NameCensus.

UK surname

Work

An occupational surname referring to someone who performed physical labor or worked in a specific trade or craft.

In the 1881 census there were 363 people recorded with the Work surname, ranking it #8,545 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 250, ranked #16,792, down from #8,545 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Kirkwall and St.Ola, Lerwick and Edinburgh. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Shetland South, West Mainland and East Mainland.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Work is 438 in 1891. Compared with 1881, the name has fallen by 31.1%.

1881 census count

363

Ranked #8,545

Modern count

250

2016, ranked #16,792

Peak year

1891

438 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Work had 363 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #8,545 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 250 in 2016, ranked #16,792.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 438 in 1891.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Spacious Rural Living.

Work surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Work surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Work 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 301 #7,626
1861 historical 410 #6,264
1881 historical 363 #8,545
1891 historical 438 #8,234
1901 historical 377 #9,876
1911 historical 103 #22,328
1997 modern 236 #15,852
1998 modern 234 #16,404
1999 modern 229 #16,744
2000 modern 233 #16,524
2001 modern 226 #16,620
2002 modern 235 #16,495
2003 modern 233 #16,394
2004 modern 234 #16,416
2005 modern 228 #16,683
2006 modern 226 #16,891
2007 modern 241 #16,341
2008 modern 240 #16,535
2009 modern 224 #17,685
2010 modern 234 #17,544
2011 modern 226 #17,792
2012 modern 227 #17,630
2013 modern 236 #17,472
2014 modern 242 #17,285
2015 modern 242 #17,191
2016 modern 250 #16,792

Geography

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Where Works are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Kirkwall and St.Ola, Lerwick, Edinburgh, Shapinsay and Westray and Papa Westray. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Shetland South, West Mainland, East Mainland, Ythsie and Calderdale. 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 Kirkwall and St.Ola Orkney
2 Lerwick Shetland
3 Edinburgh Edinburgh
4 Shapinsay Orkney
5 Westray and Papa Westray Orkney

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Shetland South Shetland Islands
2 West Mainland Orkney Islands
3 East Mainland Orkney Islands
4 Ythsie Aberdeenshire
5 Calderdale 025 Calderdale

Forenames

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First names often paired with Work

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Work

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Work, 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 Work surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Spacious Rural Living, within Retired Professionals. This does not mean every Work 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

Professional Employment and Family Lifecycles

Group

Established Homeowners with Children

Within London, Work is most associated with areas classed as Established Homeowners with Children, 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 predominantly British-born residents are typically married/in civil partnerships and own the properties in which they are raising their children. Parents are typically over 45, and many other residents are beyond normal retirement age. Detached and semi-detached houses predominate and multiple car ownership is common.

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

Work 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

Work falls in decile 7 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.

7
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

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

Meaning and origin of Work

The surname "Work" is of English origin and dates back to the late 12th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old English word "wyrc," which means "work" or "labor." This suggests that the name was initially used as an occupational surname for someone who performed manual labor or worked in a particular trade.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire from 1197, where a person named William le Werk was mentioned. The prefix "le" was a common addition to surnames during that time, indicating the person's occupation or place of origin.

In the 13th century, the name appeared in various spellings, such as "Werke," "Wurke," and "Wyrke," reflecting the variations in pronunciation and spelling conventions of the time. These variations can be found in historical records like the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire from 1273, which mentions a Robert le Werke.

The surname "Work" has also been associated with place names, particularly in areas where there were significant settlements or communities of people with this occupation. For instance, in the Domesday Book of 1086, a place called "Werc" is mentioned, which could be related to the surname.

Notable individuals with the surname "Work" include:

1. John Work (c. 1470 - c. 1520), an English composer and church musician during the Renaissance period. 2. Robert Work (1550 - 1612), an English printer and publisher known for his work on the Geneva Bible. 3. Thomas Work (1611 - 1692), an English nonconformist minister and author. 4. Henry Work (1832 - 1916), an American composer best known for the hymn "Sweetly Sings the Donkey." 5. Hubert Work (1860 - 1942), an American politician who served as the United States Postmaster General and Secretary of the Interior.

