Clan Akins

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This article is about the surname Akins. For a list of people/organizations named Akins, see Akins.

The surname Akins, along with Aikens, Aiken and various other spellings are variants of the Scottish personal name Aitken.[1] Aitken is a pet form of Adam.[1]

Contents

[edit] Early Akins'

The first recorded appearance of an Akins occurs in 1405 in the court records of a Scottish sea merchant named "John of Akyne" who sought restitution for having been kidnapped by Laurence Tuttebury of Hull, England, who pirated his ship and goods.[citation needed]

William Ackin, who was a witness in the parish of Brechin in 1476. John Eckin was a tenant under the Bishop of Aberdeen in 1511. John Ackyne served as bailie of Stirling in 1520. Robert Aykkyne was admitted to the burgess of Aberdeen in 1529. Bessie Aiken of Leith was found guilty of Witchcraft in 1597, narrowly escaping execution. David Akin of Aberdeen was an early passenger to America, settling in Newport, Rhode Island with his wife and family before 1664. A John Aiken was among those who fought under the banner of the Covenant at the Battle of Bothwell Bridge in 1679. Alexander Aiken of Bo'ness, West Lothian, was among the Scots colonists who took part in the ill-fated Darien expedition in 1699.[citation needed]

[edit] Distribution

[edit] Great Britain

  • A total of 75 Akins appear in the 1881 Census of Great Britain, and is ranked 19,524th most common surname.[2]
  • A total of 216 Akins appear in the 1996 Electoral roll of Great Britain, and is ranked 15,975th most common surname.[2]

[edit] Ireland

In Griffith's Valuation, a property survey of Ireland from 1848-1864, records 3 households of Akins in Ireland; 2 in County Donegal and 1 in County Monaghan.[3]

[edit] Akins' of America

The surname Akins is ranked 1,556th in the 1990 United States Census.[4]

[edit] A Clan Akins?

In or about 2001 an American, Steven Akins, styled himself as Steven L. Akins of that Ilk, Hereditary Chief of the name and arms of the Clan Akins[5] and even An t-Acainaich Mor.[6] Steven created a clan badge, crest and tartan for his clan[7] and petitioned the Lord Lyon King of Arms to claim the right to use a coat of arms of an alleged ancestor and legitimize his clan. On April 15, 2001 an article in the Sunday Mail, a Scottish newspaper, stated that Steven Akins allegedly attempted to bribe a Glasgow man in aiding him in his bid to be recognized as chief of Clan Akins. Akins allegedly wished to plant a forged tombstone with a coat of arms inscription, accompanied with forged genealogical records to prove his family was based in Lanarkshire in the 1700s.[8] Steven Akins' petition was ultimately rejected because of fraudulent information.[7][9] The Clan Akins Society headed by Steven and his wife, which had charged $15 per year membership,[8] has since become defunct.[7]


[edit] See also

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ a b http://www.ancestry.com/learn/facts/Fact.aspx?fid=10&ln= Retrieved on April 21, 2007
  2. ^ a b http://www.spatial-literacy.org/UCLnames/default.aspx Retrieved on April 22, 2007
  3. ^ http://www.ireland.com/ancestor/ Retrieved on April 15, 2007
  4. ^ http://www.census.gov/genealogy/names/dist.all.last Retrieved on April 15, 2007
  5. ^ http://www.genealogy.com/users/a/k/i/Steven-L-Akins-of-that-ilk/index.html Retrieved on April 21, 2007
  6. ^ http://web.archive.org/web/20000816223322/http://www.angelfire.com/al2/akinsclanwebsite/ Archived copy from August 16, 2000 Retrieved on April 26, 2007
  7. ^ a b c http://homepages.rootsweb.com/~catinjax/akins/ Retrieved on April 21, 2007
  8. ^ a b http://www.asvl28.dsl.pipex.com/z-sja-main.html Retrieved on April 22, 2007
  9. ^ http://scottish-genealogy-research.thecapitalscot.com/clangenealogist.pdf Retrieved on April 21, 2007

[edit] External links