Odd Finnish Surname?

JohnKujansuu · Post by **JohnKujansuu** » Sat Mar 12, 2016 11:45 pm

Hello everyone,

This is my first post on this form and I am unsure if this should be under culture and cuisine but was wondering if someone could help me anyway

. I am a quarter Finnish on my paternal side which means I have inherited my grandfather's surname of Kujansuu. I have recently become interested in the genealogy of this side of the family and thought the first clue might be in my surname. I have read that you can usually tell if a surname is from west or east Finland by the suffix but my surname has none of the suffixes listed on the website. Can someone tell me where my surname is from? The only other information I have is that my grandfather said they came from Parkano, Finland but I have no proof to back this up and was hoping finding out if it's a west Finnish surname would validate this.

Thanks a ton! -John

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StellaS · Post by **StellaS** » Sun Mar 13, 2016 9:59 pm

Hi John,
I don't know about the name, but on Facebook there's a great group called Finnish Genealogy. You might want to ask there.

But at least Hiski (http://hiski.genealogia.fi/hiski?fi) finds a Kujansuu family in Parkano in the middle of the 1800s. Might be your ancestors.

wolf80 · Post by **wolf80** » Sun Mar 13, 2016 11:29 pm

JohnKujansuu wrote:The only other information I have is that my grandfather said they came from Parkano, Finland but I have no proof to back this up and was hoping finding out if it's a west Finnish surname would validate this.

Why don't you believe your grandfather then? Who would lie about coming from Parkano anyway...

JohnKujansuu · Post by **JohnKujansuu** » Mon Mar 14, 2016 4:30 am

Thanks for the replies, and it's not that I don't believe my grandfather it's just that I would like confirmation that his father lived there.

Pursuivant · Post by **Pursuivant** » Tue Mar 15, 2016 9:16 pm

Well, not all the names "fit" the pattern. Up to 1920 was it, a person didn't even have to have a surname. And at times names were adopted, either for necessity, like soldiers given names, or to "sound fancy" picking up latin or greek endings to show off being educated, or then in the "fennomania" phase of the turn of the century and later on, when people picked up "finnish" surnames.

Ok, so your name isn't that peculiar - it is a descriptive name that may or may not have been a house name, or someone could have picked it up as it sounded nice. "Mr Alleymouth"

(As in mouth (beginning/entrance) of an alley, cf Joensuu lit. "river mouth")

betelgeuse · Post by **betelgeuse** » Tue Mar 15, 2016 11:14 pm

JohnKujansuu wrote:Thanks for the replies, and it's not that I don't believe my grandfather it's just that I would like confirmation that his father lived there.

You can do a paid genealogy request to the local parish for them to look at the church books.

nurmi02 · Post by **nurmi02** » Sat Mar 19, 2016 10:01 pm

Do you have any more info (birth date or year, great grandfather's first name, family members, time when he emigrated)?
There are Kujansuus in western Finland, so Parkano sounds like a plausible place.
I guess you know what the name means, "the mouth of the alley"?

Rip · Post by **Rip** » Mon Mar 21, 2016 6:56 am

There are about 880 people named Kujansuu living in Finland now. According to this page total four towns have more than 50 each. Pori, Tampere, Kankaanpää and Tornio. Apart from Tornio they are all in the vicinity of Parkano.

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