Rankin Surname Meaning & Origin
What the Rankin last name means, where the surname began and how it spread.
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Meaning and origin of the Rankin last name
Meaning of the Rankin last name: little Rand (Randolph). Rankin is a Scottish surname from a medieval pet form of Randolph, with the little ending -kin from Flemish and Dutch. The last name is common in Ayrshire, and Scots took it to Ulster and America. Curiously, in the Highlands a family of Rankins were remembered as hereditary pipers to the MacLeans.
Arms associated with the Rankin name
Coats of arms associated with the Rankin surname follow Scottish heraldry, where each blazon belongs to one bearer.
Get your full Rankin family history
This is only a glimpse of the Rankin story. The full Rankin history report goes much deeper into where the name began, who carried it and how the family spread, and it comes with a museum-style painted Rankin coat of arms. Get the full Rankin report.
Rankin name FAQ
What does the Rankin name mean?
Little Rand (Randolph). Common variants include Rankine.
Where does the Rankin surname come from?
It originates in Scotland, and is also found in Northern Ireland, the United States and Canada.
Is there a Rankin coat of arms?
Arms were granted to individuals rather than to everyone with a surname. Herald Lab paints a personalized Rankin coat of arms in museum style, based on historic heraldry.
Sources: George F. Black, The Surnames of Scotland (New York Public Library, 1946); Dictionary of American Family Names (Oxford).