St. John Surname

Corned Beef Sandwich

I was surprised to find out that I have a relative bearing this surname. My great great grandmothers name was Mary St. John. It's not a very Irish sounding surname. Just wondering how it ended up in Ireland. She is a Catholic and was born around 1860s. I'm guessing it arrived prior to the reformation.

pinkypinky

I wouldn't assume anything. It might have been the chosen translation of an Irish surname. Her parents may have been a mixed marriage (i.e. Protestant father and they decided to raise their daughters RC and sons COI).

Peregrinus

It's a common enough name, and there are Catholic St. Johns in England. Norman St. John-Stevas, the Tory politician, was Catholic. He inherited the "St. John" bit of his surname from his mother, Kitty St. John O'Connor, who was also a Catholic.

Jellybaby1

I came across a St. John in my working days. It was always pronounced 'Sinjin'. Always thought it was a great name to have.

bobbyss

Then there was the Liverpool great Ian St John. As far as I can remember it was pronounced Saint John.

tabbey

In Ireland it is generally pronounced as Sinjin / Sinjon, but the singer / songwriter Pete St John was the more expected pronunciation.

It often is part of a double barrel name, such as Liam St John Devlin, who headed the body which recommended the pay rises to senior public servants in the late 1960s and then became chairman of CIE.

Another saint name is St Leger, a Cork name.

Jellybaby1

It prompts the question, how does someone become St. anything?

tabbey

Jellybaby1 wrote: »

It prompts the question, how does someone become St. anything?

Grenham says St John is from the Irish - Suingean.

Jellybaby1

That's Johnston isn't it, but still no sign of 'saint' though.

tabbey

Jellybaby1 wrote: »

That's Johnston isn't it, but still no sign of 'saint' though.

I was not aware of that, but there is a village, St Johnston in the Foyle valley.

Jellybaby1

That's interesting all right.

pedroeibar1

Jellybaby1 wrote: »

It prompts the question, how does someone become St. anything?

Pretension! 'St. John' usually is a 'middle' name, but frequently it is used to provide an illusion of being coupled/hyphenated with a surname to denote a notion of grandeur. (One of my pet peeves!:rolleyes:)

St. Leger is a Norman name, in Ireland associated with the Viscounts Doneraile. Sallinger is the pronunciation and frequently how it is spelled.

Vetch

tabbey wrote: »

Grenham says St John is from the Irish - Suingean.

This isn't the other way round is it - that Suingean is the hibernicisation of St. John? I came across one website which suggested that the origin of the name might lie with people from areas in France called St Jean. Sinclair is similar as well apparently.

St. Aubyn ==》Tóibín