Hinkley
An English habitational surname, usually linked to the place name Hinckley in Warwickshire/Leicestershire.
The #7,771 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 72,289 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Hinkley is generally understood as a spelling variant of Hinckley, a surname taken from the town of Hinckley in the English Midlands. The place name is usually explained as an old local name built from an early personal name plus a second element meaning a clearing or meadow, though the precise older form is not always stated consistently in older surname books. The loss or addition of an initial H is a common feature in English surnames, which helps explain forms like Inkley and Hinkley side by side.
History
19th-century surname writers explicitly treat Hinkley as a variant of Hinckley and connect it with the Warwickshire/Leicestershire place name. The spelling with and without H appears to have floated for some time, as the older books note both Hinkley and Inkley among related forms. In modern use, Hinkley remains relatively uncommon in the US compared with the better-known Hinckley.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Older surname dictionaries specifically remark that an initial H is often dropped or added in English surnames, which is one reason Hinkley and Inkley can appear as near-duplicates.
From the historical record
“H.R. is Le Hine. HINKLEY. See Hinckley. HINKS. Properly Henks, from Hemy ; so Jenks from John, and Wilks from Wil- liam. See however Hiucks. HINKS:\IAN. HINXMAN. Corrtiptions of Henchman. HINTON. Parishes and places in cos. Salop, Hants, Somerset, Wilts, Gloucester, Northampton, Dorset, Berks, &c.”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom