NameCensus.

UK surname

Whitefield

A surname arising from residence near a white open field.

In the 1881 census there were 614 people recorded with the Whitefield surname, ranking it #5,725 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 750, ranked #7,292, down from #5,725 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff, Lanark and London parishes. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Biggar, Symington, Thankerton and Dolphinton, South Somerset and Kirkmuirhill and Blackwood.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Whitefield is 811 in 1891. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 22.1%.

1881 census count

614

Ranked #5,725

Modern count

750

2016, ranked #7,292

Peak year

1891

811 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Whitefield had 614 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #5,725 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 750 in 2016, ranked #7,292.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 811 in 1891.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Established but Challenged.

Whitefield surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Whitefield surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Whitefield 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 356 #6,636
1861 historical 718 #3,788
1881 historical 614 #5,725
1891 historical 811 #4,976
1901 historical 763 #5,860
1911 historical 593 #6,904
1997 modern 784 #6,645
1998 modern 804 #6,724
1999 modern 789 #6,872
2000 modern 748 #7,113
2001 modern 696 #7,401
2002 modern 736 #7,212
2003 modern 702 #7,377
2004 modern 693 #7,463
2005 modern 705 #7,297
2006 modern 703 #7,326
2007 modern 705 #7,381
2008 modern 710 #7,396
2009 modern 734 #7,366
2010 modern 730 #7,530
2011 modern 737 #7,416
2012 modern 710 #7,527
2013 modern 728 #7,510
2014 modern 744 #7,432
2015 modern 755 #7,266
2016 modern 750 #7,292

Geography

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Where Whitefields are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff, Lanark, London parishes, Barnstaple, Bishops Tawton and Cambusnethan. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Biggar, Symington, Thankerton and Dolphinton, South Somerset, Kirkmuirhill and Blackwood, Shotts and Douglas, Coalburn and Rigside. 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 Lanark Lanark
3 London parishes London 3
4 Barnstaple, Bishops Tawton Devon
5 Cambusnethan Lanark

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Biggar, Symington, Thankerton and Dolphinton South Lanarkshire
2 South Somerset 019 South Somerset
3 Kirkmuirhill and Blackwood South Lanarkshire
4 Shotts North Lanarkshire
5 Douglas, Coalburn and Rigside South Lanarkshire

Forenames

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First names often paired with Whitefield

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Whitefield

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

Semi- and Un-Skilled Workforce

Group

Established but Challenged

Nationally, the Whitefield surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Established but Challenged, within Semi- and Un-Skilled Workforce. This does not mean every Whitefield household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

Many households in these neighbourhoods comprise separated or divorced single parents with dependent children. Residents are typically born in the UK, and these neighbourhoods have relatively few members of ethnic minorities. The prevalence of children, their parents and those at or above normal retirement age, suggests neighbourhood structures may be long-established. Levels of unpaid care are high, and long-term disability is more common than in the Supergroup as a whole. Use of the social rented sector is common, often in terraced houses. Levels of overcrowding are above the Supergroup average. Unemployment is high, while those in work are employed in elementary occupations such as caring, leisure and customer services. Many residents have low level qualifications. Neighbourhood concentrations of this Group are found in the South Wales Valleys, Belfast, Londonderry and the Central Lowlands of Scotland.

Wider pattern

Living in terraced or semi-detached houses, residents of these neighbourhoods typically lack high levels of education and work in elementary or routine service occupations. Unemployment is above average. Residents are predominantly born in the UK, and residents are also predominantly from ethnic minorities. Social (but not private sector) rented sector housing is common. This Supergroup is found throughout the UK’s conurbations and industrial regions but is also an integral part of smaller towns.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Professional Employment and Family Lifecycles

Group

Inner London Working Professionals

Within London, Whitefield is most associated with areas classed as Inner London Working Professionals, 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 primarily Inner London neighbourhoods are more densely populated than the Supergroup average. Residents have a younger over-all age profile than the Supergroup as a whole, and are less likely to be owner occupiers. Full time employment is more common than elsewhere in the Supergroup and multiple car ownership is uncommon. Chinese and non-EU-born European migrants are less in evidence than elsewhere in the Supergroup.

