The story of the Bok family stretches back through time to the Viking settlers who populated the rugged shores of
Scotland in the Medieval era. The Bok name comes from a place named by these
Vikings and was used by a family who lived in a place noted for the presence of a
ridge that formed a boundary between two distinct areas. It comes from a variant of the word
boak or
balk, of the same meaning. While historians generally agree upon the aforementioned topographical derivation, most believe that this name actually came from the area called
Boak in the parish of Kirkholm.
Early Origins of the Bok family
The surname Bok was first found in
Berwickshire an ancient county of
Scotland, presently part of the Scottish Borders Council Area, located in the eastern part of the Borders Region of Scotland, where they held a
family seat from ancient times, long before the
Norman Conquest in 1066.
Early History of the Bok family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Bok research.
Another 183 words (13 lines of text) covering the years 1546, 1576, 1632, 1683 and are included under the topic Early Bok History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Bok Spelling Variations
In the Middle Ages, no real standards were established to judge the accuracy of spelling and translation. They were done mostly by ear and intuition, and enormous numbers of
spelling variations were the unsurprising result. Bok has appeared as Boag, Boig, Book, Boack, Boge, Bogue, Boak, Bouk, Bouck, Bogues, Bogg, Boggs and many more.
Early Notables of the Bok family (pre 1700)
Migration of the Bok family to Ireland
Some of the Bok family moved to
Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 101 words (7 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Migration of the Bok family to the New World and Oceana
North America was far from Britain's oppressive monarchy. There, the Scottish found land and freedom, and many even the opportunity to pay back
England in the American
War of Independence. This brave heritage survives today largely in
Clan societies and other patriotic Scottish organizations. Research into passenger and immigration lists has brought forth evidence of the early members of the Bok family in North America:
Bok Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
- Joseph Bok, who landed in New York in 1709 [1]CITATION[CLOSE]
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
Bok Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
- Mrs. De Bok, who arrived in Iowa in 1849 [1]CITATION[CLOSE]
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8) - Mrs. be Bok, who landed in Iowa in 1849 [1]CITATION[CLOSE]
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8) - Dingeman De Bok, who arrived in Iowa in 1849 [1]CITATION[CLOSE]
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8) - Margaretha Bok, who arrived in Buffalo, NY in 1854 [1]CITATION[CLOSE]
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8) - Joh Bok, who arrived in Buffalo, NY in 1854 [1]CITATION[CLOSE]
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8) - ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Contemporary Notables of the name Bok (post 1700)
- Sissela Bok (b. 1934), Swedish-born American philosopher and ethicist, the daughter of two Nobel Prize winners
- Hilary Bok (b. 1959), Henry R. Luce Professor of Bioethics and Moral & Political Theory at the Johns Hopkins University
- Edward William Bok (1863-1930), Dutch-American editor and Pulitzer Prize-winning author
- Derek Curtis Bok (b. 1930), American lawyer and educator, and the former president of Harvard University
- Bart Jan Bok (1906-1983), Dutch-American astronomer