Origins of surname
There are two possible origins of this surname, both are French, on Breton and one Norman. It may be derived from the Breton personal name Iodoc, a diminutive of Juidcaelh, meaning 'lord', and introduced by the Normans into England at the Invasion of 1066. Although the 1086 Domesday Book does not list the name, both 'Josce' and 'Iocius' are recorded in the 1150 rolls of the city of Lincoln. Alternatively the name may originate with the village of Josse sur Mer, in Calvados, Normandy.
There were no members of the family present during the German Occupation and the name may have died out in the island for a time, although there is one household listed in today's telephone directory.
Early records
Although the name has French origins, it came to Jersey from England. Valentine Joyce, the notorious leader of the Spithead Mutiny, was born to a military father in Elizabeth Castle in 1769, but they left the island when Valentine was young. It would be another 40 years before another family arrived and became established residents.
Variations
- Joyce
- Josse, found in Jersey but not recognised as a variant
Family records
Church records
- Joyce baptisms in Jersey
- Joyce marriages in Jersey (groom)
- Joyce marriages in Jersey (bride)
- Joyce burials in Jersey
Family trees
Family histories
- Valentine Joyce, Spithead Mutiny leader
- Thoughts of a Joyce researcher
Great War service
- Two grandsons of Daniel Joyce, who was born in St Brelade in 1816, and emigrated to New Zealand, where he married Eliza Tyler, were killed in France in the Great War in 1918. Daniel moved with his family to Fiji and his son William Henry Joyce (1845-1914) married Emma Eliza Fisher there in 1876, and they had 12 children, before moving back to New Zealand, and then New South Wales. Ernest Daniel (1885-1918) joined a Howitzer Battery in August 1916, and was killed in action two years later. His younger brother Norman Roy (1895-1918) was serving with the Royal Flying Corps when he was killed. He was a Lieutenant, but we have found no indication whether he was a pilot, or served in some other capacity.
Burial records
Family gravestones
Click on any image to see a larger version. See the Jerripedia gravestone image collection page for more information about our gravestone photographs
Mary Joyce, St Matthew's, St Lawrence
Family album
Norman Roy Joyce, killed in action while serving with the Royal Flying Corps
Norman Roy Joyce's service card
John and Clara Joyce
Tips
The church record links above will open in a new tab in your browser and generate the most up-to-date list of each set of records from our database. These lists replace earlier Family page baptism lists, which were not regularly updated. They have the added advantage that they produce a chronological listing for the family name in all parishes, so you do not have to search through A-Z indexes, parish by parish.
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New records
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