Atken Surname, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available: English, Scottish

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The name Atken is of Anglo-Saxon origin and came from when a family lived the personal name Adam. Atken is a diminutive which means son of Adam.

Atken Early Origins

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The surname Atken was first found in Westmorland and Northumberland where they held a family seat from ancient times, before the Norman Conquest of England in 1066.

Atken Spelling Variations

Sound was what guided spelling in the essentially pre-literate Middle Ages, so one person's name was often recorded under several variations during a single lifetime. Also, before the advent of the printing press and the first dictionaries, the English language was not standardized. Therefore, spelling variations were common, even among the names of the most literate people. Known variations of the Atken family name include Adkin, Atkin, Atkins, Adekin, Adekyns, Adekyn, Adkins and many more.

Atken Early History

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Atken research. Another 159 words (11 lines of text) covering the years 1191, 1296, 1379, 1621, 1601, 1681, 1626, 1685, 1662, 1615, 1677, 1587, 1669, 1630, 1698, 1686, 1689, 1647, 1711, 1610, 1703, 1665, 1670, 1674 and 1680 are included under the topic Early Atken History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Atken Early Notables (pre 1700)

Distinguished members of the family include Sir Robert Atkins; William Atkins (1601-1681), an English Jesuit; Robert Adkins (1626-1685), English ejected minister of 1662 from Chard, Somerset; Richard Atkyns (1615-1677), an English writer and printer from Gloucestershire; Sir Edward Atkyns SL (1587-1669), an English judge, Baron of the Exchequer; and his son...

Another 50 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Atken Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Atken In Ireland

Some of the Atken family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt. Another 110 words (8 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

The Great Migration

For political, religious, and economic reasons, thousands of English families boarded ships for Ireland, the Canadas, the America colonies, and many of smaller tropical colonies in the hope of finding better lives abroad. Although the passage on the cramped, dank ships caused many to arrive in the New World diseased and starving, those families that survived the trip often went on to make valuable contributions to those new societies to which they arrived. Early immigrants bearing the Atken surname or a spelling variation of the name include : Sir Jonathon Atkins who was Governor of Barbados in 1663; Henry Atkins settled in Plymouth in 1641; Thomas Adkins settled in East Hartford in 1682.

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: Vincit cum legibus arma
Motto Translation: He wins over violence with laws

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Citations

Other References

Lennard, Reginald. Rural England 1086-1135 A Study of Social and Agrarian Conditions. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1959. Print.
Shirley, Evelyn Philip. Noble and Gentle Men of England Or Notes Touching The Arms and Descendants of the Ancient Knightley and Gentle Houses of England Arranged in their Respective Counties 3rd Edition. Westminster: John Bowyer Nichols and Sons, 1866. Print.
Weis, Frederick Lewis, Walter Lee Sheppard and David Faris. Ancestral Roots of Sixty Colonists Who Came to New England Between 1623 and 1650 7th Edition. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0806313676).
Bede, The Venerable. Historia Ecclesiatica Gentis Anglorum (The Ecclesiastical History Of the English People). Available through Internet Medieval Sourcebook the Fordham University Centre for Medieval Studies. Print.
Bullock, L.G. Historical Map of England and Wales. Edinburgh: Bartholomew and Son, 1971. Print.
Matthews, John. Matthews' American Armoury and Blue Book. London: John Matthews, 1911. Print.
Thirsk, Joan. The Agrarian History of England and Wales. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press: 7 Volumes. Print.
Virkus, Frederick A. Ed. Immigrant Ancestors A List of 2,500 Immigrants to America Before 1750. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1964. Print.
Dunkling, Leslie. Dictionary of Surnames. Toronto: Collins, 1998. Print. (ISBN 0004720598).
Zieber, Eugene. Heraldry in America. Philadelphia: Genealogical Publishing Co. Print.
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The Atken Family Crest was acquired from the Houseofnames.com archives. The Atken Family Crest was drawn according to heraldic standards based on published blazons. We generally include the oldest published family crest once associated with each surname.

This page was last modified on 9 March 2017 at 15:42.