Wilkes
An English surname that usually began as a shortened, familiar form of William, often through the pet form Wilkin.
The #1,975 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 16,858 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Wilkes is generally understood as a shortened form of the medieval name Wilkin, itself a pet form of William. William comes from a Germanic name meaning roughly “will” or “desire” plus “helmet” or “protection,” so the surname ultimately points back to “son of William” or “descendant of William” in sense. The ending -s can mark either a genitive form or a shortened family-name form, which is why Wilkes and Wilkins are closely related.
History
The historical sources treat Wilkes as an abbreviated or assimilated form of Wilkins, and by extension a name built on William. This fits the broader medieval English habit of creating surnames from pet forms of common given names. The name is well established in England and later appears in the United States, where it remains moderately uncommon but recognizable.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The 19th-century surname dictionaries explicitly compare Wilkes to other shortened surnames like Dawkes from Dawkins and Perkes from Perkins.
From the historical record
“WILKERSON for Wilkinson, q.v. WILKES, WiLK(E)'s (Son) : v. Wilk(e. WILKEYl = Wilk(e (q.v.) + the E. dim. suff. WILKIE ] -{e)y, -ie. WILKIN (Eng.) the I3th-cent. Wylekin, Wilekin, late- I2th- cent. Wil{l)ekin, Wilechin, a double dim. of William, q.v. [£. (double) dim. suff. -kin, O.L. Teut. -k-{n\ We find the form…”
— Surnames of the United Kingdom: a concise etymological dictionary (2 vols in 1)