Tims
A short English surname that usually began as a pet form of Timothy, meaning “honoring God.”
The #9,165 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 86,702 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Tims is generally treated as a shortened or familiar form of the given name Timothy, with the possessive -s marking “Tim’s” or “Tim’s son.” Timothy comes from Greek elements meaning “honor” and “God,” so the name ultimately carries the sense “one who honors God.” Related forms include Tims, Timms, Timson, and other surnames built from the same personal name.
History
The historical surname records show Tims alongside many close variants such as Timms, Times, and Timson, which suggests a family of names built from the same baptismal source. It appears mainly in English usage and is especially associated with the southern and midland English surname pattern of creating hereditary surnames from popular first names. Older reference works sometimes list Times as a variant of Tims, showing that spelling was fluid.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Victorian surname dictionaries regularly grouped Tims with Timms and Timson under Timothy, showing how many modern surnames began as nothing more than a familiar first name in the family.
From the historical record
“TIMPSON (with intrus. p) for Timson, q.v. TIMS, Tim's (Son) 1 „ -n^i.^ Ti,v,«th« TIMSON, Tim's Son) v.Tim(m, Timothy. TINCKER (Eng.) Tinker [M.E. tinkere, f. tinker, to tinkle ; of imit. orig.] TINCKLER = Tinkler, q.v. Tindal”
— Surnames of the United Kingdom: a concise etymological dictionary (2 vols in 1)