo. 1
Harry 1
Jno.Jas.Vaughan 1
Josiah 1
Phillip 1
Ralph 1
Roger 1
Tom 1
Vaughan 1
Wm. 1

FAQ

Tittle surname: questions and answers

How common was the Tittle surname in 1881?

In 1881, 165 people were recorded with the Tittle surname. That placed it at #14,559 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Tittle surname today?

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

What does the Tittle surname mean?

A diminutive occupational surname for a small person or a nickname for someone with a small head.

What does the Tittle map show?

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