Surname Variations and Frequencies - all Counties

The index was searched using wildcards in conjunction with the following 5 roots: Mal, Mel, Mil, Mol, and Mul to produce the list of surnames contained in the table to the right. The number to the right of each surname represents the number of individuals with that surname enumerated. The list is sorted according to the frequency of the name. "Mallett" is by far the most common, representing fully one-third of the total, followed by Millett and Mullett, each comprising about 15%. "Mallet" is nearly as common as Millett and Mullett, followed by Mollett and Mellett. The numbers fall off rather dramatically after that.

There are many unique names in the list, but for the most part they appear to be variations of the core names of Mallett, Millett, Mullett, Mollett and Mellett. Some may be mistakes by enumerators or by index transcibers, and yet others may be distinct surnames unto their own. The distribution by surname root is at the right.

Surname Variant Distribution Map

We can't be certain that all of the surname variations presented here are derivatives of "Malet", but it can be seen from the accompanying map that wherever the "Mallet(t)" name is found in large quantities, the others are too - so it seems a reasonable bet. Each symbol on the map represents at least one occurrence of the associated name in a particular location - but does not accurately represent population density.

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Distribution by Region (All Variants)

	For a listing of the counties contained in each region see "Geographic Regions" on the main 1851 census page. The West Country and East Anglia had the largest concentrations of the name in 1851, followed closely by the South East and Northern Counties.
The South East numbers are very heavily influenced by Greater London, and for reasons stated elsewhere, this area should probably not be considered as an ancestral base for the name. The Northern Counties had the next highest concentration, but the dominant surname in the region was Millett, not Mallett.

Variant Distribution by Region

"Mal" Variants	"Mil" Variants
"Mul" Variants	"Mol" Variants
"Mel" Variants

Surname Distribution by County

The following table shows the most common surname variations in the counties where they were found in the largest numbers. The total at the right hand side, however, represents the total number of all surname variations found in the corresponding county - not just the most common ones (some are not shown for want of space).

Flood Fill Map

This map gives a clear visual indication of which counties were home to the largest number of people with all surname variants in 1851. Only the most populous counties are identified by name.

It can be seen quite clearly from the above map that the West Country, Channel Islands, East Anglia, and Northern Counties have the largest concentrations of the name. There are many scattered throughout the midlands as well, but they do not represent a significant portion of the whole, and the absence of any single large concentration in this area indicates that there is probably no ancestral base for the name there.

Dot Distribution Map

Each dot on the map represents at least 1 person. The larger the dot, the larger the population at that place.

Some large population centres of note: Plymouth/Stoke Damerel (Devon) Norwich (Norfolk) Kingswinford/Dudley (Staffordshire) St Helier, St Martins (Jersey) London These population centres are probably not themselves ancestral homes of the name, because each would have attracted people from elsewhere for employment opportunities such as the Royal Navy Yards near Plymouth, but they are indicators that the name may have originated in the area, because they would have drawn more locals than people from far away, and each (with the exception of London - a special case) is located in a geographic area that had a large concentration of the name in 1851.

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2. Maps produced using GenMap UK, from Archer Software.