Geographical distribution of surnames used in phase 1 study

The following summarizes the geographical distribution of the surnames used in the current study. The information was obtained using Surname Atlas and encapsulates the data contained in the 1881 census. Surnames were searched for the exact spelling of the given for the name and the results were plotted as number of individuals per 100,000 people in the county. Data from Ireland was not available in the same format and is plotted separately as a % of surnames per region using information from Barry Griffin’s site . The data is based on the 2002/03 phone directory and the unit is a household. Key details for each surname and summary and associated calculations are tabulated in Table 1. A discussion and summary are provided at the bottom.

Please note that the density scale for the maps used differs between surnames!!!

Western highlands

North central and eastern highlands

Lowlands

Midlands

Southern England

Wales

Polymorphic

Irish and other

Table 1. Demographic details and origin of the surnames used in the phase 1 study

	Britain			Ireland
Surname	1881 census	County with highest density	density per 100,000	Est number 2002/03^1	county with highest density^2	density per 100,000^3	Origin group^4	Predominant Region	Comment
Schmidt	668	Middlesex	11				Norse/Pict/Anglosaxon	Germany
Byrne	497	Cumberland	14	32312	Wicklow	13760	Irish Celt	Ireland
Donoghue^5	1035	Selkirkshire	10	6303	Kerry	8250	Irish Celt	Ireland
Fennessy	36	Monmouth	2	n/a	n/a	n/a	Irish Celt	Ireland
Fitzpatrick	4420	Lanarkshire	61	11402	Cavan	8710	Irish Celt	Ireland
Flanagan	2361	Peebleshire	37	6451	Roscommon	2410	Irish Celt	Ireland
Keane	691	Kircudbrightshire	17	9568	Clare	5530	Irish Celt	Ireland	Two groups
O'Brien	801	Lancashire	9	32656	Clare	7820	Irish Celt	Ireland
O'Shea	39	Essex	2	10816	Kerry	10300	Irish Celt	Ireland
Quinn	5724	Lancashire	69	17242	Tyrone	9000	Irish Celt	Ireland
Bell	56321	Dumfries	2647				Britonic Celt	Lower Scotland
Boyd	10513	Ayrshire	534				Britonic Celt	Lower Scotland
Buchanan	7754	Dunbartonshire	686				Britonic Celt	Lower Scotland
Ewing	2764	Kinrossshire	286				Dal Riadic Celt	Lower Scotland
Houston	3821	Renfrewshire	264				Dal Riadic Celt	Lower Scotland
Johnstone	13577	Dumfries	2078				Britonic Celt	Lower Scotland
Kincaid	370	Stirling	42				Britonic Celt	Lower Scotland
Orr	5054	Ayrshire	367				Britonic Celt	Lower Scotland
Wilson	137640	Ayrshire	1765				Norse/Pict/Anglosaxon	Lower Scotland	Two groups?
Calvert	6110	Yorkshire NR	234				Britonic Celt	Midlands
Nesbitt	824	Northumberland	38				Britonic Celt	Midlands
Gordon	18872	Sutherland	1221				Norse/Pict/Anglosaxon	NC&E Highlands
McLaren	7773	Perthshire	1264				Dal Riadic Celt	NC&E Highlands
Stewart	46914	Perthshire	3004				Britonic Celt	NC&E Highlands
Bond	15837	Somerset	198				Norse/Pict/Anglosaxon	Southern England	Two groups?
Martin	73709	Cornwall	738				Britonic Celt	Southern England	Two groups?
Staples	2860	Lincolnshire	53				Norse/Pict/Anglosaxon	Southern England	Two groups?
York	3962	Northamptonshire	284				Norse/Pict/Anglosaxon	Southern England
Jones	339185	Merionth	23076				Britonic Celt	Wales
Black	19398	Bute	871				Dal Riadic Celt	Western Highlands
Blair	7778	Renfrewshire	352				Britonic Celt	Western Highlands
Campbell	50726	Argyllshire	4157				Britonic Celt	Western Highlands
Crawford	14684	Bute	1047				Britonic Celt	Western Highlands
Ferguson	21268	Kinrossshire	1182				Britonic Celt	Western Highlands
Livingstone	2786	Argyllshire	301				Britonic Celt	Western Highlands
McDonald	48170	Inverness	6708				Dal Riadic Celt	Western Highlands	Known to have Norse infusion
McEwan	4607	Arygllshire	295				Dal Riadic Celt	Western Highlands
McGregor	13443	Perthshire	1387				Britonic Celt	Western Highlands
McMillan	11536	Argyllshire	2051				Britonic Celt	Western Highlands
^1 In 1881 the population was 5,174,836 for Ireland. In 2005 the est population for the Irish Republic was 4,015, 676 and 1,685,267 for NI a total of 5,700,943. The population
per household in NI was 2.7 individuals and 2.9 in Irish Republic. Numbers shown are number of households *2.8
^2 County encompassing region of highest density plotted
^3 density of the region not the county
^4 Origin based on commonly accepted history for the surname, subject to historical and source errors. Note Celt here means inhabitant prior to Roman invasion
^5 Irish map given is for ODonoghue

Summary and observations

The surnames used in the present study were selected on numbers available at Ysearch and perceived relationship with the Dal Riadic migration. Some clear trends to emerge are:

· Surnames have marked focal concentrations that typically correspond with recorded historical origin and classification. This was the reason for the present cross classification work i.e. to provide independent supporting evidence.

· Some surnames, however, appear to have more than one origin eg Martin and Bond.

· For others e.g. Crawford the current highest density does not relate to their historical origins in Scottish lowlands.

· Similarly, Keane distribution may reflect historical events since surname formation and multiple settlement foci.

· Later emigrations since surname formation into Britain e.g. Irish and German surnames can be detected by low surname frequency and a “spotty” dispersed pattern

· It should be possible to calculate a “concentration” index by calculating the “centre of concentration” for a surname and using distance between counties from that centre to calculate its standard deviation. The centre of concentration could be used as a geographic proxy in analyses. Similarly, surnames with high standard deviations probably reflect multiple origins of the surname or subsequent movement and perhaps should be removed from the analyses.