Hinrichs
A North German and Scandinavian patronymic surname meaning “son of Hinrich,” a regional form of Heinrich/Henry.
The #6,952 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 63,989 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Hinrichs is a patronymic surname built from the personal name Hinrich, a North German and Low German form of Heinrich, equivalent to Henry. The final -s means “of” or “son of,” so the name originally identified someone as the child or descendant of a man named Hinrich. In the broader Germanic naming tradition, Hinrich itself goes back to elements meaning “home” or “estate” plus “ruler” or “power.”
History
The name is especially associated with northern Germany, where Hinrich and related forms such as Hinnerk were common. Historical surname collections record related spellings like Hinrichsen, Hinners, and Hinnerssen, showing the same family-name pattern across regional dialects. The form is also found in areas influenced by Low German and Dutch naming habits, and later spread through migration to North America.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Old surname lists place Hinrichs alongside many close dialect forms, which is a neat reminder that small spelling differences often mark region more than separate origins.
From the historical record
“Himke, dimin. of Hima Hinderk. See Hinrich Hinrich, m. ; Hinrichs, Hinnerks, Hinners, Hinnerssen, Hiinerssen, fam. n. Hiske, f.”
— British Family Names: their origin and meaning (2nd ed.)