An English, French and German surname, the Joseph family name is from the Hebrew name of ‘yosef’ which means God added another son. It can also mean an increase or addition. An early English version was Jessup.

In Spanish the Joseph name would be Jose. In German the name is written Josef. Additional spelling variations include Joszef, Jozef, Josephe, Josif, Josip, Jopselito and Pepito.

In England in Hampshire, Cambridgeshire and the city of London have the greater population of Joseph families. In Wales, the region of Glamorgan have a higher population with the Joseph surname. The counties of Lanarkshire, Midlothian, Inverness-shire and Dumfries-shire in Scotland have the most Joseph families.

Within the United States the areas with the most families using the Joseph surname are in Ohio, Louisiana, New York and Pennsylvania.


Famous: Jenny Joseph (poet from England), Lesley Joseph (actress from England), William Joseph (professional football player), Bradley Joseph (music composer), Chris Joseph (English artist) and Charles Joseph (musician).