Cartographic Nominalism
I've spent too much time playing around on this amusing thing today, it tells you the geographical distribution and relative status (along with other stuff) of surnames in Great Britain in 1998 (also in 1881 and in Australia, the US and Canada, but without the maps for the non-GB locations). For example:
For myself, my surname's top area in GB is Darlington, it's most characteristic of the Upland Hill Farmers Mosaic group ("Upland Hill Farmers mostly contains farmers who manage small farm holdings without the assistance of paid labour, in isolated areas of upland agriculture.") and 51% of the population have higher status surnames (guess I really am middle class then... although I'm neither in Darlington nor an Upland Hill Farmer). For my mother's maiden name it's Cambridge (true), Childfree Serenity ("Childfree Serenity consists of well educated couples, who for various reasons don’t have children, and wealthy older people, who can no longer manage the responsibility of homes with gardens."), and only 9% have a higher-status name.
Let's try some other people's:
panzer_attack: Brighton, Golden Empty Nesters ("Golden Empty Nesters contains wealthy older people living in large detached houses, often in choice residential locations in semi rural settings."), 7%.
malc: Wakefield, Families on Benefits ("Families on Benefits contains large numbers of young families on very low incomes who live in extensive areas of low rise public housing on the outskirts of major provincial cities where few people have exercised their right to buy."), 69%.
jaxvor: Halifax, Coronation Street ("Coronation Street contains poor, mostly white families, who own or privately rent, cheap terraced houses close to the centres of less prosperous provincial cities."), 52%.
myrddrr: Tunbridge Wells, Just Moving In ("Just Moving In contains people living in houses built since 2001, the date of the last census. Most of these identify new residential areas."), 12%.
clovenhoof: Hereford, Sepia Memories ("Sepia Memories contains large numbers of pensioners who, on account of old age, ill health or bereavement, have exchanged a house with a garden for a modest apartment in a small block of purpose built flats, usually close to the sea."), 39%.
harley89: Cardiff, Global Connections ("Global Connections contains extremely expensive housing, mostly in central London, occupied by rich people from abroad and by childless older people on extremely high incomes."), 85%.
pinky_si: Llandrindod Wells, Corporate Chieftains ("Corporate Chieftains contains very wealthy people, many of whom are senior business managers, living in large detached houses in outer metropolitan suburbs."), 68%.
The Tom: Derby, Upland Hill Farmers, 30%.
Mat: Llandudno, Upland Hill Farmers (there seems to be a lot of us about), 44%.
Rich: Plymouth, Pastoral Symphony ("Pastoral Symphony contains populations of scattered farmers most of whom are owner managers of medium sized operations with a bias towards dairying rather than cereals or intensive agribusiness."), 11%.
My sister's married name: Sheffield, Upland Hill Farmers, 13%.
No doubt someone is slapping a "What Mosaic Social Group Am I?" interface on it as we speak.
For myself, my surname's top area in GB is Darlington, it's most characteristic of the Upland Hill Farmers Mosaic group ("Upland Hill Farmers mostly contains farmers who manage small farm holdings without the assistance of paid labour, in isolated areas of upland agriculture.") and 51% of the population have higher status surnames (guess I really am middle class then... although I'm neither in Darlington nor an Upland Hill Farmer). For my mother's maiden name it's Cambridge (true), Childfree Serenity ("Childfree Serenity consists of well educated couples, who for various reasons don’t have children, and wealthy older people, who can no longer manage the responsibility of homes with gardens."), and only 9% have a higher-status name.
Let's try some other people's:
panzer_attack: Brighton, Golden Empty Nesters ("Golden Empty Nesters contains wealthy older people living in large detached houses, often in choice residential locations in semi rural settings."), 7%.
malc: Wakefield, Families on Benefits ("Families on Benefits contains large numbers of young families on very low incomes who live in extensive areas of low rise public housing on the outskirts of major provincial cities where few people have exercised their right to buy."), 69%.
jaxvor: Halifax, Coronation Street ("Coronation Street contains poor, mostly white families, who own or privately rent, cheap terraced houses close to the centres of less prosperous provincial cities."), 52%.
myrddrr: Tunbridge Wells, Just Moving In ("Just Moving In contains people living in houses built since 2001, the date of the last census. Most of these identify new residential areas."), 12%.
clovenhoof: Hereford, Sepia Memories ("Sepia Memories contains large numbers of pensioners who, on account of old age, ill health or bereavement, have exchanged a house with a garden for a modest apartment in a small block of purpose built flats, usually close to the sea."), 39%.
harley89: Cardiff, Global Connections ("Global Connections contains extremely expensive housing, mostly in central London, occupied by rich people from abroad and by childless older people on extremely high incomes."), 85%.
pinky_si: Llandrindod Wells, Corporate Chieftains ("Corporate Chieftains contains very wealthy people, many of whom are senior business managers, living in large detached houses in outer metropolitan suburbs."), 68%.
The Tom: Derby, Upland Hill Farmers, 30%.
Mat: Llandudno, Upland Hill Farmers (there seems to be a lot of us about), 44%.
Rich: Plymouth, Pastoral Symphony ("Pastoral Symphony contains populations of scattered farmers most of whom are owner managers of medium sized operations with a bias towards dairying rather than cereals or intensive agribusiness."), 11%.
My sister's married name: Sheffield, Upland Hill Farmers, 13%.
No doubt someone is slapping a "What Mosaic Social Group Am I?" interface on it as we speak.