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

Whitefield is most concentrated in decile 1 for access to healthy assets and hazards. This places the surname towards the less healthy 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.

1
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

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

Meaning and origin of Whitefield

The surname Whitefield originates from England during the medieval period. The name is a locational surname, derived from places named Whitefield in several parts of England. Specifically, one notable area is in the counties of Lancashire and Gloucestershire. It is composed of two Old English elements: "hwit," meaning white, and "feld," meaning field or open land.

Historical records show variations of the spelling, including Whitfield, Whetefield, and Witefeld. The name Whitefield can be found as early as the 12th century in ancient charters and land grants. One of the earliest recorded instances of a similar name appears in the Pipe Rolls in 1169, with a Robert de Witefeld mentioned.

George Whitefield (1714-1770) is perhaps one of the most famous bearers of this surname. Born in Gloucester, England, he was a prominent preacher in the Methodist movement and played a significant role in the Great Awakening in the American colonies. His evangelical mission extended across the Atlantic, influencing religious thought in both England and America.

Another notable individual is Henry Whitefield, an English settler born in 1590 who became a prominent figure in the early history of New England. He emigrated to America and contributed to the establishment of the town of Guilford, Connecticut, in 1639. His preserved residence, the Henry Whitfield House, is now a museum.

John Whitefield, a less-celebrated but historically relevant person, was an English painter born in 1650. His landscape and portrait works, though not widely recognized today, were appreciated in his time and contribute to the cultural history of the period.

In the field of literature, Benjamin Whitefield, born in 1804, was a noted English poet and playwright. Though not as enduringly famous as contemporaries like Wordsworth and Coleridge, his works reflect the sentiments and aesthetics of English Romanticism in the 19th century.

In the realm of military history, Sir Thomas Whitefield, born in 1655, served as a general in the British Army. His military career spanned several significant conflicts of his time, including the War of the Spanish Succession. His leadership and strategic acumen were noted in various military dispatches and records.

The surname Whitefield has a storied history that reflects its origins in English geography and its evolution through significant cultural, religious, and military contributions across centuries. Its bearers have made their mark from the medieval period to the early modern era, reflecting the diverse legacy of this distinguished surname.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Whitefield families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Whitefield 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. Lanarkshire leads with 116 Whitefields recorded in 1881 and an index of 5.95x.

County Total Index
Lanarkshire 116 5.95x
Devon 100 7.97x
Lancashire 52 0.73x
Somerset 49 5.05x
Hampshire 39 3.16x
Middlesex 37 0.61x
Northumberland 29 3.23x
Cornwall 15 2.20x
Glamorgan 15 1.43x
Midlothian 15 1.86x
West Lothian 15 16.52x
Kent 14 0.68x
Ayrshire 13 2.88x
Gloucestershire 13 1.10x
Surrey 13 0.44x
Yorkshire 13 0.22x
Durham 11 0.61x
Sussex 11 1.08x
Monmouthshire 10 2.29x
Dorset 8 2.02x
Cheshire 4 0.30x
Cumberland 4 0.77x
Royal Navy 4 5.57x
Derbyshire 3 0.32x
Worcestershire 3 0.38x
Dunbartonshire 2 1.23x
Renfrewshire 2 0.43x
Warwickshire 2 0.13x
Bedfordshire 1 0.32x
Cambridgeshire 1 0.26x
Flintshire 1 0.62x
Staffordshire 1 0.05x
Stirlingshire 1 0.45x
Wiltshire 1 0.19x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Portsea in Hampshire leads with 34 Whitefields recorded in 1881 and an index of 14.04x.

