Comments for the name Anakin

The inspiration of the name is not from a biblical tribe, but a friend and fellow director, Ken Annakin, of George Lukas. [noted -ed]

According to A Dictionary of English Surnames by Reaney & Wilson, Annakin is a surname from Yorkshire, England, that goes back to the Norman French name Anketin, itself a form of the Old Norse name Askell or Asketill, "divine cauldron".

While we know the origin is from a friend of George Lucas', it should also be noted that there was once a group of people the Jews defeated named the "Anakim" or "Anakims." These people were referred to as giants. (Deuteronomy 2:10-11 – "10. The Emims dwelt therein in times past, a people great, and many, and tall, as the Anakims; 11. Which also were accounted giants, as the Anakims; but the Moabites call them Emims.") Ironically, Anakin Skywalker (or Darth Vader) from Star Wars was also referred to as a giant of a man in many of the books. Therefore, the name could be used to mean a giant-like or generally tall person.

According to the Free Online Dictionary, the name (not the surname) means "warrior."

Someone told me that in Latin or something, it means "without family" which is fitting for the character of Anakin Skywalker.

Anakin is Sanskrit for "warrior".

One source says that Anakin may come from "an akin" - as in "peerless", or "without equal".

Love the name BTW, but just because I'm such a Star Wars-nerd, I could never use it. It would just be too strange.

Nicknames with the suffix -kin seems to have been used in medieval English (at least according to this site). Wilkin was a nickname for William, Hopkin was a nickname for Hob (Robert), Larkin was a nickname for Lawrence, etc. So I guess Anakin (well, Annakin) could have been a nickname for something in medieval English. A diminutive of Andrew, perhaps?