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Information
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Origin / History of the Robinson Name Robinson is a patronymic, in other words a name derived from the father’s name. This habit of handing down names was particularly prevalent amongst the Vikings. For this reason it used to be assumed that all names ending in ‘son’ were of Viking origin – especially as many of these names originated from the north of England in the area occupied by the Vikings. Research has shown however that names ending in ‘son’ occurred in English before the Viking invasions, and alos originated later in southern areas untouched by Vikings.
In England before Henry IV’s reign, a son did not necessarily take on the
father’s name, but from that time on the practise became almost universal.
Thus, Robinson (or occasionally Robson) derives from ‘son of Robin’ Robin
itself is a diminutive of the French name Robert, popular in Normandy and
England in medieval times. This French name had in turn originated from the Old
German name of Rodbert, derived from ‘hroth’ which meant ‘fame’ and ‘berth’
which means ‘bright’.
Surprisingly, England has never had a King named Robert (or Robin), however, one
of its most popular heroes was Robin Hood.
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