NameCensus.

UK surname

Tompkins

A patronymic surname derived from the given name Thomas, meaning "son of Thomas."

In the 1881 census there were 2,589 people recorded with the Tompkins surname, ranking it #1,725 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 2,899, ranked #2,323, down from #1,725 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to London parishes, Finedon or Thingdon and Northampton St Giles, Northampton St Sepulchre, Northampton Priory. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Milton Keynes, Wellingborough and Stratford-on-Avon.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Tompkins is 3,887 in 1911. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 12.0%.

1881 census count

2,589

Ranked #1,725

Modern count

2,899

2016, ranked #2,323

Peak year

1911

3,887 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Tompkins had 2,589 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #1,725 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 2,899 in 2016, ranked #2,323.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 3,887 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Rural Amenity.

Tompkins surname distribution map

The map shows where the Tompkins surname is concentrated in each census or modern distribution year. Darker areas mean a stronger local concentration.

Distribution map

Tompkins surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Tompkins over time

The table below tracks recorded surname counts and rank from the 19th-century census years through the modern adult-register period.

Year Period Count Rank
1851 historical 1,350 #2,131
1861 historical 1,387 #2,070
1881 historical 2,589 #1,725
1891 historical 2,903 #1,624
1901 historical 3,770 #1,492
1911 historical 3,887 #1,325
1997 modern 3,031 #2,118
1998 modern 3,201 #2,096
1999 modern 3,208 #2,099
2000 modern 3,185 #2,109
2001 modern 3,096 #2,123
2002 modern 3,140 #2,142
2003 modern 3,028 #2,169
2004 modern 2,963 #2,217
2005 modern 2,875 #2,255
2006 modern 2,837 #2,292
2007 modern 2,833 #2,313
2008 modern 2,822 #2,333
2009 modern 2,870 #2,351
2010 modern 2,963 #2,327
2011 modern 2,927 #2,328
2012 modern 2,911 #2,300
2013 modern 2,957 #2,305
2014 modern 2,962 #2,310
2015 modern 2,904 #2,323
2016 modern 2,899 #2,323

Geography

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Where Tompkins' are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around London parishes, Finedon or Thingdon, Northampton St Giles, Northampton St Sepulchre, Northampton Priory and Houghton Regis. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Milton Keynes, Wellingborough, Stratford-on-Avon and Central Bedfordshire. Treat these as concentration signals, not proof that every family line began there.

Some modern areas include a three-digit suffix, such as Leeds 110. The suffix is a small-area code, so it stays in the table while the prose uses the plain place name.

Top historical parishes

Rank Parish Area
1 London parishes London 1
2 London parishes London 3
3 Finedon or Thingdon Northamptonshire
4 Northampton St Giles, Northampton St Sepulchre, Northampton Priory Northamptonshire
5 Houghton Regis Bedfordshire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Milton Keynes 002 Milton Keynes
2 Wellingborough 010 Wellingborough
3 Stratford-on-Avon 013 Stratford-on-Avon
4 Central Bedfordshire 026 Central Bedfordshire
5 Central Bedfordshire 028 Central Bedfordshire

Forenames

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First names often paired with Tompkins

These lists show first names that appear often with the Tompkins surname in historical and recent records.

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Tompkins

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Tompkins, this points to the kinds of places where the surname is most concentrated today.

These neighbourhood labels describe areas, not individual people. They are useful because surnames often cluster through family history, migration, housing patterns and local work. A surname can be strongest in one type of neighbourhood even when people with that name live across the country.

The UK classification gives the national picture. The London classification is more specific to the capital, where housing, age profile, tenure and population mix can look quite different from the rest of the UK.

