Hix
A shortened form of Hicks or Hickson, ultimately from the medieval pet name Hick for Richard.
The #6,476 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 58,876 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Hix is generally treated as a reduced spelling of Hicks or Hickson. Those names come from the medieval pet form Hick, a familiar nickname for Richard. In that sense, Hix originally meant something like “son or descendant of Hick/Richard,” though the exact shortened form can also reflect later spelling variation.
History
19th-century surname writers explicitly note Hix as a variant of Hickson and Hicks, and they connect it with the same personal name Richard. The spelling is relatively uncommon and appears to have survived mainly as a clipped English surname form. It is found in English records and later in the United States, where bearers may descend from several independent Hick/Hicks lines.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Some old surname dictionaries list Hix right alongside Nix, Dix, and Cox as an example of how English surnames were often shortened by dropping letters.
From the historical record
“Z for ks and oka. Cf. Coxon for Cockson, Wilcoxon for Wilcockson (the son of William), Dixon for Dickson, Rixon for Rickson (Richard), Cox for Cocks, Hixon and Hix for Hickson and Hicks (Richard); cf. Baxter for Bakester (b female baker), Blaxter for Blakister (a female bleacher). F after m: cf. Thompson for…”
— A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with special American instances