This ancient surname is English although arguably of Hebrew origins. It is a Crusader name, and is derived from the early given name Janyn or Jenyn, diminutives of the personal name John. This English spelling is from the Hebrew Yochanan meaning 'Jehovah has favoured me (with a child)'. The surname dates back to the late 13th Century (see below), and is one of the many Christian names or names associated with Christianity, which were brought back to Europe by returning soldiers and pilgrims from the Holy Land in Medieval times. Exampes of early recordings include Willelmus Gyneson in the Poll Tax Records of Yorkshire in 1379, and Robert Genyson in the register of the Guild of the Corpus Christi in the city of York in 1471. Early London church registers show the marriage of Alis Parke to Robert Jenneson on September 1562 at St. Benet Fink, and the marriage of Elizabeth Jennison to John Case on June 8th 1607, at St. Giles Cripplegate. Henry Jennison, who was an emigrant to the Barbados, is listed on the Burial Register of the Parish of St. Michael's on April 16th 1678. A Coat of Arms granted to the family is a silver field charged with a chevron between three black plummets, the crest being a demi griffin propert. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of John Jenysyn. This was dated 1273 in the rolls known as "Valor Ecclesiasticus", during the reign of King Edward 1st, also known as "The Hammer of the Scots", 1272 - 1307. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.

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