Johnson History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Johnson is a name of ancient Norman origin. It arrived in England with the Norman Conquestof 1066. Johnson is a name that comes from the given name John and the name literally means “son of John.” The given name John is derived from the Hebrew name Johanan, which means Jehovah has favored. The name was extremely popular in the Middle Ages as a result of the numerous connections between the name John and the Christian Church.

Early Origins of the Johnson family

The surname Johnson was first found in Lincolnshire, where many of the ancient and leading houses of the family name claim descent originally from the house of FitzJohn in Normandy, particularly that of one of the leading branches and oldest, the Johnsons of Ayscough-Fee. [1]

Later, the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 list many of the name: Willelmus Joneson; Willelmus Johnson, 1379; Robertus Johanson; Juliana Jonesson; Ricardus Joneson; and Robertas Jonson. [2]

Early History of the Johnson family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Johnson research. Another 82 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1296, 1375, 1503, 1572, 1637, 1629, 1675, 1644, 1713, 1680, 1689, 1659, 1719, 1689, 1719, 1688, 1775, 1682, 1735, 1717, 1719, 1797 and are included under the topic Early Johnson History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Johnson Spelling Variations

Anglo-Norman names are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. When the Normans became the ruling people of England in the 11th century, they introduced a new language into a society where the main languages of Old and later Middle English had no definite spelling rules. These languages were more often spoken than written, so they blended freely with one another. Contributing to this mixing of tongues was the fact that medieval scribes spelled words according to sound, ensuring that a person’s name would appear differently in nearly every document in which it was recorded. The name has been spelled Johnson, Joneson, Jonson, Joynson and others.

Early Notables of the Johnson family (pre 1700)

Outstanding amongst the family at this time was Benjamin Jonson (1572-1637), an English playwright, poet, actor, and literary critic; Daniel Johnson (1629-1675), an English buccaneer born in Bristol, who sailed against the Spanish during the late 17th century becoming known among the Spanish as “Johnson the Terror”; Sir Nathaniel Johnson (1644-1713), an English soldier and a Member of Parliament for Newcastle-upon-Tyne (1680-1689).

Johnson World Ranking

In the United States, the name Johnson is the 2^nd most popular surname with an estimated 2,014,470 people with that name. [3] However, in Canada, the name Johnson is ranked the 9^thmost popular surname with an estimated 79,492 people with that name. [4] And in Quebec, Canada, the name Johnson is the 493^rd popular surname. [5] Newfoundland, Canada ranks Johnson as 80^th with 352 people. [6] France ranks Johnson as 4,983^rd with 1,500 – 2,000 people. [7] Australia ranks Johnson as 8^th with 67,462 people. [8] New Zealand ranks Johnson as 19^th with 6,145 people. [9] The United Kingdom ranks Johnson as 10^th with 151,464 people. [10] South Africa ranks Johnson as 166^th with 37,484 people. [11]

 Migration of the Johnson family to Ireland

Some of the Johnson family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.

 Johnson migration to the United States +

For many English families, the political and religious disarray that plagued their homeland made the frontiers of the New World an attractive prospect. Thousands migrated, aboard cramped disease-ridden ships. They arrived sick, poor, and hungry, but were welcomed in many cases with far greater opportunity than at home in England. Many of these hardy settlers went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations in which they landed. Among early immigrants bearing the name Johnson or a variant listed above were: 

Johnson Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

• Mr. William Johnson, laborer who arrived in Jamestown, Virginia aboard the ship “Discovery” in 1607 [12]
• Mr. Joseph Johnson, who arrived in Virginia in 1618 aboard the ship “William and Thomas” [12]
• Mrs. Johnson, who arrived in Virginia in 1619 aboard the ship “Bona Nova” [12]
• Mr. Edward Johnson, (b. 1595), aged 26, British settler who arrived in Virginia in 1621 aboard the ship “Abigaile” [13]
• Mr. Richard Johnson, aged 22, who arrived in Virginia in 1622 aboard the ship “Southampton” [12]

Johnson Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

• Catherine Johnson, who landed in Virginia in 1703 [14]
• Arthur Johnson, who arrived in Virginia in 1713 [14]
• Anne Johnson, who arrived in Virginia in 1714 [14]
• Adam Johnson, who landed in New England in 1738 [14]
• Abraham Johnson, who landed in New England in 1760 [14]

Johnson Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

• Bryan Johnson, aged 25, who arrived in New York in 1812 [14]
• Archibald Johnson, aged 21, who arrived in Maryland in 1813 [14]
• Deborah Johnson, who landed in Massachusetts in 1813 [14]
• Michael Johnson, who was living in New York in 1818
• Ellen Johnson, aged 40, who landed in America in 1822 [14]

Johnson Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

• Christ Johnson, who arrived in New York, NY in 1905 [14]
• Alfred Johnson, who arrived in Wisconsin in 1914 [14]
• Arnold Johnson, who landed in Wisconsin in 1917 [14]