Okon History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Scotland

The origins of the Okon name lie with England's ancient Anglo-Saxon culture. It comes from when the family lived in Yorkshire. The surname Okon is associated with the parish of Acomb, which was located on the outskirts of the city of York.

Early Origins of the Okon family

The surname Okon was first found in Yorkshire, at Acomb which is now a suburb within the City of York Unitary Authority. The place name is most likely derived from the Old English acum, which meant "at the oak trees." The village dates back to at least the Domesday Book where it was listed as Achum, Acum and Acun, and was land held by the Archbishop of York. The village was designated as a manor held by St. Peter. There was land enough for 8 ploughs and there were 14 rent-paying tenants. 1

By 1222, the village was listed as Akum. 2 East and West Acomb, Northumberland have traditionally been quite a bit smaller than the Yorkshire village with West Acomb being the larger of the two. In both of these latter cases, the first record of the place name was with the Akum spelling in 1268. Hadrian's Wall runs about 1 mile (1.5 km), north east of Acomb, Northumberland.

Some of the first records of the family were Philip de Akum, who was registered in Yorkshire in 1210 3 and Willelmus de Acom who was listed in the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379. 4

Early History of the Okon family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Okon research. Another 142 words (10 lines of text) covering the years 1086, 1325, 1379, 1525, 1574, 1670, 1692 and 1767 are included under the topic Early Okon History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Okon Spelling Variations

Before the last few hundred years, the English language had no fast system of spelling rules. For that reason, spelling variations are commonly found in early Anglo-Saxon surnames. Over the years, many variations of the name Okon were recorded, including Acombe, Acomb, Acome, Acom, Acum, Akum, A Combe and others.

Early Notables of the Okon family

More information is included under the topic Early Okon Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Okon family

To escape oppression and starvation at that time, many English families left for the "open frontiers" of the New World with all its perceived opportunities. In droves people migrated to the many British colonies, those in North America in particular, paying high rates for passages in cramped, unsafe ships. Although many of the settlers did not make the long passage alive, those who did see the shores of North America perceived great opportunities before them. Many of the families that came from England went on to make essential contributions to the emerging nations of Canada and the United States. Research into various historical records revealed some of first members of the Okon family emigrate to North America: Robert Acom who settled in Virginia in 1642; and Thomas Acome who settled in Virginia in 1642.

Contemporary Notables of the name Okon (post 1700) +

George A. O'Kon (1901-1984), American politician, Farmer-Labor Candidate for Michigan State Senate 1st District, 1936 5
John Ene Effe Okon (1969-2016), Nigerian footballer

Citations +

Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, December 11) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html