Johnson is a surname of English and Scottish origin. The name itself is a patronym of the given name John, literally meaning "son of John". The name John derives from Latin Johannes, which is derived through Greek Ἰωάννης Iōannēs from Hebrew יוחנן Yohanan, meaning "Yahweh has favoured". The name has been extremely popular in Europe since the Christian era as a result of it being given to St John the Baptist, St John the Evangelist and nearly one thousand other Christian saints. Johnson is the second most common in the United States and 154th most common in the world. As a Scottish family name, Johnson is occasionally a variation of Johnston, a habitational name.
