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{{Short description|Scottish surname and northern Irish family name}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2023}}
{{Infobox surname
| name          = Akins
| image =Castle Moil 20080429.jpg
| image_size    =
| caption =[[Kyleakin]], [[Isle of Skye]], [[Scotland]]: it is said that in some cases the surname ''Akins'' may have originated from this location.
| pronunciation =
| meaning       = 1. variant of ''[[Aiken (surname)|Aiken]]'', derived from ''[[Adam (name)|Adam]]'';<br />2. derived from the place name ''[[Kyleakin]]'', meaning 'Haakon's Sound', 'Haakon's Narrows'; <br /> 3. from ''aik'', meaning 'oaken', 'an oak'; <br /> 4. from ''Atty'', ''Arthur''<br />5. [[Anglicisation]] of the [[Irish Gaelic]] surname ''O'hAodhagain''<br />6. Anglicisation of the Irish surname ''Ó'hÓgáin''
| region        = Scotland
| language      = Scots
| variant = [[Aickin]]; [[Aiken (surname)|Aiken]]; [[Aikin]]; [[Aikins]]; [[Akin (disambiguation)|Akin]]; [[Eakins]]; [[Hagan (surname)|Hagan]]; [[Mac Aodhagáin]]; [[McEachin (surname)|McEachin]]; [[Mac Aodhagáin|O'hAodhagain]]
| clans         =
| footnotes     =
}}

'''Akins''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|eɪ|k|ɪ|n|z}} or {{IPAc-en|local|ˈ|ɑː|k|ɪ|n|z}}) is a Scottish surname and northern Irish family name.

==Origins==

===Scotland===
The name has several possible origins, although it is generally considered to be a variant of ''[[Aikens]]'',<ref>{{citation |title=Akins Name Meaning and History |url=http://www.ancestry.com/facts/Akins-family-history.ashx |publisher=[[Ancestry.com]] |accessdate=3 July 2010 }} This webpage cited: {{citation |title=Dictionary of American Family Names |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |isbn=0-19-508137-4 }}</ref> which is considered to be a patronymic form of the name ''[[Aiken (surname)|Aiken]]''.<ref>{{citation |title=Aikens Name Meaning and History |url=http://www.ancestry.com/facts/Aikens-family-history.ashx |publisher=Ancestry.com |accessdate=3 July 2010 }} This webpage cited: {{citation |title=Dictionary of American Family Names |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |isbn=0-19-508137-4 }}</ref> These names are considered to be derived from the [[Scots language|Scots]] personal name ''[[Aitken (surname)|Aitken]]'',<ref>{{citation |title=Aitken Name Meaning and History|url=http://www.ancestry.com/facts/Aitken-family-history.ashx |publisher=Ancestry.com |accessdate=3 July 2010 }} This webpage cited: {{citation |title=Dictionary of American Family Names |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |isbn=0-19-508137-4 }}</ref> which is a double diminutive form of the Biblical name ''[[Adam (name)|Adam]]''. The name is formed in part from ''Ad'', the diminutive of ''Adam'' (the ''d'' has been sharpened to ''t''), and the diminutive suffix -''kin''. George Fraser Black stated that the ''-s'' in the surnames ''[[Atkins (surname)|Atkins]]'', and ''Aitkins'', represents 'son'; and in consequence, that these names equate to ''[[Atkinson (surname)|Atkinson]]''.<ref name="Black-1011">{{citation |title=The Surnames of Scotland: Their Origin, Meaning, and History |last=Black |first=George Fraser |publisher=[[New York Public Library]] |date=1946 |pages=10–11 }}</ref>

In 1946, Black noted that, according to John Paterson (in 1867), the surname ''Aiken'' was an old name in the parish of [[Ballantrae]], [[Ayrshire]]; and that "in [[Orkney]] it is believed to have replaced the [[Old Norse]] name Haakon and its derivative Hakonson".<ref name="Black-1011" /> Black also noted that the surname ''Aiken'' (and its variations: ''Aitken'', ''Aitkin'', ''Aitkins'', ''Atkin'', ''Atkins'') have been stated by others to be derived from the names ''Atty'' ("little Atty"), and ''[[Arthur]]''; although Black stated that he himself disagreed with this derivation, in favour of a diminutive of ''Adam'' (above).<ref name="Black-1011" />

