The Rankin surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 28,821 people carried this name — #1,229 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 10,200 people counted. That is up 3% from 27,989 in 2000.

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What the name means

The meaning of the Rankin surname

A Scottish and Northern Irish surname, from a diminutive of the name Ronald.

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Rankin» (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 baptismal name, from a given name: ‘the son of Randolph’.

An early record he cites: Gilbert Reynkyn, Kent, 1273 — Hundred Rolls.

His entry covers Rankin, Ranken and Ranking.

From Charles W. Bardsley, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with Special American Instances (London: Henry Frowde, 1901), p. 636 · public domain.

In Ireland’s birth registers, 1890

Ireland registered 36 births for the Rankin name in 1890.

Most were registered in Ulster. By the Registrar-General’s own method — births multiplied by 44.38 — that is about 1,600 people bearing the name in Ireland at the time. The Registrar-General’s note on the name: “Londonderry and Donegal.”

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

Where they were born, 1890

Ulster 29
Leinster 6
Connacht 1

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

In the Nordic population registers

25 people named Rankin is counted in Sweden.

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

Counted, by country

Sweden (2022) 25

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).

In Scotland, 1880s

Rankin was 26 in every 10,000 names in Scotland.

That is about 1 in 385. Its home there, in Guppy’s words: “Lanarkshire.” He counted the more than 20,000 names in Halliburton’s County Directory of Scotland, taking Scotland as a whole, and listed only the names that reached 10 in every 10,000.

H. B. Guppy, «Homes of Family Names in Great Britain» (London, 1890), appendix: alphabetical list of the most frequent Scottish names, p. 593 — public domain · names in Halliburton’s County Directory of Scotland, per 10,000 for the whole country.

In Scotland’s registers today

Rankin was recorded 105 times in Scotland’s registers of births, marriages and deaths in 2025.

That made it the 238th most common name in those registers, shared with others on the same count. In 1975, the first year of the series, the count was 157. 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

79 families named Rankin, or a close spelling, were counted in 1790.

Each family is counted by its head. About 421 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

Pennsylvania 36
Maine 9
North Carolina 9
Maryland 7
South Carolina 6
New York 5
Massachusetts 3
New Hampshire 2
Vermont 2

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. 258 — public domain · names carried by at least 100 white persons in 1790.

In print

Rankin in American newspapers,
1907–1925.

Newspaper page from Los Angeles Herald carrying the name Rankin
Los Angeles Herald 1907-01-13
Newspaper page from The Leon Reporter carrying the name Rankin
The Leon Reporter 1914-01-01
Newspaper page from San Antonio Light carrying the name Rankin
San Antonio Light 1925-08-09

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 308,924 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Rankin in Australian newspapers,
1820s–2000s.

85,997 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Rankin. The most, 15,952, date from the 1930s. New South Wales has the most articles, but weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, the name stands out most in Queensland, at 1.3 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

New South Wales 30,519
Victoria 21,125
Queensland 20,251
South Australia 5,849
Western Australia 4,048
Tasmania 3,420
ACT (Canberra) 524
Northern Territory 70

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

Who carried it

People named Rankin,
with a public archive behind them.

  • John Rankin
    John Rankin 1793–1886 · educator
  • Jeremiah Rankin
    Jeremiah Rankin 1828–1903 · writer
  • Joseph Rankin
    Joseph Rankin 1833–1886 · businessperson
  • James Rankin
    James Rankin 1844–1921
  • Francis H. Rankin Jr.
    Francis H. Rankin Jr. 1854–1925 · politician

Wikidata (CC0) · portraits via Wikimedia Commons, shown cropped, in the public domain or CC0 · 257 lives in all are documented under this name.

In the public record

People named Rankin,
in the records of 7 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 States3,104 records

3,104 records of the Rankin name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 1,089
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 598
  • Other U.S. records 1,417
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Thomas N. Rankin

    Born 1921 in Tennessee. Enlisted 1942 at Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia; textile mill worker. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1974, buried at Andrew Johnson National Cemetery, Tennessee.

    U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  2. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Agnes Rankin

    Arrived at New York in 1892 aboard the Majestic from Liverpool and Queenstown, aged 18; servant. From Glasgow, England; bound for Brooklyn.

    U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted)
  3. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Kenneth Dean Rankin

    Born 1947; from Broken Arrow, Oklahoma. U.S. Navy, engineman; killed in action 1969 in Quang Tri, South Vietnam.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain)

Showing 3 of 3,104 records for Rankin in the United States.

