Rankins
A surname that most likely means “son of Rankin,” with Rankin itself usually treated as a pet form of a personal name such as Reynold or Ranulf.
The #8,634 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 81,057 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Rankins is generally understood as a patronymic surname built from Rankin, with the final -s marking “son of” or family descent. The name Rankin is commonly treated as a diminutive or pet form of older personal names such as Reynold, though some older writers also linked similar forms to other given names or nicknames. In short, Rankins means “descendant of Rankin.”
History
Bardsley notes medieval forms such as Reynkin and connects Rankins with the Rankin/Reynkin group of surnames. The name appears in Britain in both English and Scottish usage, and later spread to North America through ordinary migration and surname transmission. The spelling with final -s is one of several related forms, alongside Rankin, Ranken, and Rankins.
Origin
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Fun fact
Older surname dictionaries sometimes grouped Rankins with a broad family of names ending in -kin, a very common medieval diminutive ending.
From the historical record
“Balistarius ' or ' Adam fil. Reinaud ' are common entries, and ' Reynardsons ' and ' Rennisons ' still exist. Our ' Rankins,' too, would seem to have origi- nated from this sobriquet since * Gilbert Reynkin ' and * Richard Reynkyn ' are found in two separate rolls. Miles came into England as ' Milo,' that being the…”
— English Surnames: their sources and significations