Atkinson ( surname ) - wikipedia Atkinson ( surname ) For other uses, see Atkinson ( disambiguation ). Atkinson Gender Unisex Language ( s ) English Origin Language ( s ) Middle English Word / Name Atkin Meaning son of Atkin Other names See also Acheson, Aitchison, Aicheson, and Aitcheson, Adcock, Atcock Atkinson is an English - language surname. The name is derived from a patronymic form of the Middle English Atkin. The personal name Atkin is one of many pet forms of the name Adam. The name corresponds to the Scottish name Aitchison. The name Atkinson is particularly common in Northern England. At the time of the British Census of 1881, its relative frequency was highest in Westmorland ( 19.8 times the British average ), followed by Cumberland, County Durham, Northumberland, Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, Lancashire, Cheshire and Rutland. In Ireland the name is common only in Ulster and particularly in counties Antrim and Down. Some Atkinsons are descended from Planters, although the name was recorded in Ireland before that period. Acheson is a variation of the name in Scotland and the Border region, having been originally spelled Atzinson ( with the ' z ' being pronounced as ' y ', as in yet ). People with the surname J Q U V X Y Z Al Atkinson, American football player Alan Atkinson, Australian Rules footballer Alfred Atkinson, British soldier Alia Atkinson, Jamaican swimmer Anthony Barnes Atkinson, British economist Arthur Atkinson ( disambiguation ), multiple people Arthur K. Atkinson, American railroad president Ashlie Atkinson, American actress Barbara Atkinson ( 1926 -- 2015 ), English actress Basil Atkinson, ( 1895 -- 1971 ) Under - librarian of Cambridge University, writer on theology Bert Atkinson, fictional character from EastEnders Bill Atkinson, creator of Apple Computer 's QuickDraw, MacPaint and HyperCard Bill Atkinson ( baseball ), Major League Baseball pitcher Bill Atkinson ( footballer, born 1944 ) ( 1944 -- 2013 ), English footballer Brodie Atkinson, Australian rules footballer Brooks Atkinson, New York Times theatre critic Bruce Atkinson, Australian politician Bruce Atkinson ( poker player ), British poker player Bruce Atkinson, American psychologist Cam Atkinson, American ice hockey player Chloe Atkinson, fictional character from the British soap opera Emmerdale Chris Atkinson, Australian rally driver Christopher Atkinson ( missionary ) ( fl 1652 - 5 ), early Quaker missionary from Westmorland and one of the Valiant Sixty Christopher Atkinson Saville ( c1738 -- 1819 ), alter known as Christopher Atkinson until about 1798, English merchant and politician Colin Atkinson, British cricketer and teacher Dalian Atkinson, British footballer Damon Atkinson, Drummer Dan Atkinson, British journalist and author Denis Atkinson, Barbadian cricketer Donald R. Atkinson, American psychologist Dorothy Atkinson ( born 1966 ), English actress and singer Dorothy Atkinson ( historian ) ( 1929 -- 2016 ), American historian Edith Atkinson Eleanor Stackhouse Atkinson, American writer Eric Atkinson, Barbadian cricketer, brother of Denis Eugene Atkinson, American politician Frank Atkinson ( actor ), British actor Fred Atkinson, American Director of Education in the Philippines ( 1900 -- 1902 ) Frederick Atkinson ( born 1919 ), retired British civil servant Frederick Valentine Atkinson, British mathematician Gemma Atkinson, British actress George Atkinson ( disambiguation ), multiple people Graham Atkinson, British footballer, brother of Ronald Frederick `` Big Ron '' Atkinson Harry Atkinson, New Zealand premier Harry E. Atkinson, American politician Henry Atkinson ( disambiguation ), multiple people Hugh Atkinson ( footballer ) ( born 1960 ), Irish footballer ( Wolves, Exeter ) Isabel Atkinson ( 1891 -- 1968 ), British - Canadian philanthropist and women 's rights activist J James Atkinson ( disambiguation ), multiple people Janelle Atkinson ( born 1982 ), Jamaican freestyle swimmer Janette Atkinson, British psychologist and academic Janice Atkinson British MEP for the South East England region Jerry Atkinson, American politician Joanne Atkinson, English swimmer and Olympic athlete John Atkinson ( disambiguation ), multiple people Jon Atkinson, English cricketer Joseph E. Atkinson, Canadian newspaper editor Josh Atkinson, English footballer Juliette Atkinson, American tennis player June Atkinson, American politician Kate Atkinson, British writer Ken Atkinson, Canadian politician Lawrence Atkinson, British artist Louisa Atkinson, Australian writer Lucy Atkinson, British explorer Mark Atkinson ( disambiguation ), multiple people Martin Atkinson, English football referee Maudie Atkinson, fictional character from Harper Lee 's novel To Kill A Mockingbird Michael Atkinson, Australian politician Mike Atkinson ( born 1994 ), footballer Neville Atkinson, Royal Navy pilot Norman Atkinson ( 1923 -- 2013 ), British politician Paul Atkinson ( disambiguation ), multiple people Peter Atkinson ( disambiguation ), multiple people Richard Atkinson ( disambiguation ), multiple people Rick Atkinson, American writer and editor Robert d'Escourt Atkinson, physicist Robert Atkinson ( disambiguation ), multiple people Ron Atkinson ( `` Big Ron '' ), British football manager Rowan Atkinson, British comedian, known for his role as Mr. Bean Ruth Atkinson, American comics artist Sallyanne Atkinson, Australian politician Shane Atkinson, New Zealand spammer Sophie Atkinson, English - Canadian landscape painter Steve Atkinson, Canadian ice hockey player Steve Atkinson ( cricketer ) ( born 1952 ), English cricketer Ted Atkinson, Canadian jockey Terry Atkinson, British artist Thomas Lewis Atkinson, English engraver Ti - Grace Atkinson, American feminist writer Tiffany Atkinson ( born 1972 ), British poet Tom Atkinson, Scholar V Vanessa Atkinson, squash player William Stephen Atkinson, Indian lepidopterist William Walker Atkinson ( Yogi Ramacharaka ), American writer William Yates Atkinson, 55th Governor of Georgia from 1894 to 1898 Species named after a person named Atkinson Lethrinus atkinsoni, a fish named after a person named Atkinson Lethrinus atkinsoni, a fish of the family Lethrinidae from the Pacific Ocean, described by Alvin Seale in 1910. References Jump up ^ Learn about the family history of your surname, Ancestry.com, retrieved 2 July 2011 which cited Dictionary of American Family Names. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0 - 19 - 508137 - 4. for the surnames `` Atkinson '' and `` Atkin ''. Jump up ^ `` Atkinson Meaning and Distribution ''. forebears.co.uk. Retrieved 25 January 2014 ^ Jump up to : Bell, Robert ( 1990 ) ( 1988 ). The Book of Ulster Surnames ( Paperback ). Belfast : The Blackstaff Press Limited. ISBN 0 - 85640 - 405 - 5. See also Acheson ( surname ) Atkinson ( disambiguation ) This page lists people with the surname Atkinson. If an internal link intending to refer to a specific person led you to this page, you may wish to change that link by adding the person 's given name ( s ) to the link. Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Atkinson_(surname)&oldid=817013692 '' Categories : Surnames English - language surnames Hidden categories : All set index articles Talk About Wikipedia Bân - lâm - gú Deutsch Edit links This page was last edited on 25 December 2017, at 12 : 32. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia ® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization. About Wikipedia

Question: where does the last name atkinson come from
Answer: Middle English