Klink
A surname of Germanic origin, probably from a nickname or word for a click, clink, or sharp sound, though the evidence is not fully certain.
The #8,164 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 76,064 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The historical sources point to a Germanic name family behind Klink, related to forms such as German Kling and older spellings like Cling and Clingo. These words are associated with a sharp ringing or clinking sound, so the surname was likely first used as a nickname based on sound, speech, or some other striking feature. Some 19th-century writers also group Klink with names built from hard consonant clusters, but that explanation is less certain than the sound-based one.
History
The surname appears in German-speaking areas and was noticed by 19th-century onomastic writers alongside related forms such as Klinkhart, Kling, and Klinkhardt. It later appears in immigrant and American contexts, reflecting the wider spread of German surnames through migration. The evidence in the excerpts is fragmentary, so the exact line of development remains somewhat uncertain.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
One historical source explicitly links Klink with the cluster of names around Kling and even notes older forms such as Cling and Clingo.
From the historical record
“i. e. Chauve), Clayard (Clay), Clinkard, Costard, Covert, Coward (Cow), Custard (Cust), Dullard (Dull), Galliard, Glazard (Glaze), Grillard, Guessard, Hazard, Izzard, Killard, Klinkheart (Klink), Lollard, Mansard, Mustard (Moist, for Moyce, Moyes, i. e. Moses), Packard (Pack), Peckard (Peck or Pech), Perchard…”
— Ludus Patronymicus; or, the etymology of curious surnames