The Joyce surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 34,132 people carried this name — #1,022 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 8,640 people counted. That is up 1% from 33,843 in 2000.

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What the name means

The meaning of the Joyce surname

An English and Irish surname originating as a patronymic.

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Joyce» (English), by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · excerpt, lightly adapted.

As an English and Welsh surname

Bardsley classes it as a baptismal name, from a given name: ‘the son of Josse or Goce’.

An early record he cites: Robert fil. Jocei, 1291–92 (20 Edward I) — Placita de Quo Warranto. Fil. is Latin for “son of”.

His entry covers Joyce, Joycey, Joysey and Jowsey.

From Charles W. Bardsley, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with Special American Instances (London: Henry Frowde, 1901), p. 435 · public domain.

In Ireland’s birth registers, 1890

Ireland registered 164 births for the Joyce name in 1890.

They were registered in all four provinces, most of all in Connacht. By the Registrar-General’s own method — births multiplied by 44.38 — that is about 7,300 people bearing the name in Ireland at the time.

Where it concentrates, on the map

Where they were born, 1890

Connacht 131
Munster 17
Leinster 15
Ulster 1

Registrar-General for Ireland, «Special Report on Surnames in Ireland» (R. E. Matheson, 1894), births index of 1890 — public domain.

In Argentina’s national register

At least 64 people named Joyce live in Argentina.

RENAPER only publishes a name in a province when more than ten people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in Buenos Aires Province.

Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.

Where they live today

Buenos Aires Province 64

RENAPER (National Registry of Persons, Argentina), surnames of residents by province, December 2021 — CC BY 4.0.

In Switzerland’s population statistics

36 people named Joyce live in Switzerland.

They live in 7 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in Bern.

Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.

Where they live today

Bern 8
Vaud 7
Basel-Stadt 6
Zurich 5
Basel-Landschaft 4
Fribourg 3
Valais 3

Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO), «Surnames of the permanent resident population by canton», 2025, opendata.swiss/en/dataset/nachnamen-der-standigen-wohnbevolkerung-nach-kanton3 · names with fewer than 3 bearers in a canton are not published.

In France’s civil register

France’s register of deaths holds 29 people named Joyce.

Most of them — 21 — were born outside France. Those born in France came from 5 départements, most often Orne.

Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.

Where they were born

Born outside France 21
Orne 3
Bas-Rhin 2
Moselle 1
Paris 1
Hauts-de-Seine 1

Fichier des personnes décédées, INSEE — Licence Ouverte 2.0 · deaths recorded in France since 1970, by place of birth.

In the Nordic population registers

41 people named Joyce is counted in Sweden.

Sweden’s figure is from 31 December 2022, the last count Statistics Sweden published.

Counted, by country

Sweden (2022) 41

Own calculations based on data from Statistics Sweden (SCB), surnames with at least two bearers, 31 December 2022 — CC BY 4.0 (names with 20 or more bearers shown).

Among the farmers of England and Wales, 1880s

Joyce was found among the farmers of 3 counties.

It was most frequent in Bedfordshire: 25 in every 10,000 farmers there — about 1 in 400. Guppy counted the farmers listed in each county’s directory and recorded a name only where it reached about 7 in every 10,000; where it does not appear, it was rarer than that, not absent.

Where it concentrates, on the map

Per 10,000 farmers, by county

Bedfordshire 25
Essex 12
Somerset 12

H. B. Guppy, «Homes of Family Names in Great Britain» (London, 1890), alphabetical list of English and Welsh names — public domain · farmers in Kelly’s Post Office Directories of the 1880s, per 10,000 farmers in each county.

In Scotland’s registers today

Joyce was recorded 32 times in Scotland’s registers of births, marriages and deaths in 2025.

That made it the 769th most common name in those registers, shared with others on the same count. In 1975, the first year of the series, the count was 36. Each birth counts the child’s surname, each marriage both partners’ and each death the surname of the person who died — a yearly count of registrations, not of the people who live in Scotland.

National Records of Scotland, «Most Common Surnames, 2025» (published 26 May 2026): every surname recorded 10 or more times in the 2025 registers, and the series from 1975 · different spellings are counted separately — © Crown copyright 2026. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

In the first U.S. census, 1790

46 families named Joyce, or a close spelling, were counted in 1790.

Each family is counted by its head. About 264 people lived in those households, 5.7 to a family on average. The table counts it together with 2 other spellings. The table lists white heads of families only, in the twelve states whose 1790 records survive; Virginia’s figures come from state lists of 1782–1785.

