NameCensus.

UK surname

Wilshaw

In the 1881 census there were 760 people recorded with the Wilshaw surname, ranking it #4,865 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 1,353, ranked #4,454, up from #4,865 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Biddulph, Wolstanton and Manchester. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Stoke-on-Trent and Newcastle-under-Lyme.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Wilshaw is 1,488 in 1998. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 78.0%.

1881 census count

760

Ranked #4,865

Modern count

1,353

2016, ranked #4,454

Peak year

1998

1,488 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Wilshaw had 760 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #4,865 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 1,353 in 2016, ranked #4,454.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 1,212 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Small Town Suburbia.

Wilshaw surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Wilshaw surname density by area, 1881 census.

Loading map
Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

Back to top

Wilshaw 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 449 #5,493
1861 historical 472 #5,507
1881 historical 760 #4,865
1891 historical 850 #4,811
1901 historical 1,098 #4,399
1911 historical 1,212 #3,892
1997 modern 946 #5,739
1998 modern 1,488 #4,082
1999 modern 1,470 #4,152
2000 modern 1,446 #4,189
2001 modern 1,427 #4,152
2002 modern 1,421 #4,242
2003 modern 1,414 #4,189
2004 modern 1,404 #4,206
2005 modern 1,397 #4,195
2006 modern 1,399 #4,193
2007 modern 1,402 #4,227
2008 modern 1,396 #4,268
2009 modern 1,425 #4,277
2010 modern 1,438 #4,320
2011 modern 1,437 #4,282
2012 modern 1,385 #4,338
2013 modern 1,404 #4,357
2014 modern 1,402 #4,391
2015 modern 1,386 #4,385
2016 modern 1,353 #4,454

Geography

Back to top

Where Wilshaws are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Biddulph, Wolstanton, Manchester, Sheffield and Audley. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Stoke-on-Trent and Newcastle-under-Lyme. 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 Wolstanton Staffordshire
3 Manchester Lancashire
4 Sheffield Yorkshire, West Riding
5 Audley Staffordshire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Stoke-on-Trent 017 Stoke-on-Trent
2 Stoke-on-Trent 014 Stoke-on-Trent
3 Newcastle-under-Lyme 005 Newcastle-under-Lyme
4 Stoke-on-Trent 013 Stoke-on-Trent
5 Newcastle-under-Lyme 011 Newcastle-under-Lyme

Forenames

Back to top

First names often paired with Wilshaw

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

Modern profile

Back to top

Neighbourhood profile for Wilshaw

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Wilshaw, 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 Wilshaw surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Small Town Suburbia, within Retired Professionals. This does not mean every Wilshaw 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

Skilled Trades and Construction Workers

Within London, Wilshaw is most associated with areas classed as Skilled Trades and Construction 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

These scattered, peripheral and often low residential density neighbourhoods house more workers in skilled trades and construction. Few households rent social housing and there are few students. Multiple car ownership is higher than the Supergroup average, perhaps because of poorer public transport connectivity. Incidence of mixed or multiple ethnicity is below the Supergroup average, and the absence of individuals identifying as Pakistani or Other Asian groups is also less pronounced. Flatted accommodation is less dominant than elsewhere in the Supergroup.

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

Wilshaw 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

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

1881 census detail

Back to top

Wilshaw families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Wilshaw 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 422 Wilshaws recorded in 1881 and an index of 16.93x.

County Total Index
Staffordshire 422 16.93x
Lancashire 132 1.51x
Yorkshire 71 0.97x
Cheshire 31 1.90x
Middlesex 26 0.35x
Warwickshire 23 1.24x
Derbyshire 18 1.56x
Kent 9 0.36x
Bedfordshire 5 1.31x
Leicestershire 4 0.49x
Worcestershire 4 0.41x
Durham 3 0.14x
Cornwall 2 0.24x
Hampshire 2 0.13x
Nottinghamshire 2 0.20x
Kirkcudbrightshire 1 0.94x
Lincolnshire 1 0.08x
Surrey 1 0.03x

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 175 Wilshaws recorded in 1881 and an index of 66.21x.

