NameCensus.

UK surname

Walker

An occupational surname referring to a fuller or person who walked on cloth to clean and thicken it.

In the 1881 census there were 100,304 people recorded with the Walker surname, ranking it #12 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 136,629, also still ranked #12.

The strongest historical links point to London parishes, Lenton, Radford, Papplewick, Nuthall, Greasley, Brewhouse Yard and Edinburgh. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Leeds, Rotherham and East Riding of Yorkshire.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Walker is 140,350 in 2010. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 36.2%.

1881 census count

100,304

Ranked #12

Modern count

136,629

2016, ranked #12

Peak year

2010

140,350 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Walker had 100,304 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #12 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 136,629 in 2016, ranked #12.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 123,079 in 1901.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Rural Amenity.

Walker surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Walker surname density by area, 1881 census.

Loading map
Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Walker 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 67,727 #11
1861 historical 70,744 #12
1881 historical 100,304 #12
1891 historical 107,454 #12
1901 historical 123,079 #12
1911 historical 112,536 #18
1997 modern 133,543 #12
1998 modern 138,858 #12
1999 modern 139,483 #12
2000 modern 138,614 #12
2001 modern 134,992 #12
2002 modern 137,744 #12
2003 modern 134,142 #12
2004 modern 133,768 #12
2005 modern 132,057 #12
2006 modern 132,345 #12
2007 modern 133,357 #12
2008 modern 134,162 #12
2009 modern 137,370 #12
2010 modern 140,350 #12
2011 modern 138,041 #12
2012 modern 135,394 #12
2013 modern 137,671 #12
2014 modern 138,725 #12
2015 modern 137,239 #12
2016 modern 136,629 #12

Geography

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Where Walkers are most common

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

The modern local-area list points to Leeds, Rotherham, East Riding of Yorkshire and Hambleton. 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 London parishes London 1
2 London parishes London 3
3 Lenton, Radford, Papplewick, Nuthall, Greasley, Brewhouse Yard Nottinghamshire
4 Edinburgh Edinburgh
5 Manchester Lancashire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Leeds 110 Leeds
2 Rotherham 020 Rotherham
3 East Riding of Yorkshire 037 East Riding of Yorkshire
4 East Riding of Yorkshire 010 East Riding of Yorkshire
5 Hambleton 004 Hambleton

Forenames

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First names often paired with Walker

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Walker

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

Walker 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

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

Meaning and origin of Walker

The surname Walker is an English occupational name that originated in the Middle Ages. It derives from the Old English word 'wealcan', meaning to walk or roll. The name referred to a fuller, someone who walked on cloth to thicken and clean it.

Walker was first recorded in the early 13th century. One of the earliest known bearers was Richard le Walker, mentioned in the Assize Rolls of Staffordshire in 1199. The surname also appeared in the Hundred Rolls of 1273 as Willam le Walker in Oxfordshire.

In medieval times, the name was often spelled in various ways, such as Walkar, Walcker, Waulker, and Waulcker. These variations reflect the different regional dialects and spellings of the time.

The Walker surname is found in several early records, including the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as a place name in various locations across England.

Notable people with the Walker surname include Sir William Walker (1551-1637), an English ironmaster and member of Parliament; George Walker (1618-1690), an English Protestant clergyman and defender of Derry during the Siege of Derry in 1689; and Benjamin Walker (1753-1818), an American Revolutionary War soldier and frontiersman.

Other famous Walkers include William Walker (1824-1860), an American physician, lawyer, and soldier of fortune who aimed to establish an English-speaking empire in Central America; and Mary Edwards Walker (1832-1919), an American feminist, abolitionist, and surgeon who served as an assistant surgeon in the American Civil War and was awarded the Medal of Honor.

Throughout history, the Walker surname has been associated with various occupations and professions, reflecting its origins as an occupational name. It has also been linked to place names in different parts of England, where families with the name may have lived or originated.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Walker families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Walker 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. Yorkshire leads with 19,849 Walkers recorded in 1881 and an index of 2.05x.