Place Total Index
Portsea 34 14.04x
Lesmahagow 33 160.04x
Clovelly 29 1768.29x
Lanark 29 184.83x
Toxteth Park 20 8.26x
Crawford 16 439.56x
Cambusnethan 15 34.64x
South Molton 15 217.71x
Lambeth 10 1.90x
Poplar London 10 8.79x
St James Bath 10 2000.00x
Stogursey 10 384.62x
Barnstaple 9 45.69x
Exeter St Mary Steps 9 318.02x
Greenwich 9 9.38x
Llandaff 9 25.77x
Acomb 8 366.97x
Bideford 8 59.52x
Inveresk 8 36.58x
Kirkdale 8 6.65x
Prudhoe Castle 8 459.77x
Salford 8 3.80x
Stratton 8 216.22x
Whitburn 8 60.98x
Biggar 7 158.73x
Brighton 7 3.41x
Broadway 7 744.68x
Brompton Ralph 7 804.60x
St Giles In Fields 7 33.67x
Bristol St Augustine 6 31.45x
Burradon In Tynemouth 6 262.01x
Penshaw 6 111.32x
Plymouth Charles The 6 10.85x
Stoke Damerel 6 6.83x
Auckinleck 5 35.79x
Bathgate 5 25.37x
Bedwellty 5 6.50x
Bingley 5 13.14x
Bothenhampton 5 450.45x
Bristol St Paul In 5 15.87x
Lasswade 5 27.07x
Roath 5 10.49x
Shotts 5 21.43x
Brampton 4 56.18x
Chittlehampton 4 129.03x
Dalmellington 4 30.14x
Hove 4 8.97x
New Monkland 4 6.94x
Plumstead 4 5.83x
Romsey Extra 4 54.42x
Royal Navy 4 6.51x
Seaton Delaval 4 50.76x
St Columb Major 4 70.67x
Bridgewater 3 11.39x
Christchurch 3 22.26x
Derby St Werburgh 3 5.50x
East Stonehouse 3 12.14x
Ebchester 3 107.91x
Filleigh 3 428.57x
Little Bolton 3 3.26x
Moss Side 3 7.97x
Muirkirk 3 28.33x
Newton In Ashton Under 3 22.85x
Thurlstone 3 50.93x
Worcester St Clement 3 59.88x
Barony 2 0.41x
Bethnal Green London 2 0.76x
Bonhill 2 7.69x
Chawleigh 2 144.93x
Cheddon Fitzpaine 2 327.87x
Combe Florey 2 307.69x
Conside Knitsley 2 14.34x
Hammersmith London 2 1.35x
Milverton 2 55.87x
Shoreditch London 2 0.77x
St Michael Bassishaw 2 454.55x
Taunton St James 2 14.13x
Wavertree 2 8.73x
Westbury On Trym 2 4.99x
Wyke Regis 2 35.21x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 37
Ann 16
Elizabeth 15
Emma 12
Jane 12
Eliza 10
Alice 6
Ellen 6
Emily 6
Margaret 6
Amelia 5
Annie 5
Frances 4
Hannah 4
Harriet 4
Sarah 4
Charlotte 3
Florence 3
Isabella 3
Louisa 3
Martha 3
Selina 3
Ada 2
Agnes 2
Anne 2
Catherine 2
Edith 2
Ethel 2
Fanny 2
Georgina 2
Laura 2
Lydia 2
Rose 2
Susan 2
Bessie 1
Betsy 1
Betty 1
Blanch 1
Emal 1
Emey 1
Francis 1
Georgianna 1
Hope 1
Jessey 1
Jessie 1
Kate 1
Lily 1
Louise 1
Lucy 1
Susie 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
John 27
William 25
George 22
James 21
Thomas 15
Charles 11
Henry 10
Frederick 7
Robert 7
Samuel 6
Edward 5
Walter 5
Alfred 4
Arthur 4
Harry 4
Albert 3
Isaac 3
Joseph 3
Edgar 2
Ernest 2
Hugh 2
Matthew 2
Richard 2
Robt 2
Stephen 2
Timperley 2
Wm. 2
A. 1
Alas 1
Daniel 1
Francis 1
Frank 1
Frederic 1
Fredrick 1
Hemingway 1
Joshua 1
Leonard 1
Levi 1
Lionel 1
Metford 1
Noah 1
Percy 1
Semon 1
Sydney 1
Tho. 1
Thos. 1
Wallace 1

FAQ

Whitefield surname: questions and answers

How common was the Whitefield surname in 1881?

In 1881, 614 people were recorded with the Whitefield surname. That placed it at #5,725 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Whitefield surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 750 in 2016. That gives Whitefield a modern rank of #7,292.

What does the Whitefield surname mean?

A surname arising from residence near a white open field.

What does the Whitefield map show?

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