UK neighbourhood type

UK Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Suburbanites and Peri-Urbanities

Group

Rural Amenity

Nationally, the Tompkins surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Rural Amenity, within Suburbanites and Peri-Urbanities. This does not mean every Tompkins household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

This Group comprises older parents or retirees, with no resident dependent children, and with the lowest residential densities in this Supergroup. Predominantly UK-born, residents typically live in detached houses, although others do live in semi-detached and terraced properties. The level of multiple car ownership is the highest in this Supergroup. Most houses are owner occupied although social renting is also present. Many concentrations occur in high amenity rural locations, such as Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

Wider pattern

Pervasive throughout the UK, members of this Supergroup typically own (or are buying) their detached, semi-detached or terraced homes. They are also typically educated to A Level/Highers or degree level and work in skilled or professional occupations. Typically born in the UK, some families have children, although the median adult age is above 45 and some property has become under-occupied after children have left home. This Supergroup is pervasive not only in suburban locations, but also in neighbourhoods at or beyond the edge of cities that adjoin rural parts of the country.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Young Families and Mainstream Employment

Group

Terraced and Semi-Detached Suburbs

Within London, Tompkins is most associated with areas classed as Terraced and Semi-Detached Suburbs, part of Young Families and Mainstream Employment. This gives the surname a London-specific profile rather than forcing the capital into the same pattern as the rest of the country.

Read profile summary

Group profile

Mainly concentrated in suburban areas, these terraced and semi-detached developments are less overcrowded than the Supergroup average, and resident households are more likely to own two or more cars. There are fewer residents aged 25-44, and a larger share of residents employed in administrative and secretarial occupations. Residents are more likely to have been born in the UK, less likely to have been born in the EU or Africa, and much less likely to self-identify as Bangladeshi.

Wider London pattern

Many families in these neighbourhoods have young children. Housing is principally in the social rented sector, in terraced or semi-detached units. While over-all residential densities are low, overcrowding is also prevalent locally. Residents are drawn from a range of ethnic minorities, with many identifying as Black and above average numbers born in Africa. Numbers identifying as of Chinese, Indian or White ethnicity are below average. Levels of proficiency in English are below average. Levels of separation or divorce and incidence of disability are both above average. Education is typically limited to Level 1, 2, or apprenticeship qualifications. Few residents work in professional or managerial occupations but the employment structure is otherwise diverse: it includes skilled trades, caring, leisure and other service occupations, sales and customer service occupations, construction, and work as process, plant, and machine operatives.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Tompkins is most concentrated in decile 6 for access to healthy assets and hazards. This places the surname near the middle of the scale.

Lower deciles point towards weaker access to healthy assets or stronger exposure to local hazards. Higher deciles point towards stronger access and fewer hazards.

6
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Tompkins falls in decile 8 for neighbourhood deprivation. This puts the surname towards the less deprived end of the index.

Decile 1 represents the more deprived end of the scale. Decile 10 represents the less deprived end.

8
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Tompkins is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of 30-40 mbit/s.

The scale below places that band in context, from slower local download bands through to faster ones.

6
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - British

This describes the area pattern most associated with Tompkins, not the ethnicity of every person with the surname.

Meaning and origin of Tompkins

The surname Tompkins originates from England and dates back to the 13th century. It is derived from the Old English personal name "Thomlin," a diminutive form of Thomas, combined with the possessive suffix "kin," meaning "kin of." The name essentially translates to "son or descendant of little Thomas."

Tompkins is believed to have originated in the Cambridgeshire area of England, where it was first recorded in the Hundred Rolls of 1273 as "Thomelyn." Over the centuries, various spellings emerged, including Thomlynkyn, Tomlynkyn, Tommelyn, and Tompkins.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire from 1327, which mention a John Thomlynkyn. In the 14th century, the name also appeared in the Pipe Rolls of Suffolk, with references to a Richard Thomelyn in 1381.

The surname Tompkins has been associated with several notable figures throughout history. One of the earliest was Sir Roger Tompkins (c. 1535-1613), an English politician and Member of Parliament for Bodmin in Cornwall during the reigns of Elizabeth I and James I.

Another prominent individual was Daniel D. Tompkins (1774-1825), an American lawyer, politician, and the sixth Vice President of the United States, serving under James Monroe from 1817 to 1825.

