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Harwood Family History

Harwood Surname Meaning

English (Lancashire): habitational name from any of several places called Harwood (Lancashire, Northumberland, North Yorkshire, Devon), Harewood (Herefordshire, Yorkshire), or Horwood (Devon).

The placenames derive from Old English hār ‘gray’ or hara ‘hare’ + wudu ‘wood’.

This name has also become established in Ireland.

Source: Dictionary of American Family Names 2nd edition, 2022


Similar surnames: 

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Where is the Harwood family from?

You can see how Harwood families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Harwood family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1840 and 1920. The most Harwood families were found in United Kingdom in 1891. In 1891 there were 1,873 Harwood families living in Lancashire. This was about 22% of all the recorded Harwood's in United Kingdom. Lancashire had the highest population of Harwood families in 1891.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Harwood surname lived. Within census records, you can often find information like name of household members, ages, birthplaces, residences, and occupations.
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What did your Harwood ancestors do for a living?

In 1939, General Labourer and Unpaid Domestic Duties were the top reported jobs for men and women in the United Kingdom named Harwood. 9% of Harwood men worked as a General Labourer and 65% of Harwood women worked as an Unpaid Domestic Duties. Some less common occupations for Americans named Harwood were Cotton Weaver and Housewife.

View Census Data for Harwood | Data not to scale

*We display top occupations by gender to maintain their historical accuracy during times when men and women often performed different jobs.

Top Male Occupations In 1939

  • General Labourer
    9%
  • Builders Labourer
    4%
  • Bricklayer
    3%
  • Cotton Weaver
    3%

Top Female Occupations In 1939

  • Unpaid Domestic Duties
    65%
  • Cotton Weaver
    3%
  • Unpaid Domestic
    3%
  • Housewife
    3%

What Harwood family records will you find?

Census Records

There are 219,000 census records available for the last name Harwood. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Harwood census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

Search UK census records for Harwood

Passenger Lists

There are 19,000 immigration records available for the last name Harwood. Passenger lists are your ticket to knowing when your ancestors arrived in the UK, and how they made the journey - from the ship name to ports of arrival and departure.

View all Harwood immigration records

Draft Cards

There are 23,000 military records available for the last name Harwood. For the veterans among your Harwood ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

View all Harwood military records

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