Watkyn History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

• Origins Available:
• Wales
• Ireland

Etymology of Watkyn

A product of the ancient Brythonic Celts of Wales, the name Watkyn, is from the personal name Walter. The surname Watkyn is derived from the pet form Wat, which is supplemented by the common diminutive suffix -kin.

Early Origins of the Watkyn family

Early History of the Watkyn family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Watkyn research. Another 45 words (3 lines of text) covering the years 1653, 1660, 1665 and 1670 are included under the topic Early Watkyn History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Watkyn Spelling Variations

There are relatively few surnames native to Wales, but they have an inordinately large number of spelling variations. Early variations of Welsh surnames can be explained by the fact that very few people in the early Middle Ages were literate. Priests and the few other literate people were responsible for recording names in official documents. And because most people could not specific how to properly record their names it was up to the individual recorder of that time to determine how a spoken name should be recorded. Variations due to the imprecise or improper recording of a name continued later in history when names originally composed in the Brythonic Celtic, language of Wales, known by natives as Cymraeg, were transliterated into English. Welsh names that were documented in English often changed dramatically since the native language of Wales, which was highly inflected, did not copy well. Occasionally, however, spelling variations were carried out according to an individual's specific design: a branch loyalty within the family, a religious adherence, or even patriotic affiliations could be indicated by minor variations. The spelling variations of the name Watkyn have included Watkins, Watkyns, Watkens, Watkin and others.

Early Notables of the Watkyn family

Morgan Watkins (fl. 1653-1670), English Quaker from Herefordshire who was imprisoned in 1660 in St. Albans gaol and later twice in 1665. "He afterwards appears to have preached and been imprisoned in...
Another 32 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Watkyn Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Watkyn family to Ireland

Some of the Watkyn family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt. More information about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Watkyn family

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 Watkyn: Henry Watkins who was a fisherman of Little Harbour in Twillingate Newfoundland in 1814; Peregrine Watkines settled in Virginia in 1621; Evan Watkins settled in Virginia in 1622.