In the literary world, Calvin Tompkins (1925-2016) was an American author and journalist known for his biographies of artists such as Marcel Duchamp and his work as a staff writer for The New Yorker magazine.

Kiry Tompkins Wadsworth (1834-1914) was an American philanthropist and activist who played a significant role in the women's suffrage movement and the establishment of the International Institute for Girls in Spain.

Lastly, Robert Tompkins (1570-1644) was an English scholar and theologian who served as the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cambridge and published several notable works on theology and philosophy.

While the surname Tompkins has roots in England, it has since spread to various parts of the world, with notable bearers of the name contributing to various fields throughout history.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Tompkins families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Tompkins surname. Use the location tables for concentration, then the name and occupation tables for the people behind the surname.

Top counties

Total is the county count. Frequency and index adjust for local population size, so they are better concentration signals. Buckinghamshire leads with 457 Tompkins' recorded in 1881 and an index of 29.98x.

County Total Index
Buckinghamshire 457 29.98x
Middlesex 369 1.46x
Bedfordshire 337 25.81x
Northamptonshire 225 9.49x
Surrey 133 1.08x
Hertfordshire 93 5.35x
Warwickshire 93 1.46x
Kent 83 0.96x
Dorset 81 4.89x
Leicestershire 77 2.75x
Oxfordshire 71 4.56x
Worcestershire 53 1.61x
Sussex 45 1.06x
Yorkshire 45 0.18x
Essex 35 0.70x
Hampshire 35 0.68x
Herefordshire 35 3.39x
Lancashire 35 0.12x
Staffordshire 31 0.36x
Berkshire 30 1.59x
Derbyshire 26 0.66x
Somerset 25 0.62x
Glamorgan 21 0.48x
Devon 20 0.38x
Durham 17 0.23x
Gloucestershire 17 0.34x
Denbighshire 15 1.57x
Cheshire 14 0.25x
Wiltshire 13 0.58x
Suffolk 12 0.39x
Cambridgeshire 11 0.69x
Nottinghamshire 7 0.21x
Argyllshire 6 0.85x
Monmouthshire 4 0.22x
Northumberland 4 0.11x
Shropshire 2 0.09x
Aberdeenshire 1 0.04x
Channel Islands 1 0.13x
Cumberland 1 0.05x
Huntingdonshire 1 0.20x
Lincolnshire 1 0.02x
Midlothian 1 0.03x
Norfolk 1 0.03x
Rutland 1 0.54x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Dunstable in Bedfordshire leads with 61 Tompkins' recorded in 1881 and an index of 152.04x.

Place Total Index
Dunstable 61 152.04x
Bozeat 58 563.65x
Finedon 55 264.68x
Houghton Regis 54 259.37x
St Pancras London 49 2.41x
Marsh Gibbon 46 717.63x
Leicester St Margaret 40 5.87x
Aston 31 1.77x
Islington London 31 1.27x
Lambeth 31 1.41x
Stagsden 29 615.71x
Calverton 28 589.47x
Newton Longville 28 687.96x
Berkhampstead 24 61.41x
Camberwell 24 1.49x
Clerkenwell London 23 3.86x
Battersea 22 2.37x
Puncknowle 22 539.22x
Buckingham 21 67.72x
Ivinghoe 21 176.32x
Pitstone 21 515.97x
Harrow On The Hill 20 39.71x
Luton 20 8.85x
Wellingborough 20 16.77x
Ealing 19 8.43x
Kempston 19 64.10x
Stoke Upon Trent 19 2.11x
Chalgrave 18 238.41x
Stourbridge 18 21.24x
Leighton Buzzard 17 30.27x
Maids Moreton 17 439.28x
Weston By Welland 17 913.98x
Aston Clinton 16 123.84x
Cheddington 16 249.22x
Linslade 16 107.17x
Brill 15 134.17x
Great Houghton 15 526.32x
Tingewick 15 219.30x
Clifton 14 111.11x
Hemel Hempstead 14 17.88x
Paddington London 14 1.51x
Wolborough 14 21.10x
Bow London 13 4.05x
Edlesborough 13 93.59x
Gt Rollright 13 386.90x
Leicester St Mary 13 5.76x
Portsea 13 1.28x
Shoreditch London 13 1.19x
Aylesbury 12 17.76x
Chelsea London 12 1.58x
Great Missenden 12 63.90x
Hammersmith London 12 1.93x
Hendon 12 13.23x
Lavendon 12 175.44x
Northampton Priory St 12 8.43x
Northfleet 12 15.83x
St Marylebone London 12 0.89x
Tring 12 25.86x
Yeovil 12 14.55x
Bethnal Green London 11 1.00x
Chipping Norton 11 30.56x
Hackney London 11 0.78x
Heath Reach 11 118.53x
Horton Kirby 11 82.71x
Kingsbury 11 80.88x
Leckhampstead 11 375.43x
Leyton Low 11 10.87x
Meopham 11 103.38x
Newmarket St Mary 11 46.67x
Preston 11 14.82x
Ryton On Dunsmore 11 279.90x
Bingley 10 6.28x
Flamstead 10 62.46x
Ridgmont 10 155.28x
Bletchley 9 202.70x
Burton Bradstock 9 110.16x
Clapham 9 2.85x
Deptford St Paul 9 1.36x
Fenny Stratford 9 62.41x
Kings Walden 9 91.56x

