How common is the surname Tonkin?

1,900 people in the United States had the surname Tonkin in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 162,498 Americans. It ranked 15,418th of 162,253 surnames.

What ethnicity is the surname Tonkin?

In the 2010 Census, 95% of people named Tonkin identified as white (not Hispanic), and 2.2% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).

Who is the most famous person named Tonkin?

Phoebe Tonkin, Australian actress (born 1989), followed by David Tonkin.

Where is the surname Tonkin most common?

Wikidata records people named Tonkin in Australia.

How do you pronounce Tonkin?

Tonkin is /ˈtɒŋkɪn/, 2 syllables.

Is the surname Tonkin getting more or less common?

More common. 1,860 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 1,900 in 2010, up 2.2%.

Is Tonkin also a first name?

Yes. Tonkin is used as a first name as well as a surname; its first-name page has the meaning and how many babies were given it.

The surname Tonkin

A patronymic surname, carried by 1,900 people in the United States.

Pronounced /ˈtɒŋkɪn/ 2 syllables Soundex T525

Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). Tonkin is more common than 90.5% of them.

Origin

From a medieval diminutive form of the given name Thomas.

Tonkin is a patronymic surname: formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name.

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 1,900 people named Tonkin in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 162,498 Americans. That is up 2.2% since 2000, when the Census counted 1,860.

#15,418

rank among US surnames

1,900

people in 2010

0.6

per 100,000 Americans

+2.2%

change since 2000 (was #14,658)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#15,409	McQueary	1,901	162,412
#15,418	McSherry	1,900	162,498

Who is named Tonkin

Race and Hispanic origin as people reported it in the 2010 Census

95% of people named Tonkin identified as white (not Hispanic), 2.2% as Hispanic or Latino (any race) and 1.8% as two or more races.

White (not Hispanic) 95%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 2.2%
Two or more races 1.8%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.9%

The Census suppresses very small shares to protect privacy; Black, Native American are not shown.

Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

Famous Tonkins

2 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first

Phoebe Tonkin
Australian actress (born 1989)
David Tonkin
Australian politician, Liberal Party, Premier of South Australia 1979-1982

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Variant spellings

Tonquin

Surnames that sound like Tonkin

Tomkins

Tonkin has the Soundex code T525, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code T525.

Questions

Where does the surname Tonkin come from?: From a medieval diminutive form of the given name Thomas.
How common is the surname Tonkin?: 1,900 people in the United States had the surname Tonkin in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 162,498 Americans. It ranked 15,418th of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname Tonkin?: In the 2010 Census, 95% of people named Tonkin identified as white (not Hispanic), and 2.2% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).
Who is the most famous person named Tonkin?: Phoebe Tonkin, Australian actress (born 1989), followed by David Tonkin.
Where is the surname Tonkin most common?: Wikidata records people named Tonkin in Australia.
How do you pronounce Tonkin?: Tonkin is /ˈtɒŋkɪn/, 2 syllables.
What type of surname is Tonkin?: Tonkin is a patronymic surname, formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name.
Is the surname Tonkin getting more or less common?: More common. 1,860 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 1,900 in 2010, up 2.2%.
What are other spellings of Tonkin?: Tonquin.
Is Tonkin also a first name?: Yes. Tonkin is used as a first name as well as a surname; its first-name page has the meaning and how many babies were given it.