Author Profile

John S Plant

John Stewart Plant BSc PhD MBCS MInstP CITP has worked in University Computing Departments since 1976 and, before that, in University Physics Departments and nuclear Research Institutes in England, Australia and France. He has published variously in the academic literature since 1968, mainly in scientific journals, such as on the atomic structure and quantum chemistry of vitamin B6. More recently, he holds the registration of the Plant name in the Guild of One-Name Studies and has published relevant articles in the Guild journal and in the journal, Nomina, of the Society for Name Studies in Britain and Ireland (S.N.S.B.I.)

Recent Posts

English surnames: Plural Origins and Emigration

·
Scatter plot of Monte Carlo simulation of surname population simulations

Comparison of the distribution of English surnames in modern England versus former colonies with distinction between the relative rareness of the surname and the overall population of persons using that surname. Geographical surname patterns, Monte Carlo population simulations, and Y-DNA results are considered. Some examples using very early written sources are also used to address the controversy of single versus multiple surname origins in England. A reassessment of the DNA data and conclusions of King and Jobling’s 2009 results is also made.