Balkin Surname History

Origins Available:
Scotland
England

The Balkin family saga is rooted in the people of the Pictish Clan of ancient Scotland. The Balkin family lived in Balcomie, in the parish of Crail, in the county of Fifeshire. 1

Early Origins of the Balkin family

The surname Balkin was first found in Fife, where one of the first records of the family was "Robert de Balcomie who was constable of Crail in 1297 is probably the Robert de Balcomi who served as juror on an inquest made at Perth in 1305. John de Balcolmy was bailie of Crail in 1359, and c. 1380 mention is made of the lands of Richard de Balcolmi in the same town. Thomas de Balcolmi appears in record in 1429, James Balcolmy was married in 1492." 1

In England, the family is thought to have originated at Balcombe (Baegloc's hollow), in Sussex. 2 3 In this case, the place name dates back to the late 11th century when it was known as Balecumba and possible meant "valley of a man called Bealda." 4

Early feudal rolls provided the king of the time a method of cataloguing holdings for taxation, but today they provide a glimpse into the wide surname spellings in use at that time. John de Balecomb was listed in Sussex in 1327 as was Thomas Bakombe in the Subsidy Rolls for 1525. 5

Early History of the Balkin family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Balkin research. Another 62 words (4 lines of text) covering the years 1297, 1359, 1380 and 1672 are included under the topic Early Balkin History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Balkin Spelling Variations

Prior to the invention of the printing press in the last hundred years, documents were basically unique. Names were written according to sound, and often appeared differently each time they were recorded. Spelling variations of the name Balkin include Balcom, Balcome, Balcomb, Balcomm, Balcombe and others.

Early Notables of the Balkin family

More information is included under the topic Early Balkin Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Balkin migration to the United States +

The freedom of the North American colonies was enticing, and many Scots left to make the great crossing. It was a long and hard journey, but its reward was a place where there was more land than people and tolerance was far easier to come by. Many of these people came together to fight for a new nation in the American War of Independence, while others remained loyal to the old order as United Empire Loyalists. The ancestors of Scots in North America have recovered much of this heritage in the 20th century through Clan societies and other such organizations. A search of immigration and passenger lists revealed many important and early immigrants to North America bearing the name of Balkin:

Balkin Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Sam Balkin, who landed in Mississippi in 1906 6

Citations +

Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)
Smith, Eldson Coles, New Dictionary of American Family Names New York: Harper & Row, 1956. Print
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)