Joy
A surname that may have started as a nickname for a cheerful person, though in some cases it could also be a shortened form of Joyce or a name taken from places called Jouy in Normandy.
The #2,684 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 23,018 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The name is most often explained as coming from a nickname based on the idea of joy, cheerfulness, or a merry disposition. Older writers also suggested that some bearers may derive from the Old French word behind Joyce, or from Norman place-names called Jouy. Because these explanations can overlap in early records, the surname is best treated as mixed and not always from a single source.
History
Early records show the name in medieval England in forms such as Joye and Joyet, suggesting both simple nickname use and possible later shortening or spelling variation. It appears in several counties in the 13th and 14th centuries, and by the 19th century it was already treated as a familiar English surname. The name has remained straightforward and transparent in meaning, which likely helped its continued use.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Older surname writers noted that Joy could be read as a nickname for someone of “joyous disposition,” but they also allowed that some families may have taken it from a place-name instead.
From the historical record
“dan. JOY. Probably from one of the several places in Normandy called Jouy ; or per- haps a contraction of Joyce. JOYCE. O. Fr. joijeux, cheerful, hilar- ious ; answering to Gay, Merry, Lively, &c. JOYNSON. A corruption of Johnson. JUBB. Perhaps a corruption of Job. JTJDD. Possibly Jude, the Christian”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom