Tomlin
A diminutive surname from Thomas, meaning “little Tom” or “son of Tom.”
The #3,036 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 26,172 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Tomlin is an English surname built from the pet form Tom, short for Thomas, plus the diminutive suffix -lin. In effect, it began as a familiar name meaning something like “little Tom” or “Tom’s descendant.” The ultimate root of Thomas is the New Testament name from Aramaic, traditionally understood to mean “twin.”
History
Historical forms such as Tomelyn, Thomelyn, Tomlyn, and Thomlyn are recorded in medieval English sources. Related surnames include Tomlinson and Tomlins, which preserve the same root in expanded patronymic forms. The name also generated regional spellings and variants such as Tamlin and Tamplin, especially where vowel changes and dialect pronunciation affected the written form.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Some 19th-century surname writers treated Tamlin and Tamplin as regional spelling shifts of Tomlin rather than separate origins.
From the historical record
“TOMLEY, a metalhetic form of Tolmie, q.v. TOMLIN -Tom (Thomas), q.v. -f the double dim. suff. -e)l-in. The 14th - cent. English forms are Tomelyn, Thomelyn, Tomlyn, Thomlyn. Thomelin is now somewhat rare in France. TOMLINS, ToMLiN's(Son) 1 „ .r„,„,i„ TOMLINSON, Tomlin's Son j ^- 'O""""-”
— Surnames of the United Kingdom: a concise etymological dictionary (2 vols in 1)