Families, by state

North Carolina 14
Maryland 11
Massachusetts 6
New York 5
Pennsylvania 5
Connecticut 3
Maine 1
South Carolina 1

U.S. Census Bureau, «A Century of Population Growth from the First Census of the United States to the Twelfth, 1790–1900» (Washington, 1909), table 111, p. 247 — public domain · names carried by at least 100 white persons in 1790.

In print

Joyce in American newspapers,
1876–1918.

Newspaper page from White Bluffs Spokesman carrying the name Joyce
White Bluffs Spokesman 1918-03-22
Newspaper page from The Kenosha Telegraph carrying the name Joyce
The Kenosha Telegraph 1876-11-16
Newspaper page from The News Scimitar carrying the name Joyce
The News Scimitar 1918-11-05

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 4,739 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Joyce in Australian newspapers,
1810s–2010s.

237,058 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Joyce. The most, 74,694, date from the 1930s.

Articles, by state

New South Wales 81,067
Queensland 56,572
Victoria 37,598
South Australia 26,071
Western Australia 18,608
Tasmania 14,213
ACT (Canberra) 1,870
Northern Territory 255

Trove, National Library of Australia (trove.nla.gov.au) · articles in its digitised newspapers that name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Joyce.

Who carried it

People named Joyce,
with a public archive behind them.

  • George Joyce
    George Joyce 1618–1670 · military personnel
  • Lavinia Joyce d. 2003
  • Walter Joyce d. 1883
  • Frank J. Joyce d. 1890
  • Ina Joyce d. 1999
  • Eliza Amelia Joyce d. 1899

Wikidata (CC0) · portraits via Wikimedia Commons, shown cropped, in the public domain or CC0 · 10 lives in all are documented under this name.

In the public record

People named Joyce,
in the records of 8 countries.

Soldiers, farmers, migrants and neighbours who carried the name and left a trace in public archives. Everyone shown here died long ago or was born more than a century ago.

United States7,832 records

7,832 records of the Joyce name in the United States
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 2,121
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 2,060
  • Other U.S. records 3,651
  1. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Thomas Michael Joyce

    Born 1945; from Springfield, Illinois. U.S. Marine Corps, rifleman; killed in action 1966 in Quang Tri, South Vietnam. Buried at Camp Butler National Cemetery, Illinois.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  2. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Robert N. Joyce

    Born 1905 in North Carolina. Enlisted 1942 at Camp Lee, Virginia; bookkeeper. U.S. Army veteran; died 1971, buried at Stonewall Jackson Cemetery, Lexington, Virginia.

    U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  3. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Maggie Joyce

    Arrived at New York in 1892 aboard the Germanic from Liverpool and Queenstown, aged 14; servant. From Dublin, Ireland; bound for New York.

    U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted)

Showing 3 of 7,832 records for Joyce in the United States.

Counts: U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted) · NYC Department of Records & Information Services, Historical Vital Records (NYC Open Data) · U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) · U.S. National Archives, Famine Irish Passenger Records (public domain) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain) · Sacramento County, Historic Burials (CC BY 4.0) · Ramsey County, Minnesota (public domain) · New York State, Open NY (police and firefighter memorial rolls). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Vietnam Veterans Memorial, photo by U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Carden, 2009 (public domain); U.S. Selective Service registration card, 1942 (public domain); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain).

Australia2,423 records

2,423 records of the Joyce name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 1,044
  • Tasmanian Names Index 455
  • Other Australian records 924
  1. An 1829 etching of convicts being rowed out to the prison ship York in Portsmouth Harbour
    Pictured: convicts going on board a prison ship, 1829
    Transportation record Mary Ann Joyce

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Sir Robert Seppings, sailing from Woolwich in 1852. Native of Carlisle, Cumberland. Applied for permission to marry in Van Diemen's Land in 1854. Married 1854 in Hobart, Tasmania, aged 35.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  2. An 1829 etching of convicts being rowed out to the prison ship York in Portsmouth Harbour
    Pictured: convicts going on board a prison ship, 1829
    Transportation record Timothy Joyce

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Mangles, sailing from London in 1835. Native of Mayfair, Middlesex. Applied for permission to marry in Van Diemen's Land in 1856.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  3. An 1829 etching of convicts being rowed out to the prison ship York in Portsmouth Harbour
    Pictured: convicts going on board a prison ship, 1829
    Transportation record James Joyce

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Lord William Bentinck, sailing from Portsmouth in 1832. Applied for permission to marry in Van Diemen's Land in 1837.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 2,423 records for Joyce in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0) · Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0) · Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY) · State Library of Western Australia (CC BY 4.0) · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · ACT Government, Transport Canberra and City Services (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Prison-ship in Portsmouth Harbour, with the convicts going on board, etching by Edward William Cooke, 1829, Royal Museums Greenwich (public domain).

