Bunyan/Bunyon DNA Project Website- Background

Background

The Bunyan/Bunyon project was begun on July 1, 2007. The surname Bunyon is generally thought to be an English surname possibly meaning "Good John" or "Bon Jean." It has also been attributed to the Welsh personal name of Enion or Eignon. The name is found in most counties of the British Isles, but it is particularly concentrated in London and the surrounding areas of Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, and Hampshire. In the US in 1840 the families are found mainly in New York and Ohio with a few as far west as Illinois.

Hanks & Hodges, A Dictionary of Surnames, Oxford University Press, 1999, p. 83 says, "Bunyan - English: nickname for someone disfigured by a lump or hump, from a dim. of OF bugne swelling, protuberance. The term bugnon was also applied to a kind of puffed-up fruit tart, and so the surname may also have been a metomymic occupational name for a baker of these. ...(Most if not all, bearers of this name, including John Bunyan (1628-88), author of The Pilgrim's Progress, are membe4rs of a single family, originating from Amphill in Bedfordshire, where the name is recorded as early as 1199 and recurs as Bui(g)non, Buniun, etc. throughout the 13th century.)"

Understanding DNA Testing: Family Tree DNA provides information to help you understand DNA testing. Most people start by looking at projects which fit their surname. Across the top right of the project page are the words DNA FAQ which will answer most people's questions. There are also excellent explanations of Y-DNA (male DNA) testing and mtDNA (female DNA) testing accessed from the left column. On the lower right column are articles which give you a deeper understanding of DNA. An excellent tutorial on DNA is found on the Blair Surname site called DNA 101.

Recommended books on DNA in general are: Colleen Fitzpatrick & Andrew Yeiser, DNA & Genealogy Megan Smolenyak Smolenyak and Ann Turner, Trace Your Roots with DNA. Books featuring DNA in the British Isles and Ireland are: Stephen Oppenheimer, The Origins of the British Bryan Sykes, Saxons, Vikings and Celts (published in Great Britain as Blood of the Isles).

If there are additional technical questions, contact: Alice Fairhurst alicefairhurst at gmail.com. 

Please note that the FTDNA Surname Group Administrators are not FTDNA employees. They do not receive any form of financial payment or any other incentive or reimbursement. Alice Fairhurst is a member of the International Society of Genetic Genealogy.

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