Hunkin Family

Date: [unknown] [unknown]
Location: [unknown]
Surnames/tags: Hunkin Hunkyn Hunckyn

The Surname Hunkin

The surname of HUNKIN was a baptismal name 'the son of John' an ancient personal name. This name has enjoyed enormous popularity in Europe, being given in honour of St. John, the Baptist, precurser of Christ and of St. John the Evangelist, author of the fourth gospel, as well as others of the nearly one thousand saints of the name. Some of the principal forms of the name in other European languages are Evan, Ioan, Sean, Johann, Hans, Jan, Jean, Giovanni, Giannai, Vanni, Juan and Ivan. Early records of the name mention Roger Hunkin, who was recorded in the year 1273 in County Norfolk. Elizabeth Hancks, 1564 London. Thomas Hankin and Margaret Wilkinson were married at St. George's, Hanover Square, London in 1761, and George Hankinson wed Mary Smith at the same church in 1778. William Hanks and Lucy Edwards were married at St. George's, Hanover Square, London in 1789. During the Middle Ages, when people were unable to read or write signs were needed for all visual identification. For several centuries city streets in Britain were filled with signs of all kinds, public houses, tradesmen and even private householders found them necessary. This was an age when there were no numbered houses, and an address was a descriptive phrase that made use of a convenient landmark. At this time, coat of arms came into being, for the practical reason that men went into battle heavily armed and were difficult to recognise. It became the custom for them to adorn their helmets with distinctive crests, and to paint their shields with animals and the like. Coats of arms accompanied the development of surnames, becoming hereditary in the same way. Surnames before the Norman Conquest of 1066 were rare in England having been brought by the Normans when William the Conqueror invaded the shores. The practice spread to Scotland and Ireland by the 12th century, and in Wales they appeared as late as the 16th century. Most surnames can be traced to one of four sources, locational, from the occupation of the original bearer, nicknames or simply font names based on the first name of the parent being given as the second name to their child. The associated coat of arms is recorded in Sir Bernard Burkes General Armory. Registered at Gatherley, County Devon. Granted to John Hunkin, descended from William Hunkyn Esq, of Southkimbane, County Cornwall in 1620.^[1]

Hunkin Early Origins

The surname Hunkin was first found in Cornwall where they held a family seat as Lords of the Manor of South Kimber. Cornwall was a land set apart, a land of mystique and quaint customs, more strongly related to Brittany and Wales than to England. It was not until the 10th century that they submitted to the Saxon rule of England. Since then, their influence has moved east into Devon, Somerset and Dorset.^[2]

Hunkin Spelling Variations

Cornish surnames are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. The frequent changes in surnames are due to the fact that the Old and Middle English languages lacked definite spelling rules. The official court languages, which were Latin and French, were also influential on the spelling of a surname. Since the spelling of surnames was rarely consistent in medieval times, and scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded rather than adhering to any specific spelling rules, it was common to find the same individual referred to with different spellings of their surname in the ancient chronicles. Moreover, a large number of foreign names were brought into England, which accelerated and accentuated the alterations to the spelling of various surnames. Lastly, spelling variations often resulted from the linguistic differences between the people of Cornwall and the rest of England. The Cornish spoke a unique Brythonic Celtic language which was first recorded in written documents during the 10th century. However, they became increasingly Anglicized, and Cornish became extinct as a spoken language in 1777, although it has been revived by Cornish patriots in the modern era. The name has been spelled Hunkin, Hunkins, Hunkens, Unkins, Hunkyn, Hunkyns and others. ^[3]