Find out how popular the last name Collins is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Collins.

Collins, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Collins surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Collins in America

Collins is the 59th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Collins surname appeared 329,770 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 112 people would have the surname Collins.

We can also compare 2010 data for Collins to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Collins

The surname Collins originated in the British Isles, specifically in England and Ireland, during the medieval period. It is derived from the Old French word "colin," which means "young man" or "young victor." This name was likely given as a nickname to a young or small person or perhaps someone who had a youthful appearance.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the Collins surname can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a comprehensive survey of land ownership in England commissioned by William the Conqueror. The name is listed as "Colinus," which was a Norman French variant of the name.

In Ireland, the name Collins is an anglicized version of the Irish surnames Ó Coileáin or Ó Lochlainn, which mean "descendant of Coileán" or "descendant of Lochlainn," respectively. These names were prominent in counties such as Cork, Limerick, and Clare.

One of the earliest recorded bearers of the Collins name was William Collins, an English poet and writer who lived from 1721 to 1759. He is best known for his odes, which were widely admired during his lifetime.

Another notable figure with the Collins surname was Samuel Collins, an English physician and writer who lived from 1619 to 1670. He published several works on anatomy and medicine, including "A Systeme of Anatomy" in 1685.

In the United States, one of the most famous individuals with the Collins surname was Michael Collins, an Irish revolutionary leader who played a pivotal role in the Irish War of Independence. He was born in 1890 and assassinated in 1922 during the Irish Civil War.

Another prominent Collins was Wilkie Collins, an English novelist and playwright who lived from 1824 to 1889. He is best known for his novels "The Woman in White" and "The Moonstone," which are considered classics of Victorian literature.

Lastly, William Wilkie Collins, a Scottish painter and author, lived from 1788 to 1847. He is remembered for his novels and travel writings, as well as his famous work "Memoirs of a Picture," which documented the creation of one of his paintings.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Collins

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Collins.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Collins was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Collins has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Collins was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Collins, please contact us.

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