Canada479 records

479 records of the Joyce name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 367
  • City of Winnipeg cemetery records 29
  • Other Canadian records 83
  1. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Catherine Joyce

    Killed in the Halifax Explosion of 1917, aged 71; buried at Mount Olivet Cemetery, Halifax.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.
  2. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Henry Joyce

    Came to Ontario in 1877 aboard the Sardinian, landing at Quebec, bound for Park Hill, Ontario; English.

    Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario.
  3. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Hanna Joyce

    Buried in 1983 at Queen's Park Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta, aged 83.

    City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary.

Showing 3 of 479 records for Joyce in Canada.

Counts: Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. · City of Winnipeg. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Winnipeg. · Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada. · City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. · Contains information provided by the City of Waterloo under licence · City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary. · Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario. · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · Halifax Regional Municipality. Contains information licenced under the Open Government Licence—Halifax. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, photo by Edgar El (CC BY 3.0); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain).

Ireland314 records

314 records of the Joyce name in Ireland County Galway graveyard records
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Andrew Joyce

    Died 1855, aged 57; buried at Kilcummin, Co. Galway.

    Galway County Council (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Denis Joyce

    Died 1955, aged 71; buried at Cortoon, Co. Galway.

    Galway County Council (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Eileen Joyce

    Died 2001, aged 46; buried at Lettermore Leitir Móir, Co. Galway.

    Galway County Council (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 314 records for Joyce in Ireland.

Counts: Galway County Council (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0).

United Kingdom127 records

127 records of the Joyce name in the United Kingdom
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 58
  • Stirling Council burial records 36
  • St James's burial ground, Euston (London), 1789–1853 33
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Catherine Joyce

    Buried in 1918 at Ballengeich Cemetery, Stirling, Scotland, aged 56.

    Stirling Council. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
  2. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record John Joyce

    Buried in 1812 at St James's burial ground, Euston, London, aged 75.

    MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
  3. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record D. Joyce

    Machine Gun Corps. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1919.

    National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain)

Showing 3 of 127 records for Joyce in the United Kingdom.

Counts: National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · Stirling Council. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. · MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0); C. & E. Morton Ltd roll of honour, 1914–1919, photo by Adrian S Pye via Geograph (CC BY-SA 2.0).

New Zealand84 records

84 records of the Joyce name in New Zealand
  • Christchurch City cemetery records 72
  • Waimakariri District cemetery records, Canterbury 4
  • Other New Zealand records 8
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record James S. Joyce

    Died 1947, aged 40; buried at Sydenham Cemetery, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Robert William Joyce

    Died 1980, aged 86; buried at Fairhall Cemetery, Marlborough.

    Marlborough District Council (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Shirley June Joyce

    Died 1998, aged 63; buried at Totara Memorial Park Cemetery, Thames-Coromandel District, Waikato.

    Thames-Coromandel District Council (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 84 records for Joyce in New Zealand.

Counts: Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0) · Waimakariri District Council (CC BY 4.0) · Thames-Coromandel District Council (CC BY 4.0) · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · Canterbury Maps (Environment Canterbury), Timaru and Mackenzie District Councils (CC BY 3.0 NZ) · Marlborough District Council (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0).

France4 records

4 records of the Joyce name in France France's national death register, 1970–2001
  1. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Gaston Manuel Joyce

    Born 1919 in Metz (Moselle); died 1977 in Niger.

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)
  2. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Ernestine Joyce

    Born 1905 in Strasbourg; died 1997 in Strasbourg (Bas-Rhin).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)

Showing 2 of 4 records for Joyce in France.

Counts: Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Death register of Nice, 1930, Archives départementales des Alpes-Maritimes (public domain).

Netherlands4 records

4 records of the Joyce name in the Netherlands
  • Dutch civil registers (births, marriages, deaths) 3
  • Dutch church registers before 1811 1
  1. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Pauline Olivia Joyce

    Married in 1941 in Hilversum.

    Open Archives, Noord-Hollands Archief (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Birth record Carel Thomas Ignatius Joyce

    Born 1915 in Utrecht.

    Open Archives, Het Utrechts Archief (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 2 of 4 records for Joyce in the Netherlands.

Counts: Open Archives (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Joyce.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Joyce is.
A volume says what happened to it.

Every page in the index is free and stays free. The Heritage Volume is the long form: the full paper trail, the arms, the crossing — bound, and yours.

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