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

Tompkins, 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 Tompkins surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Tompkins in America

Tompkins is the 1485th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Tompkins surname appeared 24,056 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 8 people would have the surname Tompkins.

We can also compare 2010 data for Tompkins 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 Tompkins

The surname Tompkins originates from England and dates back to the 13th century. It is derived from the Old English personal name "Thomlin," a diminutive form of Thomas, combined with the possessive suffix "kin," meaning "kin of." The name essentially translates to "son or descendant of little Thomas."

Tompkins is believed to have originated in the Cambridgeshire area of England, where it was first recorded in the Hundred Rolls of 1273 as "Thomelyn." Over the centuries, various spellings emerged, including Thomlynkyn, Tomlynkyn, Tommelyn, and Tompkins.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire from 1327, which mention a John Thomlynkyn. In the 14th century, the name also appeared in the Pipe Rolls of Suffolk, with references to a Richard Thomelyn in 1381.

The surname Tompkins has been associated with several notable figures throughout history. One of the earliest was Sir Roger Tompkins (c. 1535-1613), an English politician and Member of Parliament for Bodmin in Cornwall during the reigns of Elizabeth I and James I.

Another prominent individual was Daniel D. Tompkins (1774-1825), an American lawyer, politician, and the sixth Vice President of the United States, serving under James Monroe from 1817 to 1825.

In the literary world, Calvin Tompkins (1925-2016) was an American author and journalist known for his biographies of artists such as Marcel Duchamp and his work as a staff writer for The New Yorker magazine.

Kiry Tompkins Wadsworth (1834-1914) was an American philanthropist and activist who played a significant role in the women's suffrage movement and the establishment of the International Institute for Girls in Spain.

Lastly, Robert Tompkins (1570-1644) was an English scholar and theologian who served as the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cambridge and published several notable works on theology and philosophy.

While the surname Tompkins has roots in England, it has since spread to various parts of the world, with notable bearers of the name contributing to various fields throughout history.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Tompkins

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

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 Tompkins 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 Tompkins 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 Tompkins was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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