Sankey
A Lancashire surname originally used for someone from Sankey, a place-name probably meaning either “sunk land” or “sankey/island by water.”
The #9,114 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 86,146 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Sankey is a locational surname from Sankey in Lancashire, especially Great and Little Sankey near Warrington. The name is usually explained from Old English elements meaning “to sink” and “island” or waterside land, suggesting low-lying ground or a marshy river place. Some 19th-century writers treated this derivation as doubtful, so the exact form is not certain.
History
Medieval records show forms such as de Sanki and de Sonkey, confirming early use as a place-based surname. The name is particularly associated with Lancashire families of some antiquity, and later spread beyond the county as people moved. In modern times Sankey remains relatively uncommon but recognizable in Britain and the United States.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Great Sankey and Little Sankey appear in historical records as the geographic source of the surname, and the name may preserve a very old reference to wet or sunken ground.
From the historical record
“sangestre] SAN KEY (Erig.) Bel. to Sankey (Lanes), 12th cent. Sonchi, I3th-I4th cent. Sonky, Sanki [doubtful : perh. the ' Sunk(en Island or Waterside,' f. M.E. sonk(en, sunk — O.E. sincan (pret. sing, sane, pp. suncen), tosink + M.E. ey, O.E. ig, island, etc. : cp. the”
— Surnames of the United Kingdom: a concise etymological dictionary (2 vols in 1)