Banks
A topographic surname for someone who lived by a bank, slope, or hillside.
The #292 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 2,917 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Banks is a topographic surname from Old English bank, meaning a bank, slope, or hillock; in older forms it often appears as Atte-bank or A-Bank, meaning "at the bank." The final -s is generally taken as a later surname ending, though some writers also compared it with patronymic forms. In this sense, the name originally described where a person lived rather than a family occupation or ancestry.
History
The surname is well established in England, especially in northern and eastern counties, and it has long existed in forms such as Bank, Bankes, and Banks. Historical surname writers also mention a London Bankes associated with Cheapside in Elizabethan times, but that is anecdotal rather than the main origin of the name. Because banks and slopes are common landscape features, the surname could arise independently in several places.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
One old source quotes the saying about being "as knowing as Banks's horse," referring to a famous Elizabethan horse named Morocco owned by a London man named Banks.
From the historical record
“Norfolk. BANKS, BANKES. Anciently written Atte-bank, A-Bank, &c. The A-Sax. implies a bench, bank, or hillock — a place Avhereou to sit, ^vhether indoors or out. "As KNo-mNG AS Banks's horse." Baiikswas a well- knoivn -s-intner in Chto.pside, temp. Elizabeth, and his horse " .Morocco" was remarkable for his…”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom