Milliken
An Irish surname, usually understood as a reduced form of Milligan, ultimately from Gaelic names based on maol, meaning “bald” or “tonsured.”
The #5,892 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 52,714 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Milliken is generally treated as an anglicized or shortened form of the Irish surname Milligan, itself from Gaelic forms such as Ó Maolagáin. The Gaelic root maol refers to someone with a bald or tonsured head, and by extension could mean a devotee or monk-like person. Older sources also explain the name as meaning “descendant of Maolacán” or “little bald/shaven one.”
History
Nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century surname writers commonly linked Milliken with Milligan and related spellings such as Millikin and Millikan. The name appears especially in Irish and Irish-diaspora records, where spelling often shifted as families moved into English-speaking areas. Some Scottish reference works also note a possible association with the place-name Milliken, but the Irish derivation is the usual explanation.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Older genealogical sources sometimes grouped Milliken with Milligan and even with Melican, showing how fluid Irish surname spellings could be in recordkeeping.
From the historical record
“MILLICAN ) (Celt.) for the Irish 0'Maoil{e)a- MILLIGAN cdin, 0'Maoil{e)agdin, Grandson MILLIKEN or Descendant of Maolacan, MILLIKIN '' MAOLAGAN = the Little Bald or Shaven One, Monk, Disciple [Ir. maol, bald, &c. -|- the double dim. suff. -ac-dn, (for -oc-dn,) -ag-dn (for -6g-dn] MILLICENT (A.-Fr.-Lat.) the common…”
— Surnames of the United Kingdom: a concise etymological dictionary (2 vols in 1)