Show ContentsJunkins History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The Junkins surname has long been associated with Wales. This surname comes from the personal names Jen, Jan, and Jon, which are all forms of the name John. The surname Junkins also features the diminutive suffix -kin, which is commonly held to have been brought to Britain from the Netherlands as early as the 12th century, when it is found as a component of the surnames of some Flemish settlers. Generally, the Jenkin variant of this name came from the Devon-Cornwall region.

Early Origins of the Junkins family

The surname Junkins was first found in "South Wales and Monmouthshire, where it is very numerous. Like other Welsh names it has spread itself to the southward and eastward, though not nearly to the extent of some of the other common names of the Principality."

"The usual explanation that Jenkins is a name of Flemish type, probably introduced by the Flemings who settled in numbers in South Wales in the reign of Henry I., is to some extent supported by the fact that the great home of the name is now in South Wales and Monmouthshire. It is singular, however, that the name, usually as Jenkin, should be numerous in Cornwall. Cornwall is very Welsh with reference to some of its most frequent names, such as Roberts, Phillips, Williams, Richards, Thomas, Jenkin, Harris, James, &c., which, in the intervening counties of Devon and Somerset are usually much less numerous. This close resemblance in family nomenclature between two isolated regions that possess a similar racial history is very remarkable." 1

Early History of the Junkins family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Junkins research. Another 81 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1460, 1582, 1597, 1600, 1602, 1609, 1622, 1623, 1625, 1641, 1663, 1685, 1722, 1798 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Junkins History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Junkins Spelling Variations

The Welsh have an extremely large amount of spelling variations of their native surnames to their credit. It was up to the priest or the scribe taking the official records to determine how the spoken name was to be made literal. As time progressed, the old Brythonic names of Wales were recorded in English, which was especially problematic since the English language had extreme difficulty recording the highly inflected sounds of Cymraeg. Spelling variations were, however, also carried out according to an individual's design: a branch loyalty within the family, a religious adherence, or even patriotic affiliations could be indicated by spelling variations of one's name. The spelling variations of the name Junkins have included Jenkins, Jenkin, Jankins, Jenkynn, Jenkynns, Jenkyns, Jinkines, Jinkins, Jenkens, Junkin, Junkins and many more.

Early Notables of the Junkins family

Prominent amongst the family during the late Middle Ages was David Jenkins (1582-1663), Welsh judge and Royalist, "the son of Jenkin Richard of Hensol, in the parish of Pendeulwyn, Glamorganshire, where he was born in 1582. He became a commoner of St. Edmund Hall, Oxford, in 1597, and took the degree of B.A. 4...
Another 54 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Junkins Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Junkins Ranking

In the United States, the name Junkins is the 14,283rd most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 2

Ireland Migration of the Junkins family to Ireland

Some of the Junkins family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 66 words (5 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


United States Junkins migration to the United States +

North America in the 1800s and 1900s saw the arrival of many Welsh people hoping to share in the wealth of land, work, and freedom that they felt North America held. Those who made the journey often attained those expectations, but only through an enormous amount of hard work, perseverance, and often a bout of good luck. These immigrants helped contribute to the growth of industry, commerce, and culture of both Canada and the United States. Discovered in the immigration and passenger lists were a number of people bearing the name Junkins:

Junkins Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
  • Robert Junkins, who landed in Maine in 1651-1652 3
Junkins Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • John Junkins, who arrived in South Carolina in 1811 3
  • William Junkins, who arrived in South Carolina in 1823 3
  • David Junkins, who landed in Mississippi in 1888 3
  • Hugh Junkins, who landed in Mississippi in 1888 3

Contemporary Notables of the name Junkins (post 1700) +

  • Luther Junkins, American politician, U.S. Collector of Customs, 1854 4
  • Lowell L. Junkins, American Democratic Party politician, Elected Iowa State Senate 31st District 1982 4
  • John F. Junkins, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Mississippi, 1936 4
  • Bobby Junkins, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Alabama, 1996 4


  1. Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. Print.
  2. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  3. 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)
  4. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 28) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


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