NameCensus.

UK surname

Vickers

An occupational surname referring to a person who made candlewicks, from the Old English word "weoce" meaning wick.

In the 1881 census there were 7,669 people recorded with the Vickers surname, ranking it #553 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 10,989, ranked #583, down from #553 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Lenton, Radford, Papplewick, Nuthall, Greasley, Brewhouse Yard, London parishes and Manchester. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Staffordshire Moorlands, East Lindsey and Shropshire.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Vickers is 11,607 in 1999. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 43.3%.

1881 census count

7,669

Ranked #553

Modern count

10,989

2016, ranked #583

Peak year

1999

11,607 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Vickers had 7,669 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #553 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 10,989 in 2016, ranked #583.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 10,589 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Rural Amenity.

Vickers surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Vickers surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Vickers 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 4,503 #629
1861 historical 4,022 #694
1881 historical 7,669 #553
1891 historical 8,022 #548
1901 historical 9,952 #527
1911 historical 10,589 #460
1997 modern 11,081 #553
1998 modern 11,606 #547
1999 modern 11,607 #553
2000 modern 11,406 #558
2001 modern 11,247 #555
2002 modern 11,447 #556
2003 modern 11,150 #557
2004 modern 11,106 #558
2005 modern 10,955 #561
2006 modern 10,915 #564
2007 modern 11,022 #564
2008 modern 10,977 #573
2009 modern 11,299 #569
2010 modern 11,550 #571
2011 modern 11,357 #573
2012 modern 11,001 #576
2013 modern 11,197 #577
2014 modern 11,232 #578
2015 modern 11,066 #581
2016 modern 10,989 #583

Geography

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Where Vickers' are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Lenton, Radford, Papplewick, Nuthall, Greasley, Brewhouse Yard, London parishes, Manchester and Sheffield. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Staffordshire Moorlands, East Lindsey, Shropshire, Leicester and West Lindsey. 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 Lenton, Radford, Papplewick, Nuthall, Greasley, Brewhouse Yard Nottinghamshire
2 London parishes London 3
3 Manchester Lancashire
4 Sheffield Yorkshire, West Riding
5 London parishes London 2

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Staffordshire Moorlands 003 Staffordshire Moorlands
2 East Lindsey 008 East Lindsey
3 Shropshire 001 Shropshire
4 Leicester 026 Leicester
5 West Lindsey 003 West Lindsey

Forenames

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First names often paired with Vickers

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Vickers

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

The Greater London Mix

Group

Social Rented Sector Professional Support Workers

Within London, Vickers 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

Vickers is most concentrated in decile 8 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.

8
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Vickers falls in decile 1 for neighbourhood deprivation. This puts the surname towards the more deprived end of the index.

Decile 1 represents the more deprived end of the scale. Decile 10 represents the less deprived end.

1
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

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

Meaning and origin of Vickers

The surname Vickers originated in England during the medieval period, deriving from the ancient Anglo-Saxon word "fic", meaning a farm bailiff or keeper. It was an occupational surname given to someone who oversaw the land and livestock of a medieval estate or manor.

Vickers is believed to have first appeared in records as early as the 13th century, with various spellings such as Viker, Vyker, and Vykar being found in old manuscripts and records from that time. One of the earliest documented instances of the name is in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire from 1275, where a William le Viker is mentioned.

The name Vickers can be traced back to several areas within England, particularly the northern counties of Yorkshire, Lancashire, and Westmorland, where the occupation of farm bailiff was common. Over time, as the name spread, it also became associated with certain place names, such as Vicar's Cross in Cheshire and Vicar's Hill in Hertfordshire.

In the Domesday Book of 1086, a comprehensive record of landowners and tenants in England, there are no direct references to the surname Vickers. However, variations of the name, such as Vicar and Vikere, are listed, suggesting that the occupation and name were already in use at that time.

Notable historical figures with the surname Vickers include:

1. John Vickers (1587-1663), an English Puritan minister and author. 2. Thomas Vickers (1733-1784), an English clockmaker and inventor known for his work on the marine chronometer. 3. Frances Vickers (1785-1868), an English novelist and poet. 4. William Vickers (1839-1923), an English industrialist and founder of the Vickers armaments company. 5. Geoffrey Vickers (1894-1982), an English philosopher and systems theorist.

Throughout history, the surname Vickers has been associated with various professions, from clergymen and writers to industrialists and philosophers, reflecting the diverse backgrounds and contributions of those who bore this name.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Vickers families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Vickers 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. Lancashire leads with 1,339 Vickers' recorded in 1881 and an index of 1.50x.

County Total Index
Lancashire 1,339 1.50x
Yorkshire 1,067 1.44x
Lincolnshire 964 8.04x
Durham 553 2.48x
Cheshire 471 2.84x
Middlesex 393 0.52x
Derbyshire 374 3.18x
Staffordshire 365 1.44x
Nottinghamshire 271 2.68x
Surrey 240 0.66x
Shropshire 196 3.02x
Cumberland 192 2.97x
Kent 149 0.58x
Berkshire 139 2.47x
Northamptonshire 118 1.67x
Northumberland 93 0.83x
Flintshire 91 4.51x
Warwickshire 90 0.48x
Worcestershire 56 0.57x
Essex 52 0.35x
Leicestershire 46 0.55x
Hampshire 39 0.25x
Norfolk 39 0.34x
Sussex 39 0.31x
Oxfordshire 36 0.78x
Midlothian 33 0.33x
Buckinghamshire 29 0.64x
Suffolk 28 0.31x
Lanarkshire 26 0.11x
Bedfordshire 23 0.59x
Hertfordshire 19 0.37x
Devon 18 0.12x
Westmorland 18 1.09x
Channel Islands 14 0.63x
Glamorgan 13 0.10x
Ayrshire 9 0.16x
Somerset 7 0.06x
Cornwall 5 0.06x
Gloucestershire 5 0.03x
Huntingdonshire 5 0.34x
Carmarthenshire 4 0.13x
Dunbartonshire 3 0.15x
Royal Navy 3 0.34x
Wiltshire 3 0.05x
Aberdeenshire 2 0.03x
Denbighshire 2 0.07x
Isle of Man 2 0.14x
Renfrewshire 2 0.03x
Anglesey 1 0.08x
Angus 1 0.01x
Caernarfonshire 1 0.03x
Dorset 1 0.02x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Little Bolton in Lancashire leads with 124 Vickers' recorded in 1881 and an index of 10.84x.

