Perkins History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Etymology of Perkins

What does the name Perkins mean?

The rich and ancient history of the Perkins family name dates back to the time of the Anglo-Saxon tribes of Britain. It comes from the baptismal name Peter. Baptismal names began to appear as surnames relatively late in the growth of the naming tradition. This is a little surprising, given the popularity of biblical figures in the Christian countries of Europe. Nevertheless, surnames derived from baptismal names grew in popularity during the Middle Ages, and have become one of the foremost sources for surnames. In this case the surname Perkins was originally derived from two elements; per a form of Peter and the suffix kin. The literal meaning of the surname is Little Peter, which denotes the son of Peter. 1

Early Origins of the Perkins family

The surname Perkins was first found in Leicestershire. The name is traditionally "confined mostly to the southern half of England, being most numerous in Warwickshire, Worcestershire, and South Wales. " 2

Early rolls listed the name in singular and plural forms: Edmund Perkyn 1327 in the Subsidy Rolls for Suffolk; Robert Parkyn 1327 in the Subsidy Rolls for Staffordshire; Walter Perkyns 1327 in the Subsidy Rolls for Worcester; and Maud Parkynes 1332 in the Subsidy Rolls for Warwickshire. 3

Early History of the Perkins family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Perkins research. Another 138 words (10 lines of text) covering the years 1327, 1516, 1545, 1547, 1555, 1558, 1602, 1622, 1649, 1658, 1696 and 1707 are included under the topic Early Perkins History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Perkins Spelling Variations

Spelling variations in names were a common occurrence before English spelling was standardized a few hundred years ago. In the Middle Ages, even the literate spelled their names differently as the English language incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other European languages. Many variations of the name Perkins have been found, including Perkins, Perkin, Perkyns, Perkens, Perkynn and others.

Early Notables of the Perkins family

John Perkins or Parkins (died 1545), an English jurist; he may have been the John Perkins who was a groom of the royal chamber in 1516
William Perkins (1558-1602) was English Puritan theologian and Sir Christopher Perkins or Parkins (1547-1622) was an English diplomatist, master of requests and dean of Carlisle. Another Christopher P...
Joseph Perkins (born c. 1658) was the younger son of George Perkins of Slimbridge, Gloucestershire. He was chaplain in the navy and sailed to the Mediterranean in the Norfolk under Admiral Edward Russ...
Sir William Parkyns (Perkins) (1649?-1696) was an English lawyer and Jacobite conspirator, executed for high treason

Perkins World Ranking

the United States, the name Perkins is the 161^st most popular surname with an estimated 144,246 people with that name. 4 However, in Australia, the name Perkins is ranked the 359^th most popular surname with an estimated 10,121 people with that name. 5 And in New Zealand, the name Perkins is the 574^th popular surname with an estimated 1,238 people with that name. 6 The United Kingdom ranks Perkins as 344^th with 18,059 people. 7

Perkins migration to the United States +

Families began migrating abroad in enormous numbers because of the political and religious discontent in England. Often faced with persecution and starvation in England, the possibilities of the New World attracted many English people. Although the ocean trips took many lives, those who did get to North America were instrumental in building the necessary groundwork for what would become for new powerful nations. Among the first immigrants of the name Perkins, or a variant listed above to cross the Atlantic and come to North America were :

Perkins Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Francis Perkins who arrived in Virginia in 1607
Francis Perkins, who landed in Jamestown, Va in 1607 9
John Perkins, who landed in Boston, Massachusetts in 1631 aboard the ship "Lyon" 9
Mrs. Judith Perkins, who landed in Boston, Massachusetts in 1631 aboard the ship "Lyon"
Mr. John Perkins, Jr., who arrived in Salem, Massachusetts in 1631 aboard the ship "Lyon" 10
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Perkins Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Thomas Perkins, who landed in Virginia in 1701 9
Peter Perkins, who landed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1746 9
John Perkins, who settled in Maryland in 1757
Richard Perkins, who arrived in New York in 1791 9
Martha Perkins, who landed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1794 9
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Perkins Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Nathaniel H Clifford Perkins, aged 27, who arrived in Delaware in 1812 9
Samuel Perkins, aged 25, who arrived in West Indies in 1812 9
Betsey Perkins, who arrived in New York in 1823 9
Elizabeth Perkins, who landed in New York in 1823 9
Charlotte Perkins, who arrived in New York in 1823 9
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Perkins Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Mr. Samuel Perkins, (b. 1865), aged 38, Cornish miner, from Scilly, Cornwall, UK travelling aboard the ship "New York" arriving at Ellis Island, New York on 24th May 1903 en route to Leadville, Colorado, USA 11

