Elkins
Of Old English origin, meaning "from the hill with the elder trees".
Name Census estimates that about 0 living Americans carry the first name Elkins. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Elkins today is around 0 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Elkins births was 1919 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Elkins. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Elkins. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
0
~ - Americans
Peak year
1919
5 babies that year
Average age
-
1919 SSA rank
#4,346
Tracked since 1919
Popularity
Elkins: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Elkins by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Elkins during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1910s | 5 | 0 | 5 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Elkins
The name Elkins is an English variant of the name Elkin, which is derived from the Old English personal name Ælcwine. Ælcwine is composed of the elements "ælc" meaning "elk" and "wine" meaning "friend". The name can be traced back to the Anglo-Saxon period in England, which spanned from the 5th to the 11th centuries.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Elkins can be found in the Domesday Book, a manuscript record of a great survey of England completed in 1086 by order of King William the Conqueror. The name is listed as a personal name and a surname, indicating its use in both contexts during the Middle Ages.
In the 13th century, the name appeared in the Pipe Rolls of Hertfordshire, which were records of financial transactions made by the English government. An individual named Elkin de Wymundham is mentioned in these rolls, suggesting the name's presence in the county of Hertfordshire during this period.
One notable historical figure bearing the name Elkins was Sir Henry Elkins (c.1585-1637), an English politician and landowner from Berkshire. He served as a Member of Parliament for the borough of Windsor in the early 17th century.
Another individual of note was Reverend William Elkins (1698-1764), an English clergyman and author. He published several works on theological subjects and served as the rector of St. Mary's Church in Beverley, Yorkshire, for over three decades.
In the 19th century, the name gained some prominence with the birth of Stephen Benton Elkins (1841-1923), an American industrialist, lawyer, and politician. He served as the Secretary of War under President Benjamin Harrison and later became a United States Senator from West Virginia.
Elkins is also the first name of Elkins Wright (1879-1952), an American architect known for his work on the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C., and other notable buildings in the United States.
While the name Elkins has its roots in Old English and has been present throughout various periods of British and American history, it has remained a relatively uncommon given name, particularly in more recent times.
People
Elkins + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Elkins as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with E
Other first names starting with E with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Elkins: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Elkins?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 0 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Elkins going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about - US residents.
Is Elkins a common name?
We classify Elkins as "Very Rare". It ranks above 2.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 5 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Elkins most popular?
The single biggest year for Elkins was 1919, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Elkins is about 0 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Elkins in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Elkins a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Elkins in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Elkins still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Elkins in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Elkins can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people have the name Elkins?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.