Place Total Index
Little Bolton 124 10.84x
Stanhope 99 42.97x
Great Bolton 92 7.80x
Ecclesall Bierlow 91 6.02x
Manchester 82 2.05x
Preston 74 3.11x
Leeds 68 1.62x
Sheffield 60 2.54x
Barrow In Furness 53 4.38x
Lambeth 51 0.78x
Wolverhampton 49 2.52x
Monks Coppenhall 48 7.68x
Nottingham St Mary 48 1.84x
Birmingham 46 0.73x
Louth 46 16.74x
Wolstanton 46 5.98x
Dronfield 44 29.24x
Clewer 42 18.21x
Toxteth Park 42 1.39x
Bunbury 41 180.62x
Ecclesfield 41 7.52x
West Auckland 40 49.03x
Hackney London 38 0.90x
Wellington 38 10.43x
Dudley 36 3.02x
Farnworth 35 6.56x
Attercliffe Cum Darnall 33 4.77x
Bethnal Green London 33 1.01x
Bromley London 33 2.00x
Stoke Upon Trent 33 1.23x
Gainsborough 32 11.32x
Great Grimsby 32 4.20x
Pendleton In Salford 32 3.02x
Salford 32 1.22x
Spurstow 32 276.34x
St Nicholas Lincoln 32 27.91x
Kensington London 31 0.74x
Battersea 30 1.09x
Northop 30 42.02x
Derby St Peter 29 7.75x
Wolsingham 29 14.26x
Hulme 28 1.51x
Liverpool 28 0.52x
Accrington 27 3.34x
Gomersal 27 7.78x
Huddersfield 27 2.49x
Hemswell 26 271.40x
Hoyland Nether 26 14.26x
Kimberworth 26 6.30x
Bilston 25 5.10x
Camberwell 25 0.52x
Cheetham 25 3.77x
Chorlton On Medlock 25 1.77x
Clifton 25 37.44x
Lenton 25 10.50x
Bradfield 24 8.38x
Brightside Bierlow 24 1.65x
Dunholme 24 229.67x
Holbeck 24 4.87x
Staveley 24 11.51x
Aston 23 0.44x
Dearham 23 27.00x
St Pancras London 23 0.38x
St Peterat Gowts Lincoln 23 13.64x
Binbrooke 22 73.60x
Chelsea London 22 0.97x
Dalton In Furness 22 6.40x
Deptford St Nicholas 21 10.34x
Harwood 21 45.16x
Hucknall Torkard 21 8.19x
Litchurch 21 4.44x
Nettleham 20 81.30x
Sulgrave 20 169.78x
Crompton 19 7.50x
Everton 19 0.67x
Heeley 19 8.41x
Newcastle Under Lyme 19 4.24x
Oldham 19 0.66x
Stranton 19 2.53x
Whitchurch 19 15.11x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 581
Elizabeth 302
Sarah 298
Ann 178
Jane 149
Annie 127
Ellen 111
Hannah 109
Alice 104
Emma 102
Eliza 101
Martha 83
Margaret 79
Emily 64
Harriet 55
Ada 46
Edith 46
Maria 42
Clara 38
Fanny 37
Caroline 36
Charlotte 34
Florence 34
Lucy 34
Frances 32
Louisa 31
Agnes 30
Amelia 30
Anne 30
Kate 30
Harriett 29
Esther 27
Isabella 27
Catherine 23
Susan 21
Rose 20
Susannah 20
Rebecca 18
Betsy 17
Bertha 16
Minnie 16
Amy 15
Elizth. 14
Gertrude 12
Julia 12
Matilda 12
Nancy 11
Rachel 11
Sophia 10
Ethel 9

Top male names

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

Name Count
John 528
William 474
Thomas 294
George 292
James 225
Joseph 204
Henry 149
Charles 139
Robert 84
Samuel 84
Richard 73
Arthur 71
Frederick 64
Alfred 61
Edward 58
Walter 47
Albert 43
Herbert 35
Frank 34
Harry 30
Isaac 27
Benjamin 26
Wm. 26
Ernest 25
Edwin 22
Francis 22
Thos. 21
Daniel 20
Fred 20
Jonathan 20
Mark 16
Fredk. 15
Tom 15
David 14
Matthew 13
Peter 11
Fredrick 10
Geo. 10
Nathaniel 8
Percy 8
Philip 7
Robt. 7
Andrew 6
Chas. 6
Edmund 6
Harold 6
Hedley 6
Johnson 6
Simeon 6
Stephen 6

FAQ

Vickers surname: questions and answers

How common was the Vickers surname in 1881?

In 1881, 7,669 people were recorded with the Vickers surname. That placed it at #553 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Vickers surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 10,989 in 2016. That gives Vickers a modern rank of #583.

What does the Vickers surname mean?

An occupational surname referring to a person who made candlewicks, from the Old English word "weoce" meaning wick.

What does the Vickers map show?

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