The Robins surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 10,797 people carried this name — #3,322 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 27,300 people counted. That is up 3% from 10,530 in 2000.

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What the name means

The meaning of the Robins surname

A surname originating as a patronymic derived from Robin.

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Robins» (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 Robert’.

An early record he cites: Dera Robins, Cambridgeshire, 1273 — Hundred Rolls.

His entry covers Robin and Robins.

From Charles W. Bardsley, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with Special American Instances (London: Henry Frowde, 1901), p. 650 · public domain.

In France’s civil register

France’s register of deaths holds 46 people named Robins.

14 of them were born outside France. Those born in France came from 7 départements, most often Paris.

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

Where they were born

Born outside France 14
Paris 11
Ille-et-Vilaine 10
Morbihan 5
Côtes-d’Armor 3
Calvados 1
Yvelines 1
Somme 1

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

In Argentina’s national register

At least 37 people named Robins 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 14
Santa Fe 13
Córdoba 10

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

Among the farmers of England and Wales, 1880s

Robins was found among the farmers of 4 counties.

It was most frequent in Warwickshire: 13 in every 10,000 farmers there — about 1 in 769. 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

Warwickshire 13
Hertfordshire 12
Cornwall 10
Devon 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 print

Robins in American newspapers,
1919–1930.

Newspaper page from The Lexington Advertiser carrying the name Robins
The Lexington Advertiser 1930-01-23
Newspaper page from Great Falls Daily Tribune carrying the name Robins
Great Falls Daily Tribune 1920-09-29
Newspaper page from Daily Kennebec Journal carrying the name Robins
Daily Kennebec Journal 1919-01-25

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 1,845 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Robins in Australian newspapers,
1820s–2000s.

47,338 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Robins. The most, 9,498, date from the 1910s. 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 Victoria, at 1.3 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

New South Wales 14,720
Victoria 12,841
Queensland 8,306
Western Australia 5,184
South Australia 4,578
Tasmania 1,503
ACT (Canberra) 126
Northern Territory 22

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

Who carried it

People named Robins,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Henry Jenkins Robins d. 1846 · naval officer
  • Mary Routh Ellis d. 1949
  • Jocelyn Mary Robins d. 1989
  • Elizabeth Robins d. 1892
  • Edith MacMurrogh Murphy d. 1938
  • James Robins d. 1941

Wikidata (CC0) · 10 lives in all are documented under this name.

In the public record

People named Robins,
in the records of 8 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 States1,321 records

1,321 records of the Robins name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 339
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 338
  • Other U.S. records 644
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Marvin Robins

    Born 1900 in Texas. Enlisted 1942 at Houston; farmer from Leon County. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1982, buried at Houston National Cemetery, Texas.

    U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  2. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Roy E. Robins

    Born 1913 in Texas. Enlisted 1942 at Abilene; cook from Taylor County. U.S. Army Air Forces veteran of World War II; died 1992, buried at Santa Fe National Cemetery, New Mexico.

    U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  3. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record James Milton Robins

    Born 1947; from Rose Hill, Iowa. U.S. Marine Corps, rifleman; killed in action 1968 in Quang Nam, South Vietnam.

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

Showing 3 of 1,321 records for Robins 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. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted) · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · U.S. National Archives, Famine Irish Passenger Records (public domain) · Sacramento County, Historic Burials (CC BY 4.0) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: U.S. Selective Service registration card, 1942 (public domain); Vietnam Veterans Memorial, photo by U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Carden, 2009 (public domain).

