NameCensus.

UK surname

Willshaw

In the 1881 census there were 259 people recorded with the Willshaw surname, ranking it #10,808 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 176, ranked #21,298, down from #10,808 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Biddulph, Norton-in-the-Moors and Cheddleton. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Staffordshire Moorlands, Leeds and Stockton-on-Tees.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Willshaw is 416 in 1901. Compared with 1881, the name has fallen by 32.0%.

1881 census count

259

Ranked #10,808

Modern count

176

2016, ranked #21,298

Peak year

1901

416 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Willshaw had 259 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #10,808 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 176 in 2016, ranked #21,298.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 416 in 1901.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Spacious Rural Living.

Willshaw surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Willshaw surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Willshaw 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 244 #8,950
1861 historical 234 #10,463
1881 historical 259 #10,808
1891 historical 305 #10,976
1901 historical 416 #9,220
1911 historical 404 #9,221
1997 modern 189 #18,267
1998 modern 226 #16,800
1999 modern 216 #17,364
2000 modern 208 #17,772
2001 modern 216 #17,103
2002 modern 220 #17,249
2003 modern 197 #18,311
2004 modern 206 #17,883
2005 modern 190 #18,753
2006 modern 196 #18,512
2007 modern 206 #18,142
2008 modern 201 #18,584
2009 modern 200 #19,028
2010 modern 206 #19,066
2011 modern 206 #18,907
2012 modern 202 #19,084
2013 modern 187 #20,436
2014 modern 193 #20,159
2015 modern 190 #20,272
2016 modern 176 #21,298

Geography

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Where Willshaws are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Biddulph, Norton-in-the-Moors, Cheddleton, Newcastle-under Lyne and London parishes. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Staffordshire Moorlands, Leeds, Stockton-on-Tees and Wyre. 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 Biddulph Cheshire
2 Norton-in-the-Moors Staffordshire
3 Cheddleton Staffordshire
4 Newcastle-under Lyne Staffordshire
5 London parishes London 2

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Staffordshire Moorlands 006 Staffordshire Moorlands
2 Leeds 103 Leeds
3 Stockton-on-Tees 003 Stockton-on-Tees
4 Wyre 006 Wyre
5 Leeds 089 Leeds

Forenames

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First names often paired with Willshaw

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Willshaw

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

Spacious Rural Living

Nationally, the Willshaw surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Spacious Rural Living, within Retired Professionals. This does not mean every Willshaw household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

These predominantly ageing households typically have no resident dependent children. Most are owner-occupiers and live in detached houses in low density residential developments (although renting is more common than in the rest of the Supergroup). White ethnicity predominates. Residents are typically beyond retirement age but those still in work have managerial, professional or skilled trade occupations. White ethnicity and Christian religious affiliation predominate. Neighbourhoods are located throughout rural UK.

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

Central Connected Professionals and Managers

Group

Senior Professionals

Within London, Willshaw is most associated with areas classed as Senior Professionals, part of Central Connected Professionals and Managers. 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 very central neighbourhoods house residents whose ages are more skewed towards older age cohorts than elsewhere in the Supergroup. Few households have young children. Rates of illness are low. Indian ethnicity is rare compared to the Supergroup mean. Property under occupation is more common, despite the centrality of neighbourhoods, and more residents live in communal establishments than elsewhere in the Supergroup.

Wider London pattern

Adult residents of these neighbourhoods are typically aged 25 to 44, working full-time in professional, managerial or associate professional occupations. There are few families with dependent children. The predominantly Inner London neighbourhoods have an international character, including many residents born elsewhere in Europe alongside high numbers of individuals identifying as of Chinese ethnicity. Many individuals are never married, childless and/or living alone. Above average numbers of individuals, likely to be full-time students, live in communal establishments. Elsewhere, privately rented flats are the dominant housing type. Residents of these areas are well-qualified, with a significant number holding Level 4 or above qualifications. There is a correspondingly high level of individuals employed full-time in professional, managerial and associated professional or technical occupations. Employing industries are financial, real estate, professional, administration, and, to a lesser degree, transport and communications. Unemployment is uncommon.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Willshaw is most concentrated in decile 4 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.

4
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Willshaw falls in decile 8 for neighbourhood deprivation. This puts the surname towards the less deprived end of the index.

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

8
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Willshaw is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of 60-70 mbit/s.

