Find out how popular the last name Jonson is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Jonson.

Jonson, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Jonson surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Jonson in America

Jonson is the 16219th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Jonson surname appeared 1,780 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Jonson.

We can also compare 2010 data for Jonson to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Jonson

The surname JONSON is of English origin, dating back to the late medieval period, around the 13th or 14th century. It is a patronymic surname, derived from the given name "John" and the suffix "-son," meaning "son of John." This naming convention was common in England, where surnames were often derived from a person's father's name.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname JONSON can be found in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire from 1327, which mention a William Jonson. The name also appears in various other historical records, such as the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire from the 14th century.

The JONSON surname is closely associated with several notable individuals throughout history. One of the most famous bearers of this name was Ben Jonson (1572-1637), an English playwright, poet, actor, and literary critic, widely regarded as one of the most prominent figures in the English Renaissance. His plays, such as "Volpone" and "The Alchemist," are considered classics of English literature.

Another notable figure was Samuel Jonson (1649-1713), a renowned English critic and scholar who wrote influential works on literary criticism and lexicography. He is best known for his monumental work, "A Dictionary of the English Language," which was published in 1755 and is considered one of the first comprehensive dictionaries of the English language.

In the 18th century, the JONSON surname was also associated with the British explorer and naval officer, William Jonson (1715-1794), who led several expeditions to the Arctic regions and contributed to the mapping of the Canadian Arctic archipelago.

The name JONSON is also linked to various places and geographic locations. For instance, there is a village called Jonson's Croft in Cumbria, England, which may have derived its name from an early settler or landowner with the JONSON surname.

Other notable individuals with the JONSON surname include Richard Jonson (1573-1659), an English clergyman and writer, and Charles Jonson (1794-1873), a British naval officer and explorer who was involved in surveying the coast of Western Australia.

While the JONSON surname is most commonly found in England and parts of the United Kingdom, it has also spread to other regions through migration and diaspora. However, its origins and earliest recorded instances can be traced back to medieval England, where it emerged as a patronymic surname derived from the given name "John."

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Jonson

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Jonson.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Jonson was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Jonson has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Jonson was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Jonson, please contact us.

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