Origins of the Porter surname

What does the name Porter mean?

Porter is an English surname with Anglo-Norman roots. It is an occupational name, coming from the French 'porteur'. A porter would be the door-keeper, carrier or janitor of a castle or monastery (often a hereditary position). The name would be connected to an individual, but passed to their heirs and continued along their line.

Alternative variations of the name Porter

Porter, Portar, Poortar, Poreter, Poorter

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Delve deeper into the Porter family's history

OrkneyShetlandHighlandsWestern IslesGrampianTaysideCentralStrathclydeFifeLothianBordersDumfriesNorth East 1022North West 492Isle of Man 21Yorkshire 1420East Midlands 721West Midlands 1217East 1997London 4664South East 1837South West 783South Wales 370Mid Wales 28West Wales 3North Wales 27Republic of IrelandNorthern Ireland

In 1921, most Porters lived in london

Census records trace your ancestors through each generation, so you can follow where your relatives lived through each decade.

52,000 Porter Travel & migration records
220,000 Porters found in all Census records

Interesting facts about Porter

How common is your surname?

143rd most common surname in the UK

We have for the Porter surname. The oldest one dates back to 1241.

Who were Porters most likely to marry?

Our tell us which families married Porters.

What are the most common Porter first names?

John

William

Mary

Elizabeth

Our tell us the names of Porter family members
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Census records provide incredible detail on names, ages, marital statuses, occupations and more.

Common jobs for Porters

Men and women often performed different types of jobs, so these are displayed by gender to maintain their historical accuracy.

Common female occupations for Porters in 1921

Dressmaker

964

Domestic Servant

565

Cotton Weaver

545

Laundress

523

General Servant Domestic

460

Common male occupations for Porters in 1921

Agricultural Labourer

987

General Labourer

835

Farmer

781

Farm Labourer

645

Coal Miner

618

We found over 310,000 family trees with the Porter surname

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