The Joines, Joynes, and Jines families present a classic genealogical challenge: multiple spellings, early migration, scattered records, and traditions passed down without documentation. For generations, descendants have asked the same questions:

Are we all related? Where did our surname originate? Which family stories are true?

This project exists because traditional records alone cannot fully answer those questions.

The surnames Joines, Joynes, Jines, and related variants such as Joins and Joyne appear to be English in origin, with early concentrations in western and central England. Some evidence suggests a possible connection to border regions near Wales, though this remains under investigation.

By the late 19th century, surname distribution in England showed clear regional clustering:

• The 1881 England Census recorded approximately 81 individuals with the surname Joines, primarily in Staffordshire and Oxfordshire.

• The same census listed over 500 individuals with the surname Joynes, concentrated in Gloucestershire and Nottinghamshire.

  These clusters suggest that multiple spelling variants existed simultaneously, shaped by regional dialects, literacy levels, and clerical interpretation rather than distinct family origins.

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  English emigration to the American colonies in the 17th century introduced the surname to the New World. One early record documents John Joines, who sailed from London to New England aboard the Hopewell in 1635.

  More consequential to the modern Joines/Joynes/Jines families, however, is the appearance of Edmund Joynes, who settled in Virginia in the late 1600s. Edmund appears in land, court, and parish records and represents the earliest well-documented ancestor for a large portion of American descendants.

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  Research combining documentary evidence and Y-DNA results strongly suggests that most American Joines/Joynes/Jines men descend from a common paternal ancestor associated with Edmund Joynes of colonial Virginia.

  This conclusion is not based on tradition alone but on:

  • Matching Y-DNA results across multiple modern descendants

  • Consistent paternal signatures across lines previously thought unrelated

  • Geographic and chronological alignment with known records

  DNA testing has allowed researchers to distinguish this core lineage from other Joines or Joynes families that may share a similar surname but not a common paternal origin.

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  As descendants of Edmund Joynes and related lines moved west and south, distinct family branches emerged:

  • Ezekiel Joines settled in northwestern North Carolina in the 1770s, likely migrating from Delaware or Maryland.

  • Noah and Joseph Joines moved from Georgia to Kentucky, with some descendants later adopting the Jines spelling.

  • Thomas Joines, born in Maryland, relocated to Tennessee, with later generations moving onward to Texas.

    These migrations mirror broader American settlement patterns and help explain the wide geographic spread of the surname today.

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    Beyond the United States, Joines and Joynes families appear in England, Australia, and New Zealand, often under variant spellings such as Joineson or Joyneson. In many cases, these spellings arose independently through patronymic interpretation rather than deliberate name changes.

    DNA testing remains essential in determining whether these families share a common paternal origin or represent separate lines with similar names.

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    DNA research has already:

    • Confirmed a shared paternal lineage among many American Joines/Joynes/Jines men

    • Helped separate unrelated surname lines

    • Identified deep ancestral markers pointing to a common origin in the British Isles

    However, important questions remain:

    • Which English parish or region represents the earliest ancestral home?

    • How many distinct paternal lines exist under the surname variants?

    • When did specific spelling changes occur?

    Each new participant brings the project closer to definitive answers.

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    This background is not a final conclusion—it is a working framework shaped by evidence and open to revision as new data emerges. The Joines/Joynes/Jines DNA Project is a collaborative effort, and its history continues to be written by those who participate.