Judkins
A surname that likely began as a diminutive and patronymic form of Judd, itself a pet form of Jordan or Jude.
The #6,278 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 56,734 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Judkins is an English surname built from the pet name Judd, with the suffix -kin, which was often used to make a diminutive or familiar form. In effect, it means something like “little Judd” or “descendant of Judd.” Judd itself is generally treated as a short form of Jordan or, in some cases, Jude.
History
Nineteenth-century surname writers grouped Judkins with other English names that developed from pet forms plus diminutive endings, and they treated it as a variant of Judd. The name is well established in England and later appears in America as English families migrated. In modern use, Judkins is less common than Judd or Judson but follows the same surname pattern.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Older surname books note that Judkins could be reduced or reshaped into forms like Jukes, showing how fluid spelling was in earlier English records.
From the historical record
“given to an umpire in some medieval game. JUDKINS. See Judd. JUDSON. 1. See Jude. 2. See Judd. Most of the Judsons, both in England and America, trace their origin to the neighbourliood of Leeds, and the surname is still common in Yorkshire. JUGG. Perhaps the sign of an inn. JUGLER. Does not imply either a…”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom