Opshone History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Wales

Etymology of Opshone

What does the name Opshone mean?

The Opshone surname is a patronymic name created from the personal name John. The original form of the name was ap-John: the Welsh patronymic prefix "ap-," means "son of," but the prefix has been assimilated into the surname over the course of time.

Early Origins of the Opshone family

The surname Opshone was first found in Flintshire (Welsh: Sir y Fflint), a historic county, created after the defeat of the Welsh Kingdom of Gwynedd in 1284, and located in north-east Wales, in Wales where they were lineally descended from Meyrick, son of Prince Llewellyn, who was lineally descended from Hwfa Ap Cynddelw, founder of the first noble tribe of North Wales, descended was John Ap Meyric, whose son Robert Ap John was the ancestor of the ApJohns and UpJohns.

Early History of the Opshone family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Opshone research. Another 82 words (6 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Opshone History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Opshone Spelling Variations

Although there are not an extremely large number Welsh surnames, there are an inordinately large number of spelling variations of those surnames. This variety of spellings began almost immediately after the acceptance of surnames within Welsh society. As time progressed, these old Brythonic names were eventually were recorded in English. This process was problematic in that many of the highly inflected sounds of the native language of Wales could not be properly captured in English. Some families, however, did decide to modify their own names to indicate a branch loyalty within the family, a religious adherence, or even a patriotic affiliation. The name Opshone has seen various spelling variations: Upjohn, ApJohn, Apshone and others.

Early Notables of the Opshone family

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

Migration of the Opshone family

In the 1800s and 1900s, many Welsh families left for North America, in search of land, work, and freedom. Those who made the trip successfully helped contribute to the growth of industry, commerce, and the cultural heritage of both Canada and the United States. In the immigration and passenger lists were a number of people bearing the name Opshone Edward UpJohn settled in Philadelphia in 1774; James Upjohn settled in New England in 1801; Mary Upjohn settled in New York City with four children in 1823.