Dickin is a surname of English and Irish origin originating in the mid-11th century during the Norman conquests.

History

The origin of the Dickin surname stems from the Norman conquests of 1066 and King Richard the First of England. Patronymic naming, established following the Norman conquests, meant that Richard's son would become Richardson (Richard + Son). Eventually, as the shorthand for Richard became "Dick" the name morphed into Dickson and several other related names. In order to be gender neutral, the name also morphed into being the kin of Richard, as in Richard's kin or Dick + Kin, which was eventually shortened to Dickin.

Geographic settlement

Great Britain

The 1891 England and Wales census shows a high concentration of Dickin families in Lancashire (19%), Shropshire (23%), and

Staffordshire Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation Staffs.) is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. It borders Cheshire to the northwest, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, Warwickshire to the southeast, the West Midlands Cou ...

(15%). A large number of records between 1532 and 1812 show the prominent use of the Dickin surname at that time.

North America

The earliest known records of the Dickin family in North America show John Dickin landing in New England in 1753 and Alexander Dickin landing in Maryland in 1813.

Alternate spellings

While the root of the surname is always Richard, the Dickin surname has seen its spelling changed. This is mainly due to the societal illiteracy of the time; writing had not become widespread throughout society and many names were spoken, but rarely written. * Dicun * Dycon * Diccon * Dykyns * Dikins * Dicin * Dikun * Dicon * Dicconson

Related surnames

With Richard as its root patronymic, Dickin is related to several other surnames: *

Richard Richard is a male given name. It originates, via Old French, from Frankish language, Old Frankish and is a Compound (linguistics), compound of the words descending from Proto-Germanic language, Proto-Germanic ''*rīk-'' 'ruler, leader, king' an ...

Richardson Richardson may refer to: People * Richardson (surname), an English and Scottish surname * Richardson Gang, a London crime gang in the 1960s * Richardson Dilworth, Mayor of Philadelphia (1956-1962) Places Australia * Richardson, Australian Cap ...

* Dickson * Dickens * Dickenson *

Dixon Dixon may refer to: Places International * Dixon Entrance, part of the Inside Passage between Alaska and British Columbia Canada * Dixon, Ontario United States * Dixon, California * Dixon, Illinois * Dixon, Greene County, Indiana * Dixon, Indi ...

Dickins Dickins is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: *Alan Dickins, Arundel Herald of Arms Extraordinary *Barry Dickins (born 1949), Australian author, artist and playwright *Bruce Dickins FBA (1889–1978), Elrington and Bosworth Profes ...

Notable people with the surname

Albert Dickin Albert Edward Dickin (11 January 1901 – 5 May 1955) was a British freestyle swimmer and diver who competed in the 1920 Summer Olympics, 1924 Summer Olympics, and 1928 Summer Olympics. In 1920 he was eliminated in the first round of the 100- ...

(1901–1955), British swimmer *

John Dickin Jack Dickin (10 February 1899 – 1966) was a British swimmer. He competed in the men's 100 metre freestyle event at the 1920 Summer Olympics The 1920 Summer Olympics (french: Jeux olympiques d'été de 1920; nl, Olympische Zomerspelen ...

(1899–1966), British swimmer *

Maria Dickin Maria Elisabeth Dickin CBE (nickname, Mia; 22 September 1870 – 1 March 1951) was a social reformer and an animal welfare pioneer who founded the People's Dispensary for Sick Animals (PDSA) in 1917. The Dickin Medal is named for her. Early ...

(1870–1951), British social reformer * Mike Dickin (1943–2006), English radio DJ

References

{{Surname, Dickin Scottish surnames Surnames of English origin Surnames of Irish origin