Counts: U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · NYC Department of Records & Information Services, Historical Vital Records (NYC Open Data) · U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) · 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) · City of Asheville (public domain, PDDL) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain) · Sacramento County, Historic Burials (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: U.S. Selective Service registration card, 1942 (public domain); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain); Vietnam Veterans Memorial, photo by U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Carden, 2009 (public domain).

Australia2,351 records

2,351 records of the Rankin name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 1,193
  • Victoria wills and probate, deaths to 2001 477
  • Other Australian records 681
  1. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Alexander Rankin

    Died 1877 in Launceston, Tasmania, aged 82. Will registered in Tasmania in 1877.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Sylvia May Rankin

    Born 1896 in Franklin, Tasmania. Married 1916 in Hobart, Tasmania, aged 21.

    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 John Rankin

    Transported to New South Wales aboard the Layton, arriving 1829; ticket of leave 1841.

    Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY)

Showing 3 of 2,351 records for Rankin in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0) · Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (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: Petition to the probate court, St. Louis, 1848, Missouri Historical Society (public domain); Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain); Prison-ship in Portsmouth Harbour, with the convicts going on board, etching by Edward William Cooke, 1829, Royal Museums Greenwich (public domain).

Canada749 records

749 records of the Rankin name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 639
  • Canadian Virtual War Memorial 27
  • Other Canadian records 83
  1. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Jos Rankin

    Came to Ontario in 1873 aboard the Nera, landing at Quebec, bound for Oakville, Ontario; Scotch.

    Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario.
  2. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Wayne Douglas Rankin

    Buried in 1967 at Mount Hermon Cemetery, Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, aged 20.

    Halifax Regional Municipality. Contains information licenced under the Open Government Licence—Halifax.
  3. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record William Rankin

    Died 1924 in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.

Showing 3 of 749 records for Rankin 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 Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. · 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. · Halifax Regional Municipality. Contains information licenced under the Open Government Licence—Halifax. · Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario. · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · City of Niagara Falls. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Niagara Falls. · Contains information provided by the City of Waterloo under licence. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: 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); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

United Kingdom93 records

93 records of the Rankin name in the United Kingdom
  • Stirling Council burial records 58
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 27
  • Other British records 8
  1. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record Frederick George Rankin

    Born 1889 at London; regular soldier. Served in the First World War. Named in the Morayshire roll of honour (1921).

    National Library of Scotland, Rolls of Honour (public domain)
  2. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Catherine Faichney Rankin

    Died 2000, aged 83; buried at Bannockburn Cemetery, Stirling, Scotland.

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

    Buried in 1835 at St James's burial ground, Euston, London, aged 64.

    MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Showing 3 of 93 records for Rankin in the United Kingdom.

Counts: Stirling Council. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · National Library of Scotland, Rolls of Honour (public domain) · MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: C. & E. Morton Ltd roll of honour, 1914–1919, photo by Adrian S Pye via Geograph (CC BY-SA 2.0); Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0).

New Zealand50 records

50 records of the Rankin name in New Zealand
  • Christchurch City cemetery records 45
  • Marlborough District cemetery records 3
  • Other New Zealand records 2
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Albert William Rankin

    Died 1916, aged 41; buried at Sydenham 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 Elizabeth Rankin

    Died 1898, aged 50; buried at Omaka 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 Hardy Rankin

    Died 1983, aged 73; buried at Whangamata Cemetery, Thames-Coromandel District, Waikato.

    Thames-Coromandel District Council (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 50 records for Rankin in New Zealand.

Counts: Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0) · Marlborough District Council (CC BY 4.0) · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · Thames-Coromandel 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).

Netherlands6 records

6 records of the Rankin name in the Netherlands
  • Dutch population registers 2
  • Dutch civil registers (births, marriages, deaths) 2
  • Dutch church registers before 1811 2
  1. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record William Rankin

    Died 1854 in Rotterdam, aged 48.

    Open Archives, Stadsarchief Rotterdam (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Charles Rankin

    Married in 1888 in Amsterdam.

    Open Archives, Noord-Hollands Archief (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 2 of 6 records for Rankin in the Netherlands.

Counts: Open Archives (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0); Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain).

France3 records

3 records of the Rankin 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 Malcolm John Rankin

    Born 1961 in Ouganda; died 1992 in Grasse (Alpes-Maritimes).

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

    Born 1913 in Rosendaël (Nord); died 1976 in Compiègne (Oise).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)

Showing 2 of 3 records for Rankin 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).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Rankin.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Rankin 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.

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