English
The surname Junkin is of Danish origin. The name is a Scandinavian form ( mainly Danish ) of the given name John. The surname signifies the son of John. The given name John is derived from the Hebrew name Johanan 'Jehovah has favoured' or 'may Jehovah favour ( this child )', which was adopted into Latin as Johannes. The name John has enjoyed enormous popularity in the Cristain era, being given in honour of St.John the Baptist, precursor of Christ himself, and of St.John the Evangelist, author of the fourth Gospel, Apostle, fisherman and brother of James; as well as the nearly one thousand saints so named and by twenty three popes. It is also the name of several different characters in the Old testament, including one of King David's 'mighty men'. It is also a royal name, being born by eight Byzantine emperors and by kings of Hungary, Poland, Portugual, France, and elsewhere. By the beginning of the fourteenth century John rivalled William in popularity and has always been a favourite name. The name dates as far back as the twelfth century were a William Geneson is recorded in historical archives. One of the first fore fathers was that of a Soren Jensen, of Copenhagen, who came to America aboard the Energie, he settled in New York. This name is the two hundredth and fifteenth most common surname in America.