Top female names

These are the female first names most often recorded with the Tompkins surname in 1881. Names are not merged, so initials, variant spellings and transcription quirks can appear as separate rows.

Name Count
Mary 137
Sarah 106
Elizabeth 104
Ann 65
Eliza 46
Jane 46
Emma 41
Annie 40
Alice 36
Emily 36
Ellen 35
Louisa 30
Hannah 22
Edith 21
Florence 21
Harriet 21
Charlotte 20
Fanny 20
Caroline 19
Clara 18
Ada 17
Susan 14
Maria 13
Martha 13
Kate 12
Sophia 12
Susannah 11
Minnie 10
Rosa 10
Frances 9
Harriett 9
Margaret 9
Anne 8
Catherine 8
Lucy 8
Rebecca 8
Lizzie 7
Amy 6
Esther 6
Ethel 6
Selina 6
Helen 5
Henrietta 5
Matilda 5
Rose 5
Ruth 5
Agnes 4
Jemima 4
Laura 4
Maud 4

Top male names

These are the male first names most often recorded with the Tompkins surname in 1881. Names are not merged, so initials, variant spellings and transcription quirks can appear as separate rows.

Name Count
William 157
John 135
Thomas 85
George 84
James 67
Henry 58
Arthur 52
Joseph 52
Charles 44
Frederick 36
Alfred 28
Harry 28
Walter 25
Edward 23
Albert 22
Richard 22
Ernest 18
Samuel 17
Robert 15
Frank 12
Francis 11
Daniel 10
Herbert 9
Benjamin 8
Edmund 8
Fred 7
David 6
Edwin 6
Fredk. 6
Edgar 5
Elijah 5
Fredrick 5
Amos 4
Jesse 4
Percy 4
Sydney 4
Wm. 4
Chas. 3
Ephraim 3
Fred. 3
Geo. 3
Josiah 3
Levi 3
Moses 3
Owen 3
Shadrack 3
Sidney 3
Ambrose 2
Philip 2
Reuben 2

FAQ

Tompkins surname: questions and answers

How common was the Tompkins surname in 1881?

In 1881, 2,589 people were recorded with the Tompkins surname. That placed it at #1,725 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Tompkins surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 2,899 in 2016. That gives Tompkins a modern rank of #2,323.

What does the Tompkins surname mean?

A patronymic surname derived from the given name Thomas, meaning "son of Thomas."

What does the Tompkins map show?

The map shows local surname concentration for the selected year. Darker areas have a stronger concentration of Tompkins bearers relative to the surrounding population.

What records is this surname page based on?

The historical counts come from census surname records. The modern counts and neighbourhood summaries come from later surname distribution records. Counts are recorded bearers in those records, not a live estimate of everyone with the name today.