Australia1,269 records

1,269 records of the Robins name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 543
  • Tasmanian Names Index 287
  • Other Australian records 439
  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 Mary Robins

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Duchess of Northumberland, sailing from Woolwich in 1852. Native of Worcestershire. Applied for permission to marry in Van Diemen's Land in 1854. Married 1854 in Launceston, Tasmania, aged 28.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Alfred George Robins

    Died 1926 in Launceston, Tasmania. Will registered in Tasmania in 1926.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Henry John Robins

    Born 1847 in Launceston, Tasmania. Died 1896 in Launceston, Tasmania, aged 49.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 1,269 records for Robins 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) · ACT Government, Transport Canberra and City Services (CC BY 4.0) · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). 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); Petition to the probate court, St. Louis, 1848, Missouri Historical Society (public domain); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

Netherlands123 records

123 records of the Robins name in the Netherlands
  • Dutch civil registers (births, marriages, deaths) 47
  • Dutch church registers before 1811 47
  • Dutch population registers 29
  1. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Gertrudis Robins

    Married in 1907 in Venray; maidservant, born 1878 in Bergen. Died 1956 in Gilze en Rijen.

    Open Archives, Regionaal Historisch Centrum Limburg (CC BY 4.0); Open Archives, Brabants Historisch Informatie Centrum (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Matthias Robins

    Born 1824 in Vierlingsbeek. Married in 1863 in Oeffelt. Died 1895 in Vierlingsbeek.

    Open Archives, Brabants Historisch Informatie Centrum (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Antonia Maria Robins

    Born 1903 in Afferden. Died 1941 in Bergen, aged 37.

    Open Archives, Regionaal Historisch Centrum Limburg (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 123 records for Robins 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); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

Canada109 records

109 records of the Robins name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 31
  • City of Niagara Falls (Ontario) cemetery records 26
  • Other Canadian records 52
  1. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Civil record Charity Robins

    Lost in the sinking of the Titanic, 1912, aged 60; a third-class passenger. Body recovered.

    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 Robins

    Came to Ontario in 1869 aboard the Hibernian, landing at Quebec, bound for Whitby, 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 George Edward Robins

    Died 1998, aged 73; buried at Brookside Cemetery, Winnipeg, Manitoba.

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

Showing 3 of 109 records for Robins in Canada.

Counts: Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. · City of Niagara Falls. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Niagara Falls. · Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada. · City of Winnipeg. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Winnipeg. · City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. · Contains information provided by the City of Waterloo under licence · City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary. · Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario. · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0); 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 Kingdom66 records

66 records of the Robins name in the United Kingdom
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 39
  • St James's burial ground, Euston (London), 1789–1853 21
  • Other British records 6
  1. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Thomas Robins

    Will proved in 1941; of Gillingham, Kent.

    National Library of Wales, Wills Index Cards (CC0)
  2. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Eliz.th Robins

    Buried in 1828 at St James's burial ground, Euston, London, aged 63.

    MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
  3. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record A. W. L. Robins

    East Yorkshire Regiment. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1917.

    National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain)

Showing 3 of 66 records for Robins in the United Kingdom.

Counts: National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. · National Library of Wales, Wills Index Cards (CC0) · Stirling Council. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Petition to the probate court, St. Louis, 1848, Missouri Historical Society (public domain); Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0); C. & E. Morton Ltd roll of honour, 1914–1919, photo by Adrian S Pye via Geograph (CC BY-SA 2.0).

France15 records

15 records of the Robins 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 Claudine Helene Francoise Robins

    Born 1916 in Paris; died 1997 in Paris.

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)
  2. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Jean-Claude Emile Robins

    Born 1947 in Lanester; died 1997 in Lorient (Morbihan).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)
  3. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Suzanne Robins

    Born 1925 in Puteaux (Paris); died 1986 in Paris.

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)

Showing 3 of 15 records for Robins 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).

New Zealand12 records

12 records of the Robins name in New Zealand Christchurch City cemetery records
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Joyce McRae Davidson Robins

    Died 1995, aged 89; buried at Bromley 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 Mary Jane Robins

    Died 1917, aged 82; buried at Linwood Cemetery, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Annie Emily Robins

    Died 1931, aged 47; buried at Sydenham Cemetery, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 12 records for Robins in New Zealand.

Counts: Christchurch City 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).

Germany3 records

3 records of the Robins 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 Peter Robins

    Reported dead in the German casualty list of 8 April 1915 (Infantry Regiment No. 65).

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

Showing 1 of 3 records for Robins 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).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Robins.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Robins 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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