The Banks surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 105,833 people carried this name — #292 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 2,790 people counted. That is up 7% from 99,294 in 2000.

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What the name means

The meaning of the Banks surname

An English toponymic surname for someone who lives near a hill or bank of land.

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Banks» (English), by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · excerpt, lightly adapted.

As an English and Welsh surname

Bardsley classes it as a local name, from where the family lived: ‘at the bank’.

An early record he cites: Nicholaus del Bancke, 1379 — Poll Tax, West Riding of Yorkshire.

His entry covers Bank, Banks, Bankes and Banke.

From Charles W. Bardsley, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with Special American Instances (London: Henry Frowde, 1901), p. 76 · public domain.

In Ireland’s birth registers, 1890

Ireland registered 8 births for the Banks name in 1890.

Most were registered in Connacht. By the Registrar-General’s own method — births multiplied by 44.38 — that is about 400 people bearing the name in Ireland at the time.

Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.

Where they were born, 1890

Connacht 4
Munster 2
Ulster 2

Registrar-General for Ireland, «Special Report on Surnames in Ireland» (R. E. Matheson, 1894), births index of 1890 — public domain.

In France’s civil register

France’s register of deaths holds 35 people named Banks.

Most of them — 30 — were born outside France. Those born in France came from 2 départements, most often Nord.

Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.

Where they were born

Born outside France 30
Nord 3
Paris 2

Fichier des personnes décédées, INSEE — Licence Ouverte 2.0 · deaths recorded in France since 1970, by place of birth.

In Switzerland’s population statistics

33 people named Banks live in Switzerland.

They live in 5 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in Zurich.

Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.

Where they live today

Zurich 11
Geneva 7
Vaud 7
Aargau 4
Zug 4

Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO), «Surnames of the permanent resident population by canton», 2025, opendata.swiss/en/dataset/nachnamen-der-standigen-wohnbevolkerung-nach-kanton3 · names with fewer than 3 bearers in a canton are not published.

In Argentina’s national register

At least 23 people named Banks live in Argentina.

RENAPER only publishes a name in a province when more than ten people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in Buenos Aires Province.

Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.

Where they live today

Buenos Aires Province 23

RENAPER (National Registry of Persons, Argentina), surnames of residents by province, December 2021 — CC BY 4.0.

In the Nordic population registers

52 people named Banks is counted in Sweden.

Sweden’s figure is from 31 December 2022, the last count Statistics Sweden published.

Counted, by country

Sweden (2022) 52

Own calculations based on data from Statistics Sweden (SCB), surnames with at least two bearers, 31 December 2022 — CC BY 4.0 (names with 20 or more bearers shown).

Among the farmers of England and Wales, 1880s

Banks was found among the farmers of 5 counties.

It was most frequent in Lancashire: 27 in every 10,000 farmers there — about 1 in 370. Guppy counted the farmers listed in each county’s directory and recorded a name only where it reached about 7 in every 10,000; where it does not appear, it was rarer than that, not absent.

Where it concentrates, on the map

Per 10,000 farmers, by county

Lancashire 27
Yorkshire, North and East Ridings 18
Northamptonshire 15
Derbyshire 7
Lincolnshire 7

H. B. Guppy, «Homes of Family Names in Great Britain» (London, 1890), alphabetical list of English and Welsh names — public domain · farmers in Kelly’s Post Office Directories of the 1880s, per 10,000 farmers in each county.

In Scotland’s registers today

Banks was recorded 46 times in Scotland’s registers of births, marriages and deaths in 2025.

That made it the 565th most common name in those registers, shared with others on the same count. In 1975, the first year of the series, the count was 66. Each birth counts the child’s surname, each marriage both partners’ and each death the surname of the person who died — a yearly count of registrations, not of the people who live in Scotland.

National Records of Scotland, «Most Common Surnames, 2025» (published 26 May 2026): every surname recorded 10 or more times in the 2025 registers, and the series from 1975 · different spellings are counted separately — © Crown copyright 2026. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

In the first U.S. census, 1790

142 families named Banks, or a close spelling, were counted in 1790.

Each family is counted by its head. About 750 people lived in those households, 5.3 to a family on average. The table counts it together with 7 other spellings. The table lists white heads of families only, in the twelve states whose 1790 records survive; Virginia’s figures come from state lists of 1782–1785.

Families, by state

Connecticut 43
North Carolina 27
Virginia 18
Maine 13
South Carolina 13
New York 11
Maryland 6
New Hampshire 4
Pennsylvania 4
Massachusetts 3

U.S. Census Bureau, «A Century of Population Growth from the First Census of the United States to the Twelfth, 1790–1900» (Washington, 1909), table 111, p. 228 — public domain · names carried by at least 100 white persons in 1790.

In print

Banks in American newspapers,
1892–1902.