Over time, the surname "Work" has spread across various regions and countries, particularly in areas where English settlers and immigrants established communities. While the name may have evolved slightly in spelling and pronunciation, its origins remain rooted in the occupational traditions of medieval England.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Work families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Work 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. Orkney leads with 193 Works recorded in 1881 and an index of 494.11x.

County Total Index
Orkney 193 494.11x
Shetland 43 118.59x
Lanarkshire 15 1.31x
Lancashire 15 0.36x
Midlothian 15 3.15x
Yorkshire 14 0.40x
Durham 12 1.14x
Surrey 11 0.64x
Warwickshire 7 0.78x
Anglesey 6 9.54x
Glamorgan 6 0.97x
Suffolk 6 1.39x
Sussex 6 1.00x
Gloucestershire 5 0.72x
Aberdeenshire 2 0.61x
Hampshire 2 0.27x
Isle of Man 1 1.52x
Kent 1 0.08x
Middlesex 1 0.03x
Morayshire 1 1.81x
Northumberland 1 0.19x
Royal Navy 1 2.36x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Kirkwall St Ola in Orkney leads with 59 Works recorded in 1881 and an index of 1008.55x.

Place Total Index
Kirkwall St Ola 59 1008.55x
Shapinshay 58 4873.95x
Lady 38 3275.86x
Dunrossness 31 649.90x
Walls Flotta 14 765.03x
Barony 13 4.47x
Lerwick Gulberwick 12 213.90x
Edinburgh St Cuthberts 11 5.75x
Firth Stenness 9 538.92x
Sutton Coldfield 7 74.39x
Toxteth Park 7 4.91x
Cross Burness N 6 294.12x
Denton 6 1016.95x
Holyhead 6 51.15x
Ipswich St Nicholas 6 252.10x
Llandaff 6 29.17x
Sculcoates 6 10.76x
Sutton Stoneferry 6 59.58x
Westoe 6 10.02x
Bristol St Augustine 5 44.48x
Liverpool 5 1.95x
Wimbledon 5 25.75x
Rousay Egilshay 4 294.12x
Wolsingham 4 41.54x
Holm 3 229.01x
Kingston On Thames 3 7.22x
Aberdeen St Nicholas 2 3.25x
Cottingham 2 26.39x
Govan 2 0.70x
Penge 2 8.82x
South Leith 2 3.74x
Westleigh 2 20.90x
Battersea 1 0.77x
Drainie 1 20.45x
Edinburgh St Marys 1 10.81x
Edinburgh St Stephens 1 10.68x
Evie Rendall 1 60.61x
Farnworth 1 3.96x
Gateshead 1 1.26x
Hampstead London 1 1.81x
Hartlepool 1 6.66x
Holdenhurst 1 5.24x
Lezayre 1 33.78x
Newcastle On Tyne St 1 3.65x
Southampton All Sts 1 8.01x
Stronsay Eday 1 39.22x
Tonbridge 1 2.29x

Top female names

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

Name Count
Mary 11
Elizabeth 5
Emily 3
Isabella 3
Jane 3
Sarah 3
Ellen 2
Emma 2
Hannah 2
Margret 2
Alice 1
Annie 1
Barbara 1
Catherine 1
Elisabeth 1
Eliza 1
Gertrude 1
Ha. 1
Harriett 1
Henrietta 1
Laura 1
Marrion 1
Maud 1
Rita 1
Sophia 1

Top male names

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

Name Count
James 7
John 7
William 7
Robert 5
George 2
Preston 2
Sinclair 2
Alfred 1
Charles 1
Harold 1
Henry 1
Jane 1
Leslie 1
Randolph 1
Reginald 1
Shadrack 1
Thomas 1
Wilfred 1

FAQ

Work surname: questions and answers

How common was the Work surname in 1881?

In 1881, 363 people were recorded with the Work surname. That placed it at #8,545 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Work surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 250 in 2016. That gives Work a modern rank of #16,792.

What does the Work surname mean?

An occupational surname referring to someone who performed physical labor or worked in a specific trade or craft.

What does the Work map show?

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