Atkins History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
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England
Scotland
Ireland

Etymology of Atkins

What does the name Atkins mean?

Among the the peoples of ancient Scotland, the first to use the name Atkins were the Strathclyde-Britons. Atkins was a name for someone who lived in Lanarkshire. The name and all it's variants are double diminutives of Adam, formed from 'Ad,' the diminutive of Adam + 'kin' 1

Early Origins of the Atkins family

The surname Atkins was first found in Lanarkshire (Gaelic: Siorrachd Lannraig) a former county in the central Strathclyde region of Scotland, now divided into the Council Areas of North Lanarkshire, South Lanarkshire, and the City of Glasgow, where they originated in the old barony of Akyne. Some of the first records of the name were Atkyn de Barr in 1340 2 and later in 1405, "John of Akyne, a Scottish merchant petitioned for the return of his ship and goods illegally seized in England." 1

Early History of the Atkins family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Atkins research. Another 183 words (13 lines of text) covering the years 1405, 1482, 1497, 1520, 1558, 1559, 1581, 1601, 1613, 1631, 1635, 1642, 1653, 1654, 1676, 1679, 1680, 1681, 1685, 1687, 1703, 1713, 1744, 1757, 1773, 1775, 1780, 1847 and 1854 are included under the topic Early Atkins History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Atkins Spelling Variations

Medieval Scottish names are rife with spelling variations. This is due to the fact that scribes in that era spelled according to the sound of words, rather than any set of rules. Atkins has been spelled Aitken, Aiken, Atkin, Atkins and others.

Early Notables of the Atkins family

Notable amongst the family at this time was

James Aitkine, Atkins or Etkins (1613?-1687), Scottish prelate, Bishop of Moray (1676), Bishop of Galloway (1680-1687.) He was born at Kirkwall about 1613, was the son of Harie Atkine, Sheriff of Orkn...

Atkins World Ranking

In the United States, the name Atkins is the 500^th most popular surname with an estimated 57,201 people with that name. 3 However, in Australia, the name Atkins is ranked the 356^th most popular surname with an estimated 10,176 people with that name. 4 And in New Zealand, the name Atkins is the 469^th popular surname with an estimated 1,464 people with that name. 5 The United Kingdom ranks Atkins as 394^th with 16,356 people. 6

Migration of the Atkins family to Ireland

Some of the Atkins family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 173 words (12 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Atkins migration to the United States +

Many Scots were left with few options other than to leave their homeland for the colonies across the Atlantic. Some of these families fought to defend their newfound freedom in the American War of Independence. Others went north to Canada as United Empire Loyalists. The ancestors of all of these families have recently been able to rediscover their roots through Clan societies and other Scottish organizations. Among them:

Atkins Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Thomas Atkins, who landed in Maine in 1607 7
Silvester Atkins, who landed in Virginia in 1621 7
Richard Atkins, who arrived in Virginia in 1621 7
Ritchard Atkins, who arrived in Virginia in 1622 7
Mr. Atkins, who landed in Virginia in 1622 7
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Atkins Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Jonathan Atkins, who landed in Virginia in 1701 7
Eliza Atkins, who landed in Virginia in 1714 7
Edmund Atkins, who arrived in Charleston, South Carolina in 1734 7
Joseph Atkins, who arrived in Connecticut in 1739 7
Bartlett Atkins, who arrived in Virginia in 1779 7
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Atkins Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Hugh Atkins, aged 31, who arrived in New York in 1812 7
Samuel Atkins, aged 26, who landed in Washington, DC in 1828 7
W T Atkins, who landed in San Francisco, California in 1850 7
G Atkins, who arrived in San Francisco, California in 1850 7
John R Atkins, who landed in San Francisco, California in 1850 7
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Atkins migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Atkins Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

Humphrey Atkins, who landed in Nova Scotia in 1750
James Atkins, who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1750
John Atkins, who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1750
Mary Atkins, who landed in Nova Scotia in 1750
Andrew Atkins, who landed in Nova Scotia in 1750

Atkins Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Guy Jerome Atkins, who arrived in Canada in 1835

Atkins Settlers in Canada in the 20th Century

H Atkins, who landed in Saint John, New Brunswick in 1907

Atkins migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Atkins Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. William Atkins, British Convict who was convicted in New Romney, Kent, England for life, transported aboard the "Coromandel" on 4th December 1803, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 8
Miss Louisa Atkins, (Louise, Ann), (b. 1800), aged 14, English servant who was convicted in Surrey, England for 7 years for larceny, transported aboard the "Broxbournebury" in January 1814, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 9
Mr. Richard Atkins, English convict who was convicted in Northampton, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Canada" on 23rd April 1819, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 10
Mr. Thomas Atkins, (b. 1794), aged 25, English gardener who was convicted in Surrey, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Eliza" on 22nd September 1819, arriving in New South Wales, Australia, he died in 1870 11
Mr. John Atkins who was convicted in Middlesex, England for life, transported aboard the "Dick" on 2nd October 1820, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 12
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Atkins migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Atkins Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Thomas Atkins, aged 32, a farm labourer, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "Sir Charles Forbes" in 1842
Jane Atkins, aged 28, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "Sir Charles Forbes" in 1842
Mr. Atkins, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Mandarin" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 14th November 1843 13
Mrs Atkins, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Mandarin" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 14th November 1843 13
Miss Atkins, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Mandarin" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 14th November 1843 13
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Atkins migration to West Indies +

