Selfe Surname

234,252nd
Most Common
surname in the World

Approximately 1,720 people bear this surname

Most prevalent in:
England
Highest density in:
New Zealand

Selfe Surname Definition:

This surname is derived from a geographical locality. 'of Shelf', a village in the union of Halifax. The third entry is strongly confirmatory of this origin, (a) Bapt 'the son of Seleth' (v. Selth). I suspect this is the true parent of the great majority of our Sells, &c.

Read More About This Surname

Selfe Surname Distribution Map

PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
England7011:79,4848,879
United States4551:796,61361,475
Australia2771:97,45711,054
Canada811:454,88439,362
New Zealand711:63,7799,777
South Africa701:773,96753,253
Wales341:91,0167,411
Scotland151:356,92115,763
Northern Ireland71:263,57711,625
Russia11:144,123,056881,408
Thailand11:70,638,3451,175,915
Sweden11:9,846,757347,448
Philippines11:101,238,223404,861
Liberia11:4,408,53547,110
Indonesia11:132,249,194811,426
Ethiopia11:97,546,26229,669
Czechia11:10,633,469206,023
Afghanistan11:32,153,18360,828
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
Ireland91:492,20716,355
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
England3251:75,0018,205
Wales41:392,10412,338
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
United States551:913,06755,053

Selfe (35) may also be a first name.

Selfe Surname Meaning

From Where Does The Surname Originate? meaning and history

This surname is derived from a geographical locality. 'of Shelf', a village in the union of Halifax. The third entry is strongly confirmatory of this origin, (a) Bapt 'the son of Seleth' (v. Selth). I suspect this is the true parent of the great majority of our Sells, &c.

Cristiana del Schelf, 1379: Poll Tax of Yorkshire.

Johannes de Schelf, 1379: ibid.

1639. Married — Randdall Selfe and Alice Reaman: St. Michael, Cornhill.

A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames (1896) by Charles Wareing Endell Bardsley

(Teutonic) descendants of 1 the Anglo-Saxon Sǽwulf or Old Norse Sǽúlf-r= Sea-Wolf [Old English Old Norse sǽ + Old English wulf = Old Norse úlf-r] 2 the Anglo-Saxon Sǽláf or Old Norse Sǽleif-r = Sea - Relic [Old English Old Norse sǽ + Old English láf — O.N. leif-r, a relic] 3 the Anglo-Saxon Sigeláf or Old Norse Sigleif-r = Victory-Relic [Old English sige = Old Norse sig-r, victory + Old English láf = Old Norse leif-r, a relic] 4 the Old Norse Sölfi, Sölvi [of doubtful orig.]

Surnames of the United Kingdom (1912) by Henry Harrison

"The name of Sewlf (sea-wolf) occurs in a charter of Canute, and it is, probably, the same as the Saulf in the Domesday of Derbyshire, where it is in the Scandinavian form." Ferguson.

Patronymica Britannica (1860) by Mark Antony Lower

"The name Sewlf (sea-wolf) occurs in a charter of Canute, and it is probably the same as the Saulf in the Domesday of Derbyshire, where it is in the Scandinavian form. Hence may be our Salve, Self, Selves."—Ferguson.

Ludus Patronymicus (1868) by Richard Stephen Charnock

Roger Saife, Normandy 1180 (Magni Rotuli Scaccarii Normanniae); Walter Selve, Engl. c. 1272 (Rotuli Hundredorum).

The Norman People (1874)

Selfe, an ancient Wilts name for several generations connected with the cloth trade, is now only scantily represented amongst the gentry and yeomen; but most of those bearing the name linger around Melksham, which has been for centuries the home of the Selfes. One of the earliest was Isaac Selfe of Melksbam, a "wealthie cloathier," who died in 1656, aged 92, leaving behind him, as Aubrey informs us, 83 offspring. His son came into the possession of Bineger or Beanacre, which passed by marriage out of the family early last century. Hoare refers to the benefactions of Anthony Self to the poor of Westbury and Dilton in 1679.

Homes of Family Names in Great Britain (1890) by Henry Brougham Guppy

Selfe Last Name Facts

Where Does The Last Name Selfe Come From? nationality or country of origin

The last name Selfe is found in England more than any other country or territory. It may appear as a variant:. For other possible spellings of this last name click here.

How Common Is The Last Name Selfe? popularity and diffusion

The surname Selfe is the 234,252nd most frequently used family name internationally. It is borne by around 1 in 4,236,945 people. The last name occurs predominantly in Europe, where 44 percent of Selfe live; 44 percent live in Northern Europe and 44 percent live in British Isles. Selfe is also the 1,744,716th most commonly used given name world-wide. It is borne by 35 people.