County Total Index
Yorkshire 19,849 2.05x
Lancashire 12,032 1.04x
Middlesex 7,438 0.76x
Lanarkshire 4,265 1.35x
Staffordshire 4,168 1.26x
Durham 4,083 1.40x
Surrey 3,130 0.66x
Cheshire 2,875 1.33x
Derbyshire 2,810 1.84x
Warwickshire 2,569 1.04x
Nottinghamshire 2,496 1.89x
Aberdeenshire 2,223 2.45x
Midlothian 1,936 1.48x
Lincolnshire 1,887 1.21x
Kent 1,775 0.53x
Worcestershire 1,472 1.15x
Northumberland 1,421 0.98x
Cumberland 1,254 1.49x
Gloucestershire 1,190 0.62x
Leicestershire 1,168 1.08x
Ayrshire 1,165 1.59x
Angus 1,164 1.28x
Fife 1,131 1.95x
Norfolk 1,038 0.69x
Essex 936 0.48x
Renfrewshire 837 1.10x
Northamptonshire 774 0.84x
Hampshire 697 0.35x
Buckinghamshire 695 1.18x
Stirlingshire 682 1.89x
Oxfordshire 674 1.12x
Sussex 618 0.37x
Shropshire 610 0.72x
Hertfordshire 544 0.81x
Bedfordshire 499 0.99x
Berkshire 482 0.66x
Suffolk 479 0.40x
Westmorland 468 2.18x
Dunbartonshire 453 1.72x
Perthshire 422 0.96x
Kincardineshire 402 3.38x
Somerset 394 0.25x
Devon 338 0.17x
West Lothian 322 2.19x
Cambridgeshire 306 0.49x
Wiltshire 295 0.34x
Banffshire 271 1.34x
Kirkcudbrightshire 261 1.84x
Glamorgan 238 0.14x
Herefordshire 217 0.54x
Roxburghshire 214 1.21x
Dumfriesshire 208 0.96x
Selkirkshire 169 1.91x
Inverness-shire 157 0.54x
Argyllshire 151 0.55x
Monmouthshire 143 0.20x
Berwickshire 136 1.15x
Huntingdonshire 136 0.70x
East Lothian 133 1.03x
Rutland 131 1.82x
Morayshire 123 0.81x
Wigtownshire 110 0.85x
Peeblesshire 108 2.35x
Clackmannanshire 100 1.24x
Denbighshire 90 0.24x
Flintshire 75 0.29x
Royal Navy 73 0.63x
Buteshire 68 1.15x
Dorset 64 0.10x
Brecknockshire 54 0.28x
Channel Islands 46 0.16x
Caernarfonshire 43 0.11x
Cornwall 42 0.04x
Isle of Man 41 0.23x
Kinross-shire 23 0.93x
Radnorshire 23 0.29x
Orkney 22 0.20x
Ross-shire 18 0.07x
Pembrokeshire 15 0.05x
Sutherland 13 0.17x
Anglesey 12 0.07x
Caithness 12 0.09x
Carmarthenshire 12 0.03x
Nairnshire 10 0.34x
Merionethshire 7 0.04x
Shetland 7 0.07x
Montgomeryshire 5 0.02x
Cardiganshire 1 0.00x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Leeds in Yorkshire leads with 1,351 Walkers recorded in 1881 and an index of 2.47x.

