Kirby Name Origin, Meaning and Family History

Kirby Name Meaning: From Old Norse 'kirkja' meaning church & 'byr' meaning settlement - in other words a village with a church

Name for people from many places in northern England called Kirby or Kirkby. Early records refer to an ecclesiastic by the name of John Kirkby. He frequently acted as keeper of the seal during the reign of Henry 111 & was appointed Bishop of Ely in 1286 - a post he held until his death on 26 March 1290.

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Surname Distribution

Census frequency by county

Name Concentrations Within England and Wales

Kirby Surname Statistics


Top Professions for the Kirby family

Profession Census Frequency
Scholar 789
Agricultural Labourer 292
House Servant 140
Labourer 94
At Home 89
Farm Labourer 72
Servant 60
Ag Lab 57
Dress Maker 55
House Keeper 44
General Servant 37
Laundress 33
Annuitant 31
Tailor 31
Blacksmith 31
Farmers Son 28
Lace Maker 27
Shoe Maker 26
Cook 23
Errand Boy 22
Wife Of Above 21
Gardener 21
Farm Servant 19
Butcher 19
Groom 19

Kirby Surname Variants Ranking

Rank Surname Match Census Frequency
1 Kirby 100% 75,626
2 Kerby 80% 7,997
3 Kerbey 67% 641
4 Karby 80% 608
5 Curby 60% 299
6 Kirbey 83% 233
7 Kriby 60% 209

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The surname Kirby is the most popular version of all its varients

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