Show ContentsCarkin History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The name Carkin reached English shores for the first time with the ancestors of the Carkin family as they migrated following the Norman Conquest in 1066. Carkin is a name for a person who was known as the carman, or one who rented or let out vehicles. Often carmen were known as hostilers.

Early Origins of the Carkin family

The surname Carkin was first found in Cumberland in the lands of Carman where they held a family seat from very ancient times before 1100 A.D.

Early History of the Carkin family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Carkin research. Another 158 words (11 lines of text) covering the years 1066, 1086 and 1300 are included under the topic Early Carkin History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Carkin Spelling Variations

Multitudes of spelling variations are a hallmark of Anglo Norman names. Most of these names evolved in the 11th and 12th century, in the time after the Normans introduced their own Norman French language into a country where Old and Middle English had no spelling rules and the languages of the court were French and Latin. To make matters worse, medieval scribes spelled words according to sound, so names frequently appeared differently in the various documents in which they were recorded. The name was spelled Carman, Carmen, Carmine, Carmyn and others.

Early Notables of the Carkin family

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

Migration of the Carkin family

Because of this political and religious unrest within English society, many people decided to immigrate to the colonies. Families left for Ireland, North America, and Australia in enormous numbers, traveling at high cost in extremely inhospitable conditions. The New World in particular was a desirable destination, but the long voyage caused many to arrive sick and starving. Those who made it, though, were welcomed by opportunities far greater than they had known at home in England. Many of these families went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations of Canada and the United States. Analysis of immigration records indicates that some of the first North American immigrants bore the name Carkin or a variant listed above: Henry Carman aged 23; who settled in Virginia in 1620; the same year that the "Mayflower" arrived to the north in Massachusetts; John Carman settled in Boston Massachusetts in 1621 the year following the ".


Contemporary Notables of the name Carkin (post 1700) +

  • John H. Carkin (b. 1853), American Republican politician, Member of Oregon State House of Representatives, 1913, 1923-27; Speaker of the Oregon State House of Representatives, 1927 [1]
  • Herbert B. Carkin, American Republican politician, Delegate to Republican National Convention from Rhode Island, 1956 [1]


  1. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, December 9) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


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