Joyce was born about 1670, in Worcester, Worcestershire, England, United Kingdom. She married John Farmer on 5 July 1691, in Claines, Worcestershire, England, United Kingdom. They were the parents of at least 1 daughter. She died on 28 May 1690, in her hometown, at the age of 21.
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Apparently from the Norman male name Josce (Middle English Josse), which in turn is from Jodocus, a Latinized form of a Breton name, Iodoc, meaning ‘lord’, borne by a 7th-century Breton saint. The name was in use in England among Breton followers of William the Conqueror. However, although this was fairly common as a male given name in the Middle Ages, it had virtually died out by the 14th century. There is evidence of its use as a girl's name from the 16th century onwards in parishes with strong Puritan links, which suggests that it may have been associated with the vocabulary word joy; see Joy . It was strongly revived in the 19th century under the influence of popular fiction. It is borne by characters in Mrs Henry Wood's East Lynne ( 1861 ) and Edna Lyall's In the Golden Days ( 1885 ). Modern use may well have been influenced also by the common Irish surname derived from the medieval Norman male name. See also Joss .
Dictionary of First Names © Patrick Hanks and Flavia Hodges 1990, 2003, 2006.
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