The last name Selfe is most frequently held in England, where it is held by 701 people, or 1 in 79,484. In England Selfe is primarily found in: Greater London, where 17 percent are found, Essex, where 16 percent are found and Hampshire, where 13 percent are found. Without taking into account England this last name occurs in 17 countries. It is also found in The United States, where 26 percent are found and Australia, where 16 percent are found.

Selfe Family Population Trend historical fluctuation

The incidence of Selfe has changed through the years. In England the number of people carrying the Selfe last name expanded 216 percent between 1881 and 2014; in The United States it expanded 827 percent between 1880 and 2014 and in Wales it expanded 850 percent between 1881 and 2014.

Selfe Last Name Statistics demography

The religious devotion of those holding the surname is principally Anglican (100%) in Ireland.

In The United States those holding the Selfe last name are 1.77% more likely to be registered with the Democratic Party than The US average, with 51.46% registered with the party.

The amount Selfe earn in different countries varies greatly. In South Africa they earn 27.79% less than the national average, earning R 171,600 per year; in United States they earn 8% less than the national average, earning $39,695 USD per year and in Canada they earn 27.72% more than the national average, earning $63,454 CAD per year.

Phonetically Similar Names

SurnameSimilarityWorldwide IncidencePrevalency
Selfes9135/
Selfer9112/
Selfie911/
Shelfe911/
Self8936,179/
Slfe896/
Schelfe8345/
Shelfeh832/
Szelfer831/
Selfa801,137/
Selfi80198/
Selff8038/
Silfe807/
Selft805/
Selfs805/
Gelfe802/
Sellf802/
Shelf802/
Szelf801/
Celfe801/
Scelf801/
Saelf801/
Jelfe800/
Schelfer7728/
Scheelfe771/
Schelfey770/
Gelfer73405/
Silfee73151/
Silfer73111/
Zelfer7351/
Shelfi7332/
Selfaj7328/
Selveh7315/
Shellf739/
Selfiy735/
Chelfe733/
Gelfei733/
Shelfy733/
Shelff733/
Schelf732/
Selfii731/
Gielfe731/
Sleffe731/
Silfeh731/
Selfis731/
Selfoy731/
Slefer731/
Jelfer730/
Gelfes730/
Selfit730/
Sylfet730/
Schellfer711/
Selb67510/
Slfi6722/
Sylfest6721/
Zelf6719/
Silf6718/
Schelfi6716/
Schelpf6713/
Zoelfie6713/
Shlefer678/
Silfest678/
Selw673/
Selpher672/
Sielfeisch672/
Celf672/
Schielf672/
Slfa671/
Chelfey671/
Schlefe671/
Sleffee671/
Sleffer671/
Seelhff671/
Jelffer671/
Silpfer671/
Selfaya671/
Szlefer671/
Gelffer671/
Silfeas670/
Silfees670/
Sleffey670/
Sleffie670/
Silfett670/
Sleffes670/
Schelft670/
Schellffer670/

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Selfe Reference & Research

Self FamilyTree DNA Group - A group collating DNA test results for those who bear the surname, includes results of DNA tests and discussions.

Self FamilyTree DNA Project - A description of a group researching the paternal lines of men who bear the surname with the help of DNA analysis.

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Footnotes

  • Surnames are taken as the first part of an person's inherited family name, caste, clan name or in some cases patronymic
  • Descriptions may contain details on the name's etymology, origin, ethnicity and history. They are largely reproduced from 3rd party sources; diligence is advised on accepting their validity - more information
  • Name distribution statistics are generated from a global database of over 4 billion people - more information
  • Heatmap: Dark red means there is a higher occurrence of the name, transitioning to light yellow signifies a progressively lower occurrence. Clicking on selected countries will show mapping at a regional level
  • Rank: Name are ranked by incidence using the ordinal ranking method; the name that occurs the most is assigned a rank of 1; name that occur less frequently receive an incremented rank; if two or more name occur the same number of times they are assigned the same rank and successive rank is incremented by the total preceeding names
  • Ethnic group cannot necessarily be determined by geographic occurrence
  • Similar: Names listed in the "Similar" section are phonetically similar and may not have any relation to Selfe
  • To find out more about this surname's family history, lookup records on Family​Search, My​Heritage, FindMyPast and Ancestry. Further information may be obtained by DNA analysis