Surnames for the Big Chill

Thanks to the jet stream, many parts of the UK have just had the coldest November night on record. During these extreme weather events we become especially interested in weather maps and, of course, the #uksnow map is busier than ever. In such times we often talk about Jack Frost, but what about Mr Blizzard or Ms Snow?  I have produced a map to show the places you are most likely to find them. If you like the cold perhaps you can thank them; if you don’t, ask nicely and they may be able to arrange some warmer weather.

For Carto-Nerds: This map has not been adjusted for the underlying population density of Great Britain, which is why it closely resembles a map of urban areas. The underlying spatial units for the density analysis are Output Area centroids which have been roughly standardised for population. Taking the relative frequency of the name therefore makes little difference (I have tried it). There are some more involved ways of accounting for underlying population in density analysis (this forms part of my PhD research) but I haven’t bothered to use them in a map as tongue in cheek as this…