# Colin (surname)

Source: https://namelineage.com/surname/colin/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. Counts from the US Census Bureau; origin and etymology from Wiktionary; bearers from Wikidata. Data updated 2026-11-11.

A rather rare surname originating as a patronymic, variant of Collin.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Origin | not recorded |
| Type | patronymic, formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name |
| People in the US (2010 Census) | 8,318 |
| US rank (2010) | 4,270 of 162,253 |
| How often | about 1 in every 37,118 people |
| Change since 2000 | +49% (5,583 in 2000) |
| Pronunciation | /ˈkɑlɪn/, 2 syllables |
| Variant spellings | Collen, Collin |

## Etymology

(given name): * Coll + -in. Diminutive of Coll, a medieval short form of Nicholas. * It has also been used to anglicize Irish Coileán and Scottish Gaelic Cailean.

## Who carries it

Share of people named Colin in the 2010 US Census by the Census's own race and ethnicity groups. The Census suppresses a share when the count behind it is small.

| Group | Share |
|---|---|
| White (not Hispanic) | 20% |
| Black (not Hispanic) | 8.8% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 70% |
| Asian and Pacific Islander | 0.5% |
| American Indian and Alaska Native | 0.1% |
| Two or more races | 0.7% |

## Where

Wikidata records people named Colin in the United States, Brazil and the United Kingdom.

## People named Colin

- Margaret Colin, American actress
- Letícia Colin, Brazilian actress and singer
- Jean Colin, British actress (1905-1989)

## Similar surnames

Colon, Cline, Coughlin, Collin, Colonna, Coghlan, Colina, Callahan, Calhoun, Cullen, Clem, Callan.

## How to read these numbers

A Census count is people alive and counted in 2010, not births, and names occurring fewer than 100 times are not published at all. Ethnicity shares are the Census's own categories.