Rankin Surname - Rankin Family History Project

Rankin Family History Project


Rankin Surname

Motto:  "Fortiter et recte"
Translation:  "Bravely and virtuously"

Definition:  Kin or relative of Randolph
Sept of the Scottish Clan McLean

Rankin Crest
English Patronymic name from the early given name Raedwulf, which means 'shield wolf.'   It was popular in England before the Norman Conquest. The name eventually became Radulf. Randolph and Randall are among the derivatives.

Rankin is the 1,006th most common name in the United States.

Our earliest known Rankin ancestor is Samuel Rankin. He was born in Ohio in the late 1700s and eventually settled in St. Helena Parish, Louisiana abt. 1818. His ancestors probably came from Ireland or Scotland.
Background is the Rankin tartan.




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Rankin Family History Project     Sonoma County, California
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Design and content by Shirley Ann Rankin

Updated January 2001
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