The British first settled the British West Indies around 1604. They made many attempts but failed in some to establish settlements on the Islands including Saint Lucia and Grenada. By 1627 they had managed to establish settlements on St. Kitts (St. Christopher) and Barbados, but by 1641 the Spanish had moved in and destroyed some of these including those at Providence Island. The British continued to expand the settlements including setting the First Federation in the British West Indies by 1674; some of the islands include Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Island, Turks and Caicos, Jamaica and Belize then known as British Honduras. By the 1960's many of the islands became independent after the West Indies Federation which existed from 1958 to 1962 failed due to internal political conflicts. After this a number of Eastern Caribbean islands formed a free association. 14

Atkins Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

Mr. Robert Atkins, (b. 1612), aged 23, British settler travelling from London, England aboard the ship "Alexander" arriving in Barbados in 1635 15
Mr. Thomas Atkins, (b. 1619), aged 16, British settler travelling aboard the ship "The Dorset" arriving in Barbados in September 1635 16
Sir Jonathon Atkins who was Governor of Barbados in 1663
Hannah Atkins, aged 21, who arrived in Jamaica in 1683 7

Atkins Settlers in West Indies in the 18th Century

Robert Atkins, who arrived in Jamaica in 1753 7

Contemporary Notables of the name Atkins (post 1700) +

Robert Lee "Bob" Atkins Jr. (1946-2020), American football defensive back in the National Football League
Pervis R. Atkins Jr. (1935-2017), American football player, inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame
James Atkins (1967-2016), American rock bassist for the rock band Hammerbox
Douglas Leon "Doug" Atkins (1930-2015), American football defensive end inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame and the Pro Football Hall of Fame
Robert Coleman Atkins (1930-2003), American physician and cardiologist, best known for the "Atkins Diet"
Corporal Thomas E Atkins (1921-1999), American Army soldier awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor in 1945
Nicole Atkins (b. 1978), award-winning American singer-songwriter
Charles "Cholly" Atkins (1913-2003), American dancer and vaudeville performer
Chet Atkins (1924-2001), American Country music guitarist and producer
Rear Admiral Barry Kennedy Atkins (1911-2005), American naval officer, "destroyer" captain, awarded the Navy Cross during WWII 17
... (Another 63 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Atkins family +

HMS Hood

Mr. William E Atkins (b. 1916), English Chief Petty Officer Steward serving for the Royal Navy from Kensington, London, England, who sailed into battle and died in the HMS Hood sinking 18

HMS Prince of Wales

Mr. J Atkins, British Writer, who sailed into battle on the HMS Prince of Wales (1941) and survived the sinking 19

USS Arizona

Mr. Gerald Arthur Atkins, American Hospital Apprentice First Class from Nebraska, USA working aboard the ship "USS Arizona" when she sunk during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on 7th December 1941, he died in the sinking 20

The Atkins Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Robore et vigilantia
Motto Translation: Strength and vigilance.

Citations +

Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
"Most Common Last Names in Australia." Forebears, https://forebears.io/australia/surnames
"Most Common Last Names in New Zealand." Forebears, https://forebears.io/new-zealand/surnames
"UK surname ranking." UK Surname map, https://www.surnamemap.eu/unitedkingdom/surnames_ranking.php?p=10
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 22nd March 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/coromandel-and-experiment
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 3rd November 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/broxbournebury
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 9th December 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/canada
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 10th February 2022). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/eliza
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 8th July 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/Dick
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
Pilgrim Ship Lists Early 1600's retrieved 28th September 2021 from https://www.packrat-pro.com/ships/shiplist.htm
Pilgrim Ship Lists Early 1600's retrieved 29th September 2021. Retrieved from https://www.packrat-pro.com/ships/shiplist.htm
Barry Atkins. (Retrieved 2010, September 27) Barry Atkins. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barry_K._Atkins
H.M.S. Hood Association-Battle Cruiser Hood: Crew Information - H.M.S. Hood Rolls of Honour, Men Lost in the Sinking of H.M.S. Hood, 24th May 1941. (Retrieved 2016, July 15) . Retrieved from http://www.hmshood.com/crew/memorial/roh_24may41.htm
HMS Prince of Wales Crew members. (Retrieved 2014, April 9) . Retrieved from http://www.forcez-survivors.org.uk/biographies/listprincecrew.html
Pearl Harbour: USS Arizona Casualties List Pearl Harbour December 7, 1941. (Retrieved 2018, July 31st). Retrieved from http://pearl-harbor.com/arizona/casualtylist.html