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

Wilkins, 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 Wilkins surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Wilkins in America

Wilkins is the 570th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Wilkins surname appeared 58,634 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 20 people would have the surname Wilkins.

We can also compare 2010 data for Wilkins 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 Wilkins

The surname Wilkins is of English origin, derived from the personal name William combined with the diminutive suffix "-kin," essentially meaning "little William." This name can be traced back to the 12th century in various English counties, including Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, and Suffolk.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Wilkins can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Willechin." This historical record, commissioned by William the Conqueror, provides valuable insights into the distribution and prevalence of surnames in England during the Norman period.

The name Wilkins has evolved over time, with various spellings such as Wilkyn, Wilkyne, and Wilkynson appearing in medieval records. These variations likely arose due to regional dialects and the inconsistencies in spelling conventions during that era.

In the 13th century, a notable figure bearing the surname Wilkins was Sir John Wilkins (c. 1230-1292), a prominent English landowner and knight who served under King Edward I. He is mentioned in several historical documents, including the Patent Rolls of 1272.

Another significant individual with the surname Wilkins was John Wilkins (1614-1672), an English clergyman, natural philosopher, and one of the founders of the Royal Society. He was a prolific writer and is best known for his work "An Essay Towards a Real Character and a Philosophical Language," which proposed a universal language based on philosophical principles.

During the 16th and 17th centuries, the name Wilkins was also associated with several place names, such as Wilkins Green in Oxfordshire and Wilkins Farm in Gloucestershire. These place names likely derived from individuals bearing the surname Wilkins who owned or lived in those areas.

Another notable figure was Sir George Hubert Wilkins (1888-1958), an Australian explorer, aviator, and photographer. He was a pioneer in polar exploration and made significant contributions to the understanding of Arctic and Antarctic regions through his expeditions and aerial reconnaissance.

In the literary world, Maurice Wilkins (1916-2004), a British biophysicist, was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1962 for his contributions to the discovery of the molecular structure of DNA, along with James Watson and Francis Crick.

The surname Wilkins has been carried by numerous individuals throughout history, spanning various fields and regions, and continues to be a prominent surname in English-speaking countries today.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Wilkins

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

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

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

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