In 1857, David MacGregor Peter noted a traditional derivation for the surname ''Aikman''. The account states that the name ''Aikman'' originated from an officer who, while commanding troops that besieged [[Macbeth, King of Scotland|Macbeth]] in [[Dunsinane Hill|Dunsinane]] Castle, told them to attack using [[oak]] branches. According to Peter, this officer was said to have been the progenitor of all Aikmans and Aikens in Scotland.<ref name="Peter-3">{{citation |title=The Baronage of Angus and Mearns |last=Peter |first=David MacGregor |publisher=Oliver & Boyd |location=Edinburgh |date=1857 |page=3 |url=https://archive.org/details/baronageofangusm00pete}}</ref> Black, however, noted that this story was too silly to believe.<ref name="Black-1112">{{citation |title=The Surnames of Scotland: Their Origin, Meaning, and History |last=Black |first=George Fraser |publisher=New York Public Library |date=1946 |pages=11–12 }}</ref> In 1908, William Cutter noted the surname ''Aiken'', and stated that [[antiquarians]] have derived the name from the word ''aik'', meaning 'an oak', or 'oaken'.<ref>{{citation |title=Genealogical and personal memoirs relating to the families of Boston and eastern Massachusetts |last=Cutter |first=William |publisher=Lewis Historical Publishing Company |location=New York |date=1908 |url=https://archive.org/details/genealogicaland01cuttgoog |pages=1032 }}</ref> Black noted that within the [[heraldry]] of the name ''Aiken'' (and variations), the use oak is merely an example of [[canting arms|canting heraldry]].<ref name="Black-1011" />

Another possible derivation of the surname ''Akins'', suggested by H. Amanda Robb and Andrew Chesler, as well as by Elsdon C. Smith, is that "the name was given to those who were from the area near [[Kyleakin]], a strait in Scotland named for King [[Haakon IV of Norway|Hakon of Norway]]".<ref>{{citation |title=Encyclopedia of American Family Names |last1=Robb |first1=H. Amanda |last2=Chesler |first2=Andrew |publisher=Harper Collins |date=1996 |page={{Page needed|date=September 2010}} }}</ref><ref>{{citation |title=New Dictionary of American Family Names |last=Smith |first=Elsdon Coles |publisher=Harper & Row |orig-year=1956 |date=1973 |isbn=0-06-013933-1 |page=[https://archive.org/details/newdictionaryofa00smi_sln/page/4 4] |url=https://archive.org/details/newdictionaryofa00smi_sln/page/4 }}</ref> The strait's name is derived from the [[Scottish Gaelic]] ''Caol Acain'', which means 'Haakon's Sound', or 'Haakon's Narrows'.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.scotlandsplaces.gov.uk/search_item/index.php?service=RCAHMS&id=99313 |title=ScotlandsPlaces – Skye, Kyleakin, General |access-date=10 July 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120608054447/http://www.scotlandsplaces.gov.uk/search_item/index.php?service=RCAHMS&id=99313 |archive-date=8 June 2012 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

===Ireland===
In Ireland, the surname ''Aiken'' is considered to be of Scottish and English origin,<ref name="Bell-BoIS"/><ref name="O'Laughlin-3"/><ref name="MacLysaght-19"/> and is most common in the province of [[Ulster]].<ref name="Bell-BoIS"/> According to [[Robert Bell (writer and editor)|Robert Bell]], ''Aiken'' is "the Scottish form of the English name Atkin, which comes from Adkin, a pet form of Adam." In the mid-19th century, the name was found to be the most popular in [[Ballymena]], [[County Antrim]].<ref name="Bell-BoIS">{{citation |title=The Book of Irish Surnames |author =Bell, Robert |publisher=The Blackstaff Press |year=1988 |page={{Page needed|date=September 2010}} }}</ref> Michael C. O'Laughlin states that families of the surname ''Aiken'' (and variants: ''Ekin'', ''Aikens'', ''Aikins'', ''Aicken'', ''Aitken'') are mostly of Scottish and English descent. O'Laughlin states that these names originate, in most cases, to the English name ''Aitken''.<ref name="O'Laughlin-3">{{Citation |title=The Book of Irish Families Great and Small|author =Michael C. O'Laughlin |publisher=Irish Genealogical Foundation |year=1997 |page=3 }}</ref> [[Edward MacLysaght]] also notes that the Irish surname ''Aiken'' is the Scottish form of the English ''Aitken''.<ref name="MacLysaght-19">{{citation |title=A guide to Irish surnames |author =MacLysaght, Edward |authorlink=Edward MacLysaght |publisher=Genealogical Book Co. |year=1964 |edition=2 |page=19 }}</ref> According to William and Mary Durning, the names ''Aiken'', ''Akins'', and ''Eakin'' came to Ireland from Scotland during the [[Plantation of Ulster|Ulster Plantation]] of the 17th century where they were transplanted to the Irish counties of [[County Antrim|Antrim]], [[County Monaghan|Monaghan]], and [[County Down|Down]] respectively.<ref>{{Citation |title=The Scotch-Irish |author1=Durning, William |author2=Durning, Mary |publisher=Irish Family Names Society |location=La Mesa, California |year=1991 |page={{Page needed|date=September 2010}} }}</ref>

