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Ord Family History

Ord Surname Meaning

English (Durham and Northumberland) and Scottish (Aberdeenshire): habitational name from East Ord in Tweedmouth (Northumberland). The placename derives from Old English ord ‘point, corner of land, promontory’. English: probably from an abbreviated form of a compound name such as Orderic beginning with ord ‘point, spear’. See Ort.

Scottish: habitational name from Ord, later Kirkurd (Peeblesshire), or the lands of Ord (Banffshire). This placename is Celtic and may be from Gaelic òrd ‘hammer’, used to mean ‘(rounded) hammer-shaped hill’ or, in the Peeblesshire case, possibly from the equivalent Brittonic term represented by Welsh ordd.

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


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Where is the Ord family from?

You can see how Ord families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Ord family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1840 and 1920. The most Ord families were found in United Kingdom in 1891. In 1891 there were 719 Ord families living in Durham. This was about 42% of all the recorded Ord's in United Kingdom. Durham had the highest population of Ord families in 1891.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Ord 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 Ord 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 Ord. 15% of Ord men worked as a General Labourer and 78% of Ord women worked as an Unpaid Domestic Duties. Some less common occupations for Americans named Ord were Bus Conductor and Private Means.

View Census Data for Ord | 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
    15%
  • Builders Labourer
    6%
  • Incapacitated
    4%
  • Bus Conductor
    3%

Top Female Occupations In 1939

  • Unpaid Domestic Duties
    78%
  • Unpaid Domestic
    3%
  • Housekeeper
    2%
  • Private Means
    2%

What Ord family records will you find?

Census Records

There are 39,000 census records available for the last name Ord. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Ord census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

Search UK census records for Ord

Passenger Lists

There are 4,000 immigration records available for the last name Ord. 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 Ord immigration records

Draft Cards

There are 42,000 military records available for the last name Ord. For the veterans among your Ord ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

View all Ord military records

You've only scratched the surface of Ord family history

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What is the average Ord lifespan?

Between 1953 and 2004, in the United States, Ord life expectancy was at its lowest point in 1958, and highest in 1953. The average life expectancy for Ord in 1953 was 100, and 81 in 2004.

View Social Security Death Index (SSDI) for Ord

An unusually short lifespan might indicate that your Ord ancestors lived in harsh conditions. A short lifespan might also indicate health problems that were once prevalent in your family. The SSDI is a searchable database of more than 70 million names. You can find birthdates, death dates, addresses and more.

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