The Total column shows the total number of people in that county or town with this surname.
For example, there were 4 people called IDELL in Sawdon at the time of the 1881 census.
The Frequency column shows the percentage of people in this county or town
with this surname. For example, a frequency of 2.3952 in Sawdon means that
2.3952% of the people in Sawdon on census day were called IDELL.
The Index column shows the relative probability of finding someone called IDELL
in this county or town, compared with the probability of finding them anywhere in Britain as a whole.
An index of 1 means that if you pick someone at random from this county or town, you have exactly the same
probability of picking someone called IDELL as if you picked at random from the whole of the UK.
Where the index is higher than 1, then you are more likely to find someone called IDELL here
than if you picked from the UK as a whole, and where it's lower then you are less likely. The actual figure
shows the level of probability - for example, a figure of 2 would indicate that you are twice as likely to find
someone called IDELL here than in the UK as a whole, and 10 would make it ten times as likely.
The value of 40,000.00 in Sawdon means that you are 40,000.00 times as likely to find
someone with the surname of IDELL in Sawdon than you would be in the whole of the UK.