An English and Cornish surname, Jenkins comes from the word ‘Jenkin’ which is a form of the name John or Little John or son of John.

Other spellings include Jenkin, Jankin, Siencyns, Jenkynns, Jinkins, Jenniskens, Skinkwinn and Jenken.

The Irish form for Jenkins is Shinkwinn. The Welsh form is Siencyn as well as Sion, Sien and Zhahn.

In England the Jenkins surname is especially common family name. Scotland has the surname in most of its regions. Jenkins are also very popular name in most of Wales, especially along the west coast. The surname is well established in Canada and Australia.

Most of the eastern half of the United States has higher populations of Jenkins families. The
States of Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia and Tennessee have a greater portion with the Jenkins surname.

Famous: Ferguson Jenkins (professional baseball player), George W. Jenkins (founder of Publix Super Markets), John Jenkins (17th century music composer), Ken Jenkins (actor), Scoville Jenkins (professional tennis player), Richard Jenkins (actor-real name for Richard Burton), Louise Freeland Jenkins (American astronomer) and Charles Francis Jenkins (pioneer in film and TV production).