NameCensus.

UK surname

Wyness

In the 1881 census there were 379 people recorded with the Wyness surname, ranking it #8,268 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 512, ranked #9,823, down from #8,268 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Nigg, Ellon and Lonmay. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Peterhead Harbour, Flintshire and Fetteresso, Netherley and Catter.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Wyness is 565 in 1997. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 35.1%.

1881 census count

379

Ranked #8,268

Modern count

512

2016, ranked #9,823

Peak year

1997

565 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Wyness had 379 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #8,268 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 512 in 2016, ranked #9,823.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 425 in 1901.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Established but Challenged.

Wyness surname distribution map

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

Distribution map

Wyness surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Wyness 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 224 #9,534
1861 historical 251 #9,830
1881 historical 379 #8,268
1891 historical 423 #8,465
1901 historical 425 #9,081
1911 historical 113 #21,168
1997 modern 565 #8,493
1998 modern 558 #8,824
1999 modern 544 #9,055
2000 modern 519 #9,352
2001 modern 509 #9,323
2002 modern 506 #9,545
2003 modern 500 #9,481
2004 modern 503 #9,480
2005 modern 484 #9,659
2006 modern 472 #9,892
2007 modern 484 #9,796
2008 modern 491 #9,785
2009 modern 502 #9,818
2010 modern 508 #9,929
2011 modern 506 #9,873
2012 modern 505 #9,787
2013 modern 500 #10,023
2014 modern 504 #10,023
2015 modern 510 #9,875
2016 modern 512 #9,823

Geography

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Where Wyness' are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Nigg, Ellon, Lonmay, Lumphanan 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 Peterhead Harbour, Flintshire, Fetteresso, Netherley and Catter, Fyvie-Rothie and Ellon East. 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 Nigg Kincardine
2 Ellon Aberdeen
3 Lonmay Aberdeen
4 Lumphanan Aberdeen
5 London parishes London 2

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Peterhead Harbour Aberdeenshire
2 Flintshire 009 Flintshire
3 Fetteresso, Netherley and Catter Aberdeenshire
4 Fyvie-Rothie Aberdeenshire
5 Ellon East Aberdeenshire

Forenames

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First names often paired with Wyness

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

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Wyness

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Wyness, 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 Wyness surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Established but Challenged, within Semi- and Un-Skilled Workforce. This does not mean every Wyness 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, Wyness 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

Wyness 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

Wyness falls in decile 4 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.

4
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

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

1881 census detail

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Wyness families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Wyness 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. Aberdeenshire leads with 272 Wyness' recorded in 1881 and an index of 79.86x.

County Total Index
Aberdeenshire 272 79.86x
Kincardineshire 23 51.36x
Middlesex 22 0.60x
Angus 14 4.11x
Banffshire 6 7.87x
Essex 6 0.83x
Fife 6 2.76x
Shropshire 6 1.89x
Hampshire 5 0.66x
Dunbartonshire 4 4.05x
Devon 2 0.26x
Kent 2 0.16x
Kirkcudbrightshire 2 3.76x
Sussex 2 0.32x
Gloucestershire 1 0.14x
Lancashire 1 0.02x
Orkney 1 2.47x
Surrey 1 0.06x
Yorkshire 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. Aberdeen Old Machar in Aberdeenshire leads with 75 Wyness' recorded in 1881 and an index of 105.47x.

Place Total Index
Aberdeen Old Machar 75 105.47x
Aberdeen St Nicholas 57 89.45x
Lumphanan 17 1188.81x
Nigg 16 432.43x
Newhills 15 215.21x
Ellon 12 256.41x
Inverurie 12 311.69x
Skene 12 530.97x
Echt 11 670.73x
Cruden 9 205.01x
Islington London 7 1.96x
Auchterderran 6 109.69x
Craig 6 182.37x
Harwich St Nicholas 6 106.95x
Meldrum 6 209.06x
Old Deer 6 93.02x
Poplar London 6 8.64x
Shrewsbury St Chad 6 53.81x
Tarves 6 186.34x
Dundee 5 3.93x
Fordyce 5 91.07x
Banchory Devenick 4 95.69x
Bethnal Green London 4 2.50x
Carisbrooke 4 38.24x
Longside 4 98.28x
Lonmay 4 129.45x
Row 4 31.30x
Strichen 4 135.14x
Cluny 3 182.93x
Kemnay 3 145.63x
Kintore 3 101.35x
Liff Benvie 3 5.80x
Alford 2 108.11x
Dover St Mary Virgin 2 16.47x
Hackney London 2 0.97x
New Deer 2 32.41x
Peterculter 2 83.33x
Stoke Damerel 2 3.73x
Urr 2 28.90x
Withyam 2 75.47x
Banchory Ternan 1 25.84x
Belhelvie 1 42.92x
Bristol St Paul In 1 5.21x
Coull 1 100.00x
Cross Burness N 1 47.39x
Fordoun 1 39.84x
Forglen 1 106.38x
Foveran 1 38.76x
Glenbervie 1 81.30x
King Edward 1 25.51x
Mile End Old Town 1 1.72x
New Machar 1 52.36x
Portsea 1 0.68x
Rayne 1 61.73x
Sheffield 1 0.86x
St Pancras London 1 0.34x
St Pancras Soper Lane 1 1428.57x
Udny 1 48.54x
West Derby 1 0.78x
Woking 1 9.26x

Top female names

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

Top male names

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

Name Count
James 7
William 4
Alexander 2
John 2
Andrew 1
Cornelius 1
Peter 1
Roy 1
Samuel 1
Walter 1

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 Wyness households.

FAQ

Wyness surname: questions and answers

How common was the Wyness surname in 1881?

In 1881, 379 people were recorded with the Wyness surname. That placed it at #8,268 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Wyness surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 512 in 2016. That gives Wyness a modern rank of #9,823.

What does the Wyness map show?

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