Place Total Index
Leeds 1,351 2.47x
Barony 1,144 1.43x
Govan 1,010 1.29x
Glasgow 814 1.45x
Birmingham 809 0.98x
Aston 786 1.16x
Islington London 727 0.77x
Edinburgh St Cuthberts 701 1.33x
Manchester 677 1.30x
Nottingham St Mary 639 1.87x
St Pancras London 612 0.78x
Ashton Under Lyne 609 2.40x
Sheffield 587 1.90x
Stoke Upon Trent 573 1.64x
Lambeth 554 0.65x
Salford 518 1.52x
Liverpool 503 0.71x
Camberwell 491 0.79x
Hunslet 484 3.20x
Aberdeen Old Machar 465 2.46x
Holy Trinity 463 1.99x
Aberdeen St Nicholas 432 2.55x
Bethnal Green London 417 0.98x
Kensington London 410 0.75x
Dundee 409 1.21x
Wolverhampton 401 1.58x
West Derby 389 1.15x
Hackney London 361 0.66x
Shoreditch London 361 0.85x
Brightside Bierlow 358 1.88x
St Marylebone London 350 0.67x
Everton 347 0.94x
Ecclesall Bierlow 335 1.70x
West Ham 332 0.78x
Batley 325 3.53x
Oldham 316 0.84x
Hulme 310 1.28x
Chorlton On Medlock 307 1.67x
Bradford 304 1.30x
Gomersal 292 6.46x
Bermondsey 289 0.99x
Leicester St Margaret 277 1.05x
Paddington London 272 0.76x
Huddersfield 265 1.88x
Dewsbury 262 2.64x
Dudley 262 1.69x
Bishopwearmouth 260 1.04x
Mile End Old Town 250 1.62x
Toxteth Park 250 0.64x
Halifax 248 1.74x
Newington 245 0.68x
Wortley In Bramley 245 3.19x
Stockton On Tees 244 1.74x
Barrow In Furness 243 1.54x
Preston 243 0.78x
Darlington 240 2.14x
Nether Hallam 239 1.82x
Bury 235 1.77x
Walsall Foreign 231 1.35x
Mirfield 230 4.32x
Blackburn 223 0.72x
Chelsea London 220 0.75x
Gateshead 219 1.01x
Pendleton In Salford 215 1.56x
New Monkland 214 2.29x
Sculcoates 214 1.39x
Battersea 212 0.59x
Pilkington 208 4.72x
Wakefield 205 2.76x
South Leith 203 1.38x
Holbeck 202 3.15x
Middlesbrough 202 1.60x
Radcliffe 202 3.61x
Little Bolton 200 1.34x
Horton In Bradford 199 1.31x
Clerkenwell London 196 0.85x
Bowling 195 2.03x
St George Hanover 195 1.53x
Poplar London 190 1.03x
Stockport 189 1.70x
West Bromwich 189 1.00x
Golcar 183 7.14x
Falkirk 179 2.12x
Barnsley 176 1.76x
Dukinfield 176 1.76x
Pudsey 176 3.40x
Armley 174 4.07x
Kings Norton 174 1.52x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 5,826
Sarah 3,325
Elizabeth 3,314
Ann 1,788
Jane 1,708
Annie 1,285
Emma 1,280
Ellen 1,183
Eliza 1,180
Hannah 1,163
Alice 1,093
Margaret 951
Emily 879
Martha 871
Harriet 566
Maria 501
Fanny 486
Ada 461
Florence 439
Edith 433
Clara 430
Charlotte 424
Louisa 423
Catherine 367
Caroline 360
Isabella 351
Frances 319
Lucy 318
Agnes 317
Anne 309
Kate 294
Esther 232
Harriett 208
Susan 207
Rebecca 205
Amelia 192
Rose 184
Eleanor 160
Elizth. 160
Matilda 156
Susannah 154
Julia 150
Minnie 149
Ethel 146
Amy 144
Gertrude 143
Ruth 141
Jessie 138
Sophia 138
Selina 127

Top male names

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

Name Count
William 5,189
John 5,108
Thomas 2,887
George 2,799
James 2,571
Joseph 1,715
Henry 1,608
Charles 1,465
Robert 1,146
Alfred 840
Samuel 834
Arthur 807
Edward 800
Frederick 668
Richard 646
Albert 515
Harry 488
Walter 465
Herbert 369
Frank 337
Benjamin 316
David 293
Ernest 268
Wm. 258
Francis 255
Fred 255
Edwin 250
Thos. 206
Tom 166
Isaac 149
Peter 129
Alexander 121
Geo. 120
Daniel 112
Matthew 92
Andrew 90
Fredk. 89
Abraham 85
Christopher 83
Fredrick 77
Ralph 75
Chas. 74
Stephen 73
Joshua 72
Jonathan 71
Jno. 70
Sam 70
Edmund 68
Percy 67
Joe 66

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 Walker households.

FAQ

Walker surname: questions and answers

How common was the Walker surname in 1881?

In 1881, 100,304 people were recorded with the Walker surname. That placed it at #12 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Walker surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 136,629 in 2016. That gives Walker a modern rank of #12.

What does the Walker surname mean?

An occupational surname referring to a fuller or person who walked on cloth to clean and thicken it.

What does the Walker map show?

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