The Adkins surname is derived from Ad(e), a favorite form of the Hebrew given name Adam, meaning red-earth, possibly referring to the earth from which God formed the first man in the Old Testament, plus the Old English pre 7th century suffix -kin. The "d" of Ad(e) was sharpened to "t" in certain areas as a result of dialectal influences. The final "s" is a reduced form of son of.