The 1881 Census of Scotland

Distribution and Intensity

The "contemporary distribution" (1881) of the Kilpatrick surname is in line with the etymological description. The surname is strongly localized in Dunbartonshire where we find the place name elements and parish boundaries. The surrounding counties of Renfrewshire and Ayrshire are also well represented. In the 18th and 19th centuries, industrialization and urbanization have distorted the historic pattern, with the proximity to Glasgow being a major factor. A further factor pointing to the Dunbartonshire origin can be gleaned from the Kilpatrick Family Tree YDNA Study. Numerous instances of matches with the surname Colhoun are found in the results. The distribution of the Calhoun surname is geographically coincident with the Kilpatrick surname. Both Calhoun and Colhoun, are variants of the surname Colquhoun. The Colquhoun clan territory overlaps in part the parish of Old Kilpatrick. The shared DNA would likely pre-date the adoption of surnames. Related individuals would eventually take surnames from different roots, some as members of a clan, others who resided near a church. Transcription confusion between Kilpatrick and Kirkpatrick likely took place in the homeland before surnames became fossilized. This could account for the presence of both surnames and the DNA overlap between the two surnames.

Surname Intensity

During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the distribution of surnames underwent significant changes due to the effects of industrialization and urbanization. These factors posed challenges to accurately tracing the historic origins of surnames. An alternative method for analyzing this distribution is through the use of area fill maps, which are normalized per 100,000 population. This approach offers the advantage of accurately depicting the spatial extent of the distribution. A more refined technique involves calculating a Banwell Index, which compares the local intensity of surname occurrences with the national frequency. For example, a Banwell index value of 5 would indicate that the intensity of occurrences in a specific Poor Law Union was five times higher than the national average for that surname. This method helps mitigate urban bias and emphasizes two distinct regions: coastal Ayrshire and the counties bordering the River Clyde. When considered together, these regions encompass the historic homeland identified by Black in 'The Surnames of Scotland'.

Farmers and the Distribution of Surnames

In 1890, H.B. Guppy published "Homes of Family Names in Great Britain," in which he proposed a theory suggesting that farmers in the West of England could serve as identifiers of the homeland for local surnames. His approach, remarkably simple yet insightful, involved utilizing trade directories to analyze the distribution of surnames. Guppy's argument hinged on the premise that farmers, being the most stable segment of the population, could accurately pinpoint the homeland associated with a surname. While modern surname studies have generally confirmed Guppy's principle, allowances must be made to accommodate the gradual drift away from a surname's homeland over time. The surnames Kilpatrick and Kirkpatrick provide an excellent illustration of this principle.

Kilpatrick/Kirkpatrick Farmers

An examination of the 1841 Census of Scotland unveiled 20 Kilpatrick and 29 Kirkpatrick farmers, yet none were found in the parishes of Old and New Kilpatrick. This underscores a constraint of Guppy's approach, as it becomes apparent that certain farmers, termed "ghost farmers," have vacated the land without leaving traceable evidence of their prior residency. The majority of farmers are clustered in Galloway, particularly in areas where Kirkpatrick and a small group of Kilpatricks are situated. This aligns with the prevalence of Kirkpatricks in West Dumfries in 1881, as evidenced by the distribution of the Kirkpatrick population in 1841, which closely corresponds with the 1881 area fill map. Kirkpatrick farmers are primarily concentrated in northwest Dumfries, while the broader Kirkpatrick population is centered in southwest Dumfries-shire, closer to the coast and the Solway Firth. As noted by Davis Hey, younger populations tend to migrate away from farms to settle near market towns, such as coastal ports in this instance. The insights derived from the 1841 census of farmers enable us to extend our understanding of their existence beyond the census itself, including details such as their ages and potentially their birth locations. It's likely that they are descendants of farmers who preceded them. However, a pertinent question arises: how far back can these familial connections be traced? It's reasonable to assume that farmers in this region were present in the latter half of the 18th century and almost certainly at the time of the plantation itself. Nevertheless, the presence of a cluster of Kilpatricks and farmers in Wigtownshire needs further exploration. It's probable that these Kilpatricks are immigrants from County Down, which lies less than 20 miles away across the narrow sea from Scotland. This hypothesis will be delved into more deeply when investigating the Plantation of Ulster and migration from Scotland to Ulster.