In Ireland, the surname ''Aiken'' has also been used as an [[Anglicised]] form of an Irish language surname. O'Laughlin, and MacLysaght, note that ''Aiken'' as an Anglicised form of the Irish ''Ó hAodhagáin'' (frequently Anglicised as ''O'Hagan'').<ref>{{Citation |title=The Book of Irish Families Great and Small|author =Michael C. O'Laughlin |publisher=Irish Genealogical Foundation |year=1997 |quote=O'Hagan – O'hAodhagain: Hegan, Aiken, O'Hagain, O'Hagane, Fagan |page=135 }}</ref><ref name="MacLysaght-169">{{Citation |title=Irish Families: Their Names, Arms and Origins |author =MacLysaght, Edward |authorlink=Edward MacLysaght |publisher=Crown Publishers |location=New York |year=1972  |page=169 }}</ref> The Irish ''Ó hAodhagáin'' means "descendant of ''Aodhagán''". The personal name ''Aodhagán'' is a double diminutive of the name ''Aodh'', which means "fire".<ref>{{citation |title=Hagan Name Meaning and History |url=http://www.ancestry.com/facts/Hagan-family-history.ashx |publisher=Ancestry.com |accessdate=30 July 2010 }} This webpage cited: {{citation |title=Dictionary of American Family Names |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=0-19-508137-4 }}</ref> Historically, the [[O'Hagan]]s were centred in the [[County Tyrone]]; their [[Chief of the Name|chief]] was seated at Tullahogue, and had the hereditary right of inaugurating [[O'Neill dynasty|The O'Neill]], as overlord of Ulster.<ref name="MacLysaght-169"/>

According to the Durnings, the surname ''Akin'' can also be an Anglicisation of the Irish name ''Ó hÓgáin'' (O'Eakin). The O'Eakins are stated to descend from the Irish Ui Tuirtre, who were descended from Fiach Tort, son of [[Colla Uais]] of the [[Airgíalla|Oirghialla]] which were the descendants of Eochaid Doimlén, son of [[Cairbre Lifechair]], son of [[Cormac mac Airt|Cormac Ulfhada]] and his wife Etaine, whose ancestry goes back another forty-nine generations in Ireland to its earliest Gaelic founders, the [[Milesians (Irish)|Milesians]].<ref>{{Citation |title=A Guide to Irish Roots |author1=Durning, William |author2=Durning, Mary |publisher=Irish Family Names Society |location=La Mesa, California |year=1986 |page={{Page needed|date=September 2010}} }}</ref> MacLysaght notes that although the surname ''Aicken'' is generally of Scottish origin (as diminutive of ''Adam''), it is also possibly an Anglicised form of the Irish ''Ó h-Aogáin''.<ref>{{Citation |title=Surname Search |url=http://www.irishtimes.com/ancestor/surname/ |newspaper=[[The Irish Times]] |access-date=30 July 2010 |archive-date=13 May 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160513233629/http://www.irishtimes.com/ancestor/surname/ |url-status=dead }} This webpage cited: {{Citation |title=More Irish Families |author =MacLysaght, Edward |authorlink=Edward MacLysaght |year=1982 |location=Dublin }}{{Dead link|date=June 2023 |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

