Parkin
An English surname that usually began as a diminutive form of Peter, later used as a family name in its own right.
The #8,241 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 76,764 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The main traditional explanation is that Parkin is a pet form of Peter, with the familiar English diminutive suffix -kin. In that view, the name ultimately goes back to Greek Petros, meaning “rock,” which entered English through Latin and French. Some 19th-century writers also treat Parkin as a variant spelling of Perkin, reinforcing the same Peter-based origin.
History
The surname appears in English records in medieval and early modern forms such as Parkin, Parkyn, and Parkins. Bardsley and Harrison both connect it with Perkin, showing the older fluidity between the vowels and consonants in nickname-based surnames. The name remained especially established in England and later spread with English migration to North America.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Older surname dictionaries often grouped Parkin with Perkin because scribes and record-keepers regularly shifted spellings between the two forms.
From the historical record
“as Parkehurst. PARKIN PARKYN I = Perkin, a dim. of Peter, q.v. PARKY'Jfs}P^^''''''^(Son) PARKINSON PARKYNSON”
— Surnames of the United Kingdom: a concise etymological dictionary (2 vols in 1)