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

9
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - British

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

1881 census detail

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Willshaw families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Willshaw 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. Staffordshire leads with 123 Willshaws recorded in 1881 and an index of 14.42x.

County Total Index
Staffordshire 123 14.42x
Lancashire 48 1.60x
Cheshire 15 2.69x
Derbyshire 13 3.29x
Middlesex 12 0.48x
Yorkshire 12 0.48x
Bedfordshire 8 6.12x
Warwickshire 7 1.10x
Westmorland 7 12.61x
Surrey 4 0.32x
Kent 3 0.35x
Durham 2 0.27x
Nottinghamshire 2 0.59x
Essex 1 0.20x
Lincolnshire 1 0.25x
Sussex 1 0.23x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Stoke Upon Trent in Staffordshire leads with 27 Willshaws recorded in 1881 and an index of 29.86x.

Place Total Index
Stoke Upon Trent 27 29.86x
Cheddleton 19 1067.42x
Leek Lowe 17 149.78x
Audley 14 165.88x
Biddulph 13 270.27x
Chapel En Le Frith 9 249.31x
Brightside Bierlow 8 16.29x
Burnley 8 31.68x
Congleton 8 82.99x
Aston 7 3.99x
Hugill 7 2058.82x
Kirkdale 7 13.88x
Litherland 7 111.64x
Mayfield 7 654.21x
Hackney London 6 4.24x
Newcastle Under Lyme 6 39.76x
Bedford St Paul 5 55.74x
Liverpool 5 2.75x
Salford 5 5.67x
Smallthorne 5 157.73x
Battersea 4 4.30x
Chorlton On Medlock 4 8.40x
Macclesfield 4 16.14x
Worsley 4 21.65x
Ashborne 3 111.52x
Burslem 3 12.28x
Kempston 3 101.01x
North Rode 3 1304.35x
Withington 3 31.06x
Bethnal Green London 2 1.82x
Caverswall 2 45.15x
Deal 2 27.21x
Ecclesall Bierlow 2 3.93x
Haswell 2 37.11x
Leek Frith 2 281.69x
Lenton 2 24.94x
Limehouse London 2 7.21x
Madeley 2 93.90x
Wolstanton 2 7.72x
Betley 1 140.85x
Broughton In Salford 1 3.65x
Buxton 1 29.85x
Chatham 1 4.22x
Colchester St Giles 1 20.28x
Droylsden 1 10.22x
Eastbourne 1 5.10x
Heathylee 1 277.78x
Horton 1 96.15x
Hulme 1 1.60x
Kingswinford 1 3.23x
Leeds 1 0.71x
Mile End Old Town 1 2.51x
Morley 1 7.68x
Moston 1 33.22x
New Sleaford 1 38.61x
North Meols 1 3.41x
St Giles In Fields 1 11.48x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 28
Ann 10
Elizabeth 10
Sarah 8
Hannah 6
Annie 5
Eliza 4
Ellen 3
Harriet 3
Jane 3
Kate 3
Louisa 3
Lucy 3
Martha 3
Alice 2
Emily 2
Emma 2
Harriett 2
Maria 2
Selina 2
Betty 1
Caroline 1
Edith 1
Elezebeth 1
Esther 1
Fanny 1
Florence 1
Frances 1
Helen 1
Henrietta 1
Julia 1
Lilian 1
Lizzy 1
Margaret 1
Milla 1
Richard 1
Rohda 1
Rose 1
Ruth 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
John 18
William 13
Thomas 11
Joseph 10
James 8
George 7
Alfred 4
Arthur 4
Charles 4
Edward 3
Fred 3
Frederick 3
Harry 3
Clement 2
David 2
Edwin 2
Enoch 2
Francis 2
Gerard 2
Henry 2
Herbert 2
Hugh 2
Jas. 2
Lewis 2
Richard 2
Samuel 2
Tom 2
Andrew 1
Benjamin 1
Fredric 1
Geo.H. 1
Horace 1
Infant 1
Isaac 1
Josiah 1
Mark 1
Mary 1
Mathew 1
Miles 1
Philip 1
Ralph 1
Tim 1
Timothy 1
Walter 1

FAQ

Willshaw surname: questions and answers

How common was the Willshaw surname in 1881?

In 1881, 259 people were recorded with the Willshaw surname. That placed it at #10,808 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Willshaw surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 176 in 2016. That gives Willshaw a modern rank of #21,298.

What does the Willshaw map show?

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