==History==
According to Black, the first recorded appearance of the Scottish surname ''Aiken'' (and its variations: ''Aitken'', ''Aitkin'', ''Aitkins'', ''Atkin'', ''Atkins'') occurs in the year 1405, in the court records of a Scottish sea merchant named "John of Akyne", who sought restitution for having been illegally detained for eight weeks by "Laurence Tuttebury of [[Kingston upon Hull|Hulle]]".<ref name="Black-1011"/><ref>{{Citation |title=Calendar of documents relating to Scotland preserved in Her Majesty's Public Record Office, London |volume=4 |editor=Bain, Joseph |publisher=HM General Register House |location=Edinburgh |year=1881 |url=https://archive.org/details/calendarofdocume04grea |page=146 }}</ref> According to Black, the "of" in John's name is an error. The first recorded use of the ''Aiken'' (and above variants) as a Scottish forename occurs in about the 1340, when "Atkyn de Barr", and "Atkyn Blake", are recorded in [[Ayr]].<ref name="Black-1011"/> The surnames and given names have undergone a variety of transformations in spelling over the years, and in consequence there are many variant forms of the name still in use today.

==Distribution==
A total of 77 ''Akins'' appear in the 1881 Census of Great Britain, and was ranked the 3,502nd most common surname.<ref name="spatial-literacy">{{Cite web|url=http://www.familytreeassistant.com/surnames/surnames.php?surname=Akins|title = Family Tree resources for the Akins surname}}</ref> A total of 220 ''Akins'' appear in the 1996 Electoral roll of Great Britain, and is ranked 3,835th most common surname.<ref name="spatial-literacy"/> In [[Griffith's Valuation]], a property survey of Ireland from 1848 to 1864, records 3 households of ''Akins'' in Ireland; 2 in [[County Donegal]], and 1 in [[County Monaghan]].<ref>{{Citation |title=Surname Search |url=http://www.irishtimes.com/ancestor/surname/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100811160124/http://www.irishtimes.com/ancestor/surname/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=11 August 2010 |newspaper=[[The Irish Times]] }}</ref> Variations of the name were said to have been common in the parish of Ballantrae, as well as in the counties of Aberdeen, Fife, Lanark, Perth, Angus, Renfrew, Ayr, Dumbarton, Stirling and the Lothians. In Ireland the name is common only in Ulster, where many Scots colonists settled in the 17th century.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ulsterancestry.com/irish-surnames.html|title=Irish surnames|website=ulsterancestry.com|access-date=24 July 2010|archive-date=20 May 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110520072253/http://www.ulsterancestry.com/irish-surnames.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>

There were 16,860 people with the surname ''Akins'' recorded in the [[2000 United States census]]. It ranked as the 1,960th most common surname in the country. The surname was made up 65.59% [[White American]]s, 30.34% [[Black American]]s, 0.26% [[Asian American]]s and [[Pacific Islander American]]s, 0.73% [[Native Americans in the United States|American Indians and Alaska Natives]], 1.7% [[Multiracial American]]s, and 1.39% [[Hispanic and Latino Americans|Hispanic American]]s.<ref>{{citation|title=Genealogy Data: Frequently Occurring Surnames from Census 2000 |url=https://www.census.gov/genealogy/www/data/2000surnames/index.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091221003828/http://www.census.gov/genealogy/www/data/2000surnames/index.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=21 December 2009 |publisher=[[US Census Bureau]] |accessdate=30 July 2010 }}</ref>

==List of persons with the surname==
*[[Chris Akins]] (born 1976), American football player
*[[Claude Akins]] (1926–1994), American actor
*[[Ellen Akins]] American novelist
*[[Frank Akins]] (1919–1992), American football player
*[[James Akins (tubist)|James Akins]], American classical tubist
*[[James E. Akins]] (1926–2010), U.S. Ambassador to Saudi Arabia
*[[Jordan Akins]] (born 1992), American football player
*[[Rhett Akins]] (born 1969), American singer-songwriter
*[[Sid Akins]] (born 1962), American baseball player
*[[Thomas Beamish Akins]] (1806–1891) Canadian historian
*[[Virgil Akins]] (1928–2011), American boxer
*[[Zoe Akins]] (1886–1958), American playwright, poet and author

==See also==
*[[Akin (disambiguation)]]
*[[Aikins]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{surname}}
[[Category:English-language surnames]]
[[Category:Surnames of Scottish origin]]