This interesting surname of English origin is a metronymic of the name Joy from the female given name Joia, deriving from the Middle English, Old French "joie, joye" meaning "joy". It may also be a nickname for a person of a cheerful disposition. The surname dates back to the mid 12th Century, (see below). Church recordings include one Margaret Jhoson who married John Shacros on August 1542, at St. Pancras, Soper Lane, London, Arnold Joson was christened on August 24th 1570 at St. Martin in the Fields, Westminster, and Thomas son of Thomas Joisonn, was christened on June 1st 1650, at Romaldkirk, Yorkshire. Joseph, son of Edmond and Jane Joyson, was christened on January 1617, at St. Botolph's, Bishopsgate, London, and martha, daughter of John and Tabetha Joyson, was christened in Halifax, Yorkshire, on December 27th 1846. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Lefwin Joie, which was dated 1166, The Pipe Rolls of Norfolk, during the reign of King Henry 11, "The Builder of Churches", 1154 - 1189. Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was known as Poll Tax. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.