Rankin
A Scottish and northern English surname that often began as a diminutive of Randolph, though some early forms may also connect to a medieval Yorkshire name like Ravenchil/Rankil.
The #1,229 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 10,713 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Most modern scholars and the older surname dictionaries treat Rankin as a diminutive or pet form of Randolph, built with the common -kin ending. The name was also linked by some 19th-century writers to an older Yorkshire personal name, recorded in forms such as Rankil or Rankill, which they thought may have developed from an earlier Scandinavian-looking element. In either case, the surname is best understood as arising from a personal name rather than from a place or occupation.
History
The name appears early in northern records, especially in Yorkshire, and later becomes well established in Scotland. Lower reported a family tradition connecting the Scottish Rankines with a medieval figure said to have come from Ghent, but he also called that story vague and undated. The surname has remained fairly concentrated in Scotland, northern England, and places settled from those regions.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Bardsley thought the Yorkshire form Rankil was important enough to suggest that the modern surname Rankin may descend from it, rather than from Randolph alone.
From the historical record
“RANKIN Stq)ben Ramche], Yorks, temp. 1300 : FFF.p.106. • . F ^y- Thus it is clear that the York- shire personal name Ravenchil or Ranchil became a surname in the guise of Rankil or Rankill. I be- lieve Rayenhill (q.v.) is the present descendant It is incredible that the surname should have entirely”
— A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames (alternate scan)