The Greek Word

JOHN

Generally regarded as one of the first to conceive the ideal of  a "One World",   Alexander the
Great brought the Greek language to the existing world. [reigned from 336 to 323 B.C.]  "Hellenistic Culture" became the term to describe much of the activity of the day.  In Egypt, a city name, of course, Alexandria became a focal point of this new world.  Here, scholars of the day tried to tie the Greek and Near Eastern thought together.  Jewish scholars [285 - 247 B.C.] translated the Hebrew canon into a Greek translation called "The Septuagint".  The Hebrew word for "John" [shown last post] became translated into the Greek shown above.

The actual text where this translation occurs is shown below.  The Greek word is underlined.

The Hebrew to Greek before the Roman world came into existence.  What a deal it is.


My copy is from: The Septuagint with Apocrypha, by Charles Lee Brenton.  It was first published in London in 1851.  My edition is by Hendrickson Publishers, Eighth Printing December 1999, p. 563.

The Hebrew Word

After all this chronology surrounding the surname JONES [see last post], I thought there might be those who would like to see the words [for John] as they appear in the original languages.  The earliest, is the Hebrew word.  The English translation is given underneath.  Let it speak for itself:

This is taken from: The Interlinear Bible, Hebrew English, Vol II, I Sam - Ps 55, by Baker, p.1123.  Jay P. Green, Sr. was the general editor and translator.  Published by Baker Book House, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1976.

Derivation of The JONES Surname

The formation of a word from another word or base is called its derivation.  Sort of like a "word" family tree as might be viewed  in our world of genealogy.  The following diagram shows such a derivation for our surname JONES.

Sumerian writing started things off some time around 2800 BC. Symbols for sounds with the swipe of a little stick.  Who would have thought?  The Chaldean, then Hebrew languages soon followed giving the context, in words, for the first appearance of the name on the written thoughts of man. [ Recorded in the first book of Chronicles, chapter 25, verse 4 around 970 BC.]

When Alexander got around to taking the world by storm (334 - 325 BC), the Greek language became the language of the world.  Around 285 BC, the scholars in Alexandria translated the Hebrew writings into the Greek language which is called the Septuagint.  Little did they know that another group called the Romans would replace their language with that Latin.  (265 BC - 44 BC) 

It took the next 400 years for the Latin to be written by those of the Christian faith into the form that was to become the name JOHN.  With the spread of Christianity (600 AD - 1100 AD) the name of JOHN took on its on significance.  The Celtic Church, the Norman (French), the Anglo-Saxon and many other groups of folks took the name to give to their sons.  Each language giving its own pronunciation and spelling.  The Welsh of Celtic origins, had no "J" in their alphabet, and it took the Anglo-Saxon under Norman conquest to finally make the transliteration JOHN.  [Welsh "J" sound was written "Si".]  When the three Edwards [I,II, III], and finally the Tudors, ended the process of Welsh annexation [The Act of Union, 1536]  the name JOHN was transliterated to become the surname JONES.  This was often the case when one of those Welshmen told their names in the English courts as William ap John ap Thomas ap Rys ap Peter... are you kidding me...I am not going to write that down in these English records.  Besides, you have to speak English now, and that sounds like JONES to me!

Well, there you have it... the derivation of the JONES surname.  Who would have believed it?

The Domesday Book and John

Understanding the JONES surname, begins with the understanding of the use of the Christian name JOHN. The earliest written records of the Norman Conquest, give a resource to explore this name among the culture of the day.

In 1086, William I ordered a survey of his conquered lands. This was carried out by seven or eight panels of commissioners, each working a separate group of counties. Each commissioner compiled elaborate accounts of the estates of the King and of his "tenants in chief", those who held their land by direct services to him. The survey covered all the counties of England (not Wales) except Northumberland, Durham, Westmorland, Cumberland, and northern Lancashire. It does not include London. It does provide historical and geographical materials collected by shires, hundreds, and villages. This survey represented the new Norman concept of a feudal society based on the honour or barony, a network of estates that were treated as a unit even if not adjacent.

For genealogist it also provides a rich history of names and the use of names. For JONES tree climbers it clearly shows that the use of the surname JONES did not exist in Norman England. The name JOHN appears, but it is not the most common name utilized in this survery. The first figure (show as page -4-) documents the use of the name JOHN in the Domesday records. Its use is recorded approximately 31 times. For comparison, William is recorded 494 times, Richard 114, Edward 69, and Henry 27 times. Other commonly used names were Robert > 600 listings, Roger > 400 listings, and Hugh > 400 listings. It is also of interest to note that the surname (first name followed by a second was being used during this period. However, the use of only one name (i.e., Richard), followed by the use of a name with some title (i.e., Richard of Warwick) was more widely employed. The Welsh spellings of John of the use of "ap John" was not found in the Domesday listings.

The second figure, listed as page -5-, shows a summary for the name JOHN, and how it was used at the taking of the Domesday Book. Twelve times the name JOHN was used without characterization. Eighteen times, the name JOHN was characterized by an additional term, or series of terms, i.e., "John the chamberlain". It also gives the counties in which the name JOHN appears.

The first number shown in each reference is the chapter number, followed by the entry number. The reference is: "Domesday Book: A Survey of the Counties of England." Winchester, England, 1086. In, Domesday Book, #37, Index of Persons. Edited, Dodgson & Palmer, Phillimore, 1992. Known as "The Phillimore Domesday Series", the series of books are arranged by counties.

From: The Jones Genealogist, Vol.IV, No.,5, March/April, 1993.

Why JOHN

The name JOHN comes from a long, long history dating back to the Hebrew King David. It was toward the end of his reign (970 B.C.), and he was collecting supplies to build a temple to his God, Yahweh. This account is written in a book called Chronicles [I Chronicles 22-26], and gives a very detailed plan for this building. Part of this plan was assigning musicians who were to prophesy [exalt David according to the words of Yahweh] with lyres, harps, and cymbals. Our Celtic blood called these folks "bards" who continued with the harp! Anyway, David's chief "seer" was Heman who records a prayer (song) including the words "...Jerimoth Hananiah..." translated by some to be "Be gracious, O Lord, be gracious to me". This song must have been heard by others for the gatekeepers (guards) recorded in chapter 26 of the same book states that one guard name his sixth son "Johanan", meaning "Jah" [the existing one] "anan" [is gracious]. What a story. Naming your son after a song. Thus the name John comes down through the ages from a Hebrew word 'Yohanan' written 'Johanan' meaning "the existing one" [Yahweh] is gracious. [ja being an abbreviation for Yahweh used in song]