Perkins migration to Canada +

Perkins Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

Mr. Robert Perkins U.E. who arrived in Port Roseway, [Shelbourne], Nova Scotia on October 26, 1783 was passenger number 232 aboard the ship "HMS Clinton", picked up on September 28, 1783 at Staten Island, New York, USA 12
Mr. Azariah Perkins U.E. who settled in Canada c. 1784 12
Mr. Azariah Perkins U.E. (b. 1742) who settled in Kings County, New Brunswick c. 1784 he died in 1825 12
Mr. Isaac Perkins U.E. who settled in Canada c. 1784 12

Perkins migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia included the First Fleet, Second Fleet and Third Fleet of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

First Fleet

Mr. Edward Perkins, (b. 1763), aged 26, British settler convicted at Durham, England in 1787, sentenced to Life for stealing, transported aboard the ship "Neptune" leaving in 1789 arriving in New South Wales, Australia in 1790 8

Second Fleet

Mr. Joseph Perkins, (d. 1791), British settler convicted in Warwickshire, England in 1790, sentenced to 7 years for stealing, transported aboard the ship "Admiral Barrington" leaving in 1790 arriving in New South Wales, Australia in 1791 9
Mr. Thomas Perkins, British settler convicted in Middlesex, England in 1790, sentenced to 7 years for stealing, transported aboard the ship "Active" leaving in 1790 arriving in New South Wales, Australia in 1791 9
Mr. William Perkins, British settler convicted in Oxfordshire, England in 1790, sentenced to 7 years for breaking and entry, transported aboard the ship "Britannia" leaving in 1790 arriving in New South Wales, Australia in 1791 9

Third Fleet

Mr. Edward Perkins, (b. 1730), aged 57, English labourer convicted in Plymouth, Devon on 26th January 1785, sentenced for 7 years for stealing animals, transported aboard the ship "Friendship" leaving in 1787 arriving in New South Wales, Australia in 1788 9

Following the First, Second and Third Fleets, other convicts and early settlers arriving in Australia include:

Perkins Settlers in Australia in the 18th Century

Mr. James Perkins, English convict who was convicted in Durham, England for life, transported aboard the "Barwell" in September 1797, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 13

Perkins Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Miss Mary Perkins, English convict who was convicted in London, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Broxbournebury" in January 1814, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 14
Mr. John Perkins, (b. 1797), aged 22, British Convict who was convicted in London, England for life, transported aboard the "Coromandel" on 27th October 1819, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 15
John Perkins, English convict from Surrey, who was transported aboard the "Asia" on October 22nd, 1824, settling in New South Wales, Australia 16
Mr. Charles Perkins, British convict who was convicted in Coventry, England for life, transported aboard the "Bussorah Merchant" on 1st October 1829, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 17
Mr. William Perkins, British convict who was convicted in Coventry, England for life, transported aboard the "Bussorah Merchant" on 1st October 1829, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 17
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Perkins migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Perkins Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Mr. Perkins, British settler travelling from Gravesend, England aboard the ship "Clontarf" arriving in Canterbury, New Zealand on 16th March 1860
Mr. Thomas Perkins, Cornish settler travelling from Launceston aboard the ship "Mayflower" arriving in Invercargill, South Island, New Zealand on 20th May 1863 18
Mrs. Perkins, Cornish settler travelling from Launceston with 3 children aboard the ship "Mayflower" arriving in Invercargill, South Island, New Zealand on 20th May 1863 18
Mr. Perkins, American settler travelling from San Francisco aboard the ship "Nevada" arriving in Port Chalmers, Dunedin, Otago, South Island, New Zealand on 10th May 1871 18
John Perkins, aged 28, a plumber, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Golden Sea" in 1874
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Perkins migration to West Indies +

The British first settled the British West Indies around 1604. They made many attempts but failed in some to establish settlements on the Islands including Saint Lucia and Grenada. By 1627 they had managed to establish settlements on St. Kitts (St. Christopher) and Barbados, but by 1641 the Spanish had moved in and destroyed some of these including those at Providence Island. The British continued to expand the settlements including setting the First Federation in the British West Indies by 1674; some of the islands include Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Island, Turks and Caicos, Jamaica and Belize then known as British Honduras. By the 1960's many of the islands became independent after the West Indies Federation which existed from 1958 to 1962 failed due to internal political conflicts. After this a number of Eastern Caribbean islands formed a free association. 19