Place Total Index
Stoke Upon Trent 175 66.21x
Norton In Moors 42 318.42x
Ashton Under Lyne 29 15.14x
Burslem 20 28.01x
Manchester 20 5.08x
Biddulph 19 135.14x
Ecclesall Bierlow 19 12.77x
Wolstanton Chesterton 19 149.14x
Birmingham 18 2.90x
Sheffield 18 7.73x
Leek Lowe 17 51.27x
Wolstanton Thursfield 15 495.05x
Audley 14 56.77x
Denton 14 72.09x
Chorlton On Medlock 12 8.62x
Stone 12 37.64x
Leeds 11 2.66x
Macclesfield 11 15.18x
Wolstanton 10 13.21x
Audley Talk O Th Hill 9 200.45x
Newton 9 13.33x
Rainhill 9 160.43x
Shoreditch London 9 2.81x
Sutton In Macclesfield 9 53.19x
Chatham 8 11.54x
Cheddleton 8 153.26x
Wolstanton Oldcott 8 88.59x
Castle Church 7 46.73x
Horton 7 229.51x
Wolstanton Knutton 7 45.99x
Wooldale 7 56.41x
Clapham Cum Newby 6 350.88x
Halifax 6 5.59x
Haughton 6 46.95x
Madeley 6 96.62x
Staveley 6 29.24x
Aston 5 0.98x
Dalton In Furness 5 14.78x
Droylsden 5 17.49x
Limehouse London 5 6.17x
Newcastle Under Lyme 5 11.34x
Openshaw 5 12.18x
Stafford St Mary 5 14.17x
Tintwistle 5 57.41x
Armitage 4 123.08x
Dudley 4 3.41x
Hartington Upper 4 72.46x
Leicester St Margaret 4 2.00x
Milton Ernest 4 377.36x
Moss Side 4 8.67x
Tillington 4 588.24x
Dore 3 135.75x
Enfield 3 6.19x
Hackney London 3 0.72x
Hulme 3 1.64x
Islington London 3 0.42x
Kingswinford 3 3.31x
Stockport 3 3.58x
Wormhill 3 123.97x
Accrington 2 2.51x
Broughton In Salford 2 2.50x
Huyton With Roby 2 19.47x
Lenton 2 8.53x
Southampton St Mary 2 2.10x
St George Hanover 2 2.07x
St Stephen In Brannel 2 26.21x
Trentham 2 9.43x
Barnard Castle 1 9.21x
Betley 1 48.08x
Burton Upon Trent 1 1.71x
Buxton 1 10.22x
Cocken 1 72.99x
Croydon 1 0.50x
Ecclesfield 1 1.86x
Leek Frith 1 48.08x
Oldham 1 0.35x
Tytherington 1 126.58x
Urr 1 7.19x
Welbourn 1 71.43x
Wolverhampton 1 0.52x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 62
Sarah 39
Elizabeth 34
Ann 28
Hannah 17
Eliza 14
Annie 13
Emma 10
Emily 8
Jane 8
Alice 7
Ellen 7
Margaret 5
Martha 5
Clara 4
Frances 4
Gertrude 4
Ada 3
Anne 3
Catherine 3
Ethel 3
Grace 3
Kate 3
Louisa 3
Maria 3
Agnes 2
Amelia 2
Beatrice 2
Eleanor 2
Fanny 2
Florence 2
Harriet 2
Harriett 2
Henrietta 2
Joanna 2
Julia 2
Lizzie 2
Theodosia 2
Tryon 2
Winifred 2
Amy 1
Bertha 1
Charlot 1
Charlotte 1
Elizh. 1
Emly 1
Esther 1
Harriott 1
Helen 1
Isabella 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
William 58
John 55
James 38
George 28
Joseph 26
Thomas 21
Charles 16
Samuel 16
Henry 11
Frederick 8
Alfred 5
Arthur 5
Edward 5
Enoch 5
Harry 5
Albert 4
Daniel 4
Isaac 4
Thos. 4
Saml. 3
Amos 2
David 2
Edwd. 2
Ernest 2
Frank 2
Fred 2
Hugh 2
Ralph 2
Robert 2
Tom 2
Wm. 2
Zachariah 2
Annie 1
Chas. 1
Cornelius 1
Dudley 1
Edwin 1
Eli 1
Elijah 1
Enock 1
Ephrain 1
Francis 1
Fred. 1
Hy. 1
J. 1
Jacob 1
Jerrard 1
Jesse 1
Joshur 1
Josiah 1

FAQ

Wilshaw surname: questions and answers

How common was the Wilshaw surname in 1881?

In 1881, 760 people were recorded with the Wilshaw surname. That placed it at #4,865 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Wilshaw surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 1,353 in 2016. That gives Wilshaw a modern rank of #4,454.

What does the Wilshaw map show?

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