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
School 1,498
General Labourer 128
Farm Labourer 119
Labourer 98
General Servant (domestic) 95
Private Means 88
Farmer 76
Dressmaker 64
None 61
At School 56
Cotton Weaver 56
Domestic Servant 52
Coal Miner Hewer 52
Scholar 49
Clerk 48
Bricklayer 47
Cook (domestic) 38
House Keeper 38
Shop Assistant 37
At Home 36
Laundress 36
Housekeeper 35
Dress Maker 34
Dock Labourer 33
Carpenter 28

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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