Newspaper page from The Mirror And Farmer carrying the name Banks
The Mirror And Farmer 1902-03-27
Newspaper page from The Republican Journal carrying the name Banks
The Republican Journal 1892-03-17
Newspaper page from St. Landry Clarion carrying the name Banks
St. Landry Clarion 1895-06-22

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 17,401 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Banks in Australian newspapers,
1820s–2000s.

72,844 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Banks. The most, 13,492, date from the 1930s.

Articles, by state

New South Wales 20,372
Queensland 15,989
Victoria 15,782
South Australia 8,468
Western Australia 5,876
Tasmania 5,689
ACT (Canberra) 461
Northern Territory 82

Trove, National Library of Australia (trove.nla.gov.au) · articles in its digitised newspapers that name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Banks.

Who carried it

People named Banks,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Sir John Banks, 1st Baronet
    Sir John Banks, 1st Baronet 1627–1699 · politician
  • Thomas Banks
    Thomas Banks 1735–1805 · sculptor
  • Joseph Banks
    Joseph Banks 1743–1820 · naturalist
  • Sarah Sophia Banks
    Sarah Sophia Banks 1744–1818 · amanuensis
  • Sir Edward Banks
    Sir Edward Banks 1770–1835

Wikidata (CC0) · portraits via Wikimedia Commons, shown cropped, in the public domain or CC0 · 171 lives in all are documented under this name.

In the public record

People named Banks,
in the records of 9 countries.

Soldiers, farmers, migrants and neighbours who carried the name and left a trace in public archives. Everyone shown here died long ago or was born more than a century ago.

United States7,705 records

7,705 records of the Banks name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 2,962
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 1,691
  • Other U.S. records 3,052
  1. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Joseph Banks

    Born 1932; from New York, New York. U.S. Army, mess steward; killed in action 1953 in North Korea. Buried at Cypress Hills National Cemetery, New York.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  2. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Sterling Clark Banks

    Born 1945; from Newport News, Virginia. U.S. Army, infantryman; killed in action 1968 in Hua Nghia, South Vietnam. Buried at Hampton National Cemetery, Virginia.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  3. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Joseph S. Banks

    Born 1925 in New York. Enlisted 1943 at New York City; messenger from New York County. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1998, buried at Calverton National Cemetery, New York.

    U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)

Showing 3 of 7,705 records for Banks in the United States.

Counts: U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) · NYC Department of Records & Information Services, Historical Vital Records (NYC Open Data) · U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted) · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · U.S. National Archives, Famine Irish Passenger Records (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain) · Sacramento County, Historic Burials (CC BY 4.0) · City of Asheville (public domain, PDDL) · New York State, Open NY (police and firefighter memorial rolls). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Vietnam Veterans Memorial, photo by U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Carden, 2009 (public domain); U.S. Selective Service registration card, 1942 (public domain).

Australia2,667 records

2,667 records of the Banks name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 1,120
  • Tasmanian Names Index 569
  • Other Australian records 978
  1. An 1829 etching of convicts being rowed out to the prison ship York in Portsmouth Harbour
    Pictured: convicts going on board a prison ship, 1829
    Transportation record Elizabeth Banks

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Frances Charlotte, sailing from Downs in 1832. Native of Wolverhampton, Staffordshire. Applied for permission to marry in Van Diemen's Land in 1836. Married 1836 in Campbell Town, Tasmania.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  2. An 1829 etching of convicts being rowed out to the prison ship York in Portsmouth Harbour
    Pictured: convicts going on board a prison ship, 1829
    Transportation record James Banks

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Lady Montagu, sailing from Plymouth in 1852. Native of Glasgow, Lanarkshire. Applied for permission to marry in Van Diemen's Land in 1855.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  3. An 1829 etching of convicts being rowed out to the prison ship York in Portsmouth Harbour
    Pictured: convicts going on board a prison ship, 1829
    Transportation record Ruth Banks

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Garland Grove, sailing from London in 1841. Native of Morley, Yorkshire. Applied for permission to marry in Van Diemen's Land in 1843.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 2,667 records for Banks in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0) · Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0) · Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY) · State Library of Western Australia (CC BY 4.0) · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · ACT Government, Transport Canberra and City Services (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Prison-ship in Portsmouth Harbour, with the convicts going on board, etching by Edward William Cooke, 1829, Royal Museums Greenwich (public domain).

Canada1,321 records

1,321 records of the Banks name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 1,190
  • Canadian Virtual War Memorial 42
  • Other Canadian records 89
  1. A Canadian First World War grave register card for a soldier who died of wounds in 1917
    Example: Canadian war grave register, 1917
    War record Ernest Banks

    Served in the No. 2 Construction Battalion in the First World War, private; of Connellsville, Pennsylvania.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.
  2. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record John Banks

    Came to Ontario in 1872 aboard the Hibernian, landing at Quebec, bound for Hamilton, Ontario; English.

    Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario.
  3. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record James Polson Banks

    Buried in 1979 at Union Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta, aged 49.

    City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary.

Showing 3 of 1,321 records for Banks in Canada.

Counts: Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. · Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada. · City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary. · City of Winnipeg. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Winnipeg. · City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. · Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario. · City of Niagara Falls. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Niagara Falls. · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · Halifax Regional Municipality. Contains information licenced under the Open Government Licence—Halifax. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Canadian First World War circumstances-of-death register (scan by Scottgraham87 via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain); Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, photo by Edgar El (CC BY 3.0).

United Kingdom161 records

161 records of the Banks name in the United Kingdom
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 92
  • Stirling Council burial records 33
  • Other British records 36
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Mary Banks

    Buried in 1883 at Mar Place Cemetery, Stirling, Scotland, aged 77.

    Stirling Council. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
  2. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record George Banks

    Buried in 1828 at St James's burial ground, Euston, London, aged 48.

    MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
  3. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Mary Banks

    Will proved in 1930; of Gowerton, Glamorgan.

    National Library of Wales, Wills Index Cards (CC0)

Showing 3 of 161 records for Banks in the United Kingdom.

Counts: National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · Stirling Council. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. · MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. · National Library of Scotland, Rolls of Honour (public domain) · National Library of Wales, Wills Index Cards (CC0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0); Petition to the probate court, St. Louis, 1848, Missouri Historical Society (public domain).

New Zealand77 records

77 records of the Banks name in New Zealand
  • Christchurch City cemetery records 68
  • Waimakariri District cemetery records, Canterbury 5
  • Other New Zealand records 4
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Cecilia Margaret Banks

    Died 1936, aged 40; buried at Linwood Cemetery, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Una Calder Banks

    Died 1995, aged 67; buried at Fairhall Cemetery, Marlborough.

    Marlborough District Council (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record George Vivian Banks

    Buried in 1966 at Totara Memorial Park Cemetery, Thames-Coromandel District, Waikato, aged 49.

    Thames-Coromandel District Council (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 77 records for Banks in New Zealand.

Counts: Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0) · Waimakariri District Council (CC BY 4.0) · Thames-Coromandel District Council (CC BY 4.0) · Marlborough District Council (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0).

Netherlands23 records

23 records of the Banks name in the Netherlands
  • Dutch civil registers (births, marriages, deaths) 11
  • Dutch population registers 9
  • Dutch church registers before 1811 3
  1. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Mariea Johanna Banks

    Married in 1825 in Amsterdam; cleaner.

    Open Archives, Noord-Hollands Archief (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Arthur Banks

    Married in 1947 in Bergen op Zoom.

    Open Archives, Brabants Historisch Informatie Centrum (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 2 of 23 records for Banks in the Netherlands.

Counts: Open Archives (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain).

France9 records

9 records of the Banks name in France France's national death register, 1970–2001
  1. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record James Maurice Banks

    Born 1900 in Anguilla (Antilles Britanniques); died 1996 in Saint-Martin (Guadeloupe).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)
  2. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Fanny Emma Banks

    Born 1892 in Pantin (Paris); died 1985 in Perpignan (Pyrénées-Orientales).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)

Showing 2 of 9 records for Banks in France.

Counts: Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Death register of Nice, 1930, Archives départementales des Alpes-Maritimes (public domain).

Germany2 records

2 records of the Banks name in Germany Germany's First World War casualty lists, 1914–1919
  1. A page of the German First World War casualty lists, 18 April 1918
    Example: German casualty list, 1918
    Casualty list Otto Banks

    Born 1896; from Iserlohn. Reported missing in the Prussian casualty list of 15 August 1916; then reported taken prisoner in the list of 30 December 1916 (Reserve Infantry Regiment No. 56).

    Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0)

Showing 1 of 2 records for Banks in Germany.

Counts: Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Deutsche Verlustlisten, Prussian list 1116, 18 April 1918 (scan via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0).

Norway1 record

1 record of the Banks name in Norway Norway's 1910 census
  1. A page of the 1910 United States census, Milwaukee
    Example: U.S. census, 1910
    Census record Mary Banks

    Census of 1910: Vaskerelven, Bergen; of independent means, born 1841 in Warrington.

    Arkivverket, Digitalarkivet, 1910 census (CC BY 3.0 NO)

Counts: Arkivverket, Digitalarkivet, 1910 census (CC BY 3.0 NO). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: U.S. census of 1910, Milwaukee (public domain).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Banks.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Banks is.
A volume says what happened to it.

Every page in the index is free and stays free. The Heritage Volume is the long form: the full paper trail, the arms, the crossing — bound, and yours.

See the Banks volume
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