Jones (surname)

Jones is a surname of Welsh and English origin meaning "son of John".

It evolved from variations of traditionally Welsh names: Ieuan, Iowan, Ioan, Iwan, or even Siôn (note how the letter 'J' was originally being pronounced as 'i', akin to how J is pronounced in the Latin alphabet).

[1][2][3] The sound generated from ‘Si-’ in Siôn is a Welsh approximation of the English ‘J’ sound (refer to Irish Seán), equivalent to the English ‘Sh’ such as in “shed.” It exists as an anglicisation of these names during periods in which many Welsh were forced to change their names, ridding their patronymic names (“Ap Rhys” to “Prys” and then “Price” in English, or attaching an ‘-s’ to the end of a given name to signify an old patronym: “Owain” to “Owen” to finally “Owens”), or English speakers transliterating these names to a more conventional spelling through mishearing.

[5] Jones remains the most widespread surname in Wales, borne by around 200,000 people, or 5.75% of the population.

[7] Jones was the fourth most common surname in the 1990 U.S. Census, behind only Smith, Johnson and Williams.