Jennet History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
France

Jennet is one of the oldest family names to come from the Anglo-Saxon tribes of Britain. It is derived from the baptismal name John or Joan. The surname Jennet referred to the son of John or Joan which belongs to the category of patronymic or metronymic surnames. In Old English, patronyms and matronyms were formed by adding a variety of suffixes to personal names, which changed over time and from place to place. For example, after the Norman Conquest, sunu and sune, which meant son, were the most common patronymic suffixes. In the 12th and 13th centuries, the most common patronymic names included the word filius, which meant son. By the 14th century, the suffix son had replaced these earlier versions. Surnames that were formed with filius or son were more common in the north of England and it was here that the number of individuals without surnames was greatest at this time.

Early Origins of the Jennet family

The surname Jennet was first found in Yorkshire where Willelmus filius Jonet was listed in the Subsidy Rolls of 1297. A few years later, again in Yorkshire Jonot (surname only) was listed in 1308 and later again, Robert and Simon Janot were listed in the Subsidy Rolls for Sussex in 1327. 1

Early History of the Jennet family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Jennet research. Another 67 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1356, 1596, 1649, 1650, 1661 and 1678 are included under the topic Early Jennet History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Jennet Spelling Variations

Only recently has spelling become standardized in the English language. As the English language evolved in the Middle Ages, the spelling of names changed also. The name Jennet has undergone many spelling variations, including Jennet, Jennett, Jonnott, Jonnot, Jonnotson and others.

Early Notables of the Jennet family

Notables of the family at this time include William Jemmat (1596?-1678), English Puritan divine, born about 1596, and a "descendant of a well-to-do family settled at Reading, Berkshire, was, according to Wood, the son of a former mayor of the town. No Jemmat, however, appears as mayor...
Another 47 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Jennet Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Jennet migration to the United States +

To escape the unstable social climate in England of this time, many families boarded ships for the New World with the hope of finding land, opportunity, and greater religious and political freedom. Although the voyages were expensive, crowded, and difficult, those families that arrived often found greater opportunities and freedoms than they could have experienced at home. Many of those families went on to make significant contributions to the rapidly developing colonies in which they settled. Early North American records indicate many people bearing the name Jennet were among those contributors:

Jennet Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Andrew Jennet, who settled in Virginia sometime between 1665 and 1666
John Jennet, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1682 2

Jennet Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Bridget Jennet, who settled in New York in 1832
Jacob Jennet, who settled in New York in 1852

Contemporary Notables of the name Jennet (post 1700) +

Jennet Conant (b. 1959), American three-time New York Times Best Seller listed non-fiction author and journalist

Citations +

Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
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)