Perkins Settlers in West Indies in the 18th Century

Jonathan Perkins, who landed in Barbados in 1737 9

Contemporary Notables of the name Perkins (post 1700) +

Robert Perkins (1933-2025), American radio personality
Lew Perkins (1945-2023), American athletic director at the University of Kansas (KU)
Bill Perkins (1949-2023), American politician, Member of the New York City Council (2017-2021), Member of the New York State Senate (2007-2017)
Walter Ray Perkins (1941-2020), American football player and head coach for the New York Giants, the University of Alabama, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and Arkansas State University
Edward Joseph Perkins (1928-2020), American diplomat, United States Ambassador to Australia (1993-1996), 19th United States Ambassador to the United Nations (1992-1993)
Angier March Perkins (1799-1881), American engineer and inventor from Newbury Port, Massachusetts who emigrated to England in 1827 where he introduced a patented method of warming buildings by means of hot water circulating through small closed pipes
Brigadier-General Robert Meredith Perkins (1887-1960), American Instector-General, San Francisco Port of Embarkation (1946-1947) 20
Joseph William "Pinetop" Perkins (1913-2011), American Blues musician, he received numerous honors during his lifetime including the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, and induction into the Blues Hall of Fame
Corporal William Thomas Perkins Jr. (1947-1967), American Marine awarded the Medal of Honor
... (Another 10 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Perkins family +

Empress of Ireland

Mrs. Louise Maria Perkins (1878-1914), née Moss Canadian Third Class Passenger from London, Ontario, Canada who was traveling aboard the Empress of Ireland and died in the sinking 21
Mr. Richard Henry William Perkins (1874-1914), Canadian Second Class Passenger from Toronto, Ontario, Canada who was traveling aboard the Empress of Ireland and died in the sinking 22
Mr. William G Perkins (b. 1921), English Marine serving for the Royal Marine from Ladywell Park, Catford, London, England, who sailed into battle and died in the HMS Hood sinking 22
Mr. W Perkins, British Ship Write 4th Class, who sailed into battle on the HMS Prince of Wales (1941) and survived the sinking 23
Mr. Perkins, British Able Seaman, who sailed into battle on the HMS Prince of Wales (1941) and survived the sinking 24
... (Another 9 entries are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

The Perkins Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Simplex vigilum veri
Motto Translation: An honest one of the sentinels of truth.

Sources +

Harrison, Henry, Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary Baltimore: Geneological Publishing Company, 2013. Print
Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. Print.
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
"Most Common Last Names in Australia." Forebears, https://forebears.io/australia/surnames
"Most Common Last Names in New Zealand." Forebears, https://forebears.io/new-zealand/surnames
"UK surname ranking." UK Surname map, https://www.surnamemap.eu/unitedkingdom/surnames_ranking.php?p=10
Convict Records of Australia. Retrieved 4th February 2021 from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships
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)
Pilgrim Ship's of 1600's Retrieved January 6th 2023, retrieved from https://www.packrat-pro.com/ships/shiplist.htm
Cornwall Online Parish Clerks. (Retrieved 3rd May 2018). Retrieved from http://www.opc-cornwall.org/Resc/pdfs/emigration_ellis_island_1892_on.pdf
Rubincam, Milton. The Old United Empire Loyalists List. Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc, 1976. (Originally published as; United Empire Loyalists. The Centennial of the Settlement of Upper Canada. Rose Publishing Company, 1885.) ISBN 0-8063-0331-X
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 29th September 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/barwell
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 3rd November 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/broxbournebury
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 12th March 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/coromandel
State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2016, October 27) Asia 1 voyage to Van Diemen's Land, Australia in 1824 with 9 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/asia/1824
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 10th November 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/bussorah-merchant
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
Generals of World War II. (Retrieved 2014, March 26) Robert Perkins. Retrieved from http://generals.dk/general/Perkins/Robert_Meredith/USA.html
Commemoration Empress of Ireland 2014. (Retrieved 2014, June 17) . Retrieved from http://www.empress2014.ca/seclangen/listepsc1.html
H.M.S. Hood Association-Battle Cruiser Hood: Crew Information - H.M.S. Hood Rolls of Honour, Men Lost in the Sinking of H.M.S. Hood, 24th May 1941. (Retrieved 2016, July 15) . Retrieved from http://www.hmshood.com/crew/memorial/roh_24may41.htm
HMS Prince of Wales Crew members. (Retrieved 2014, April 9) . Retrieved from http://www.forcez-survivors.org.uk/biographies/listprincecrew.html