Jokela Family History

Finnish: habitational name from farms so named from joki ‘river’ + the locative suffix -la with reference to their riverside location.

Established as a hereditary surname since the 19th century in western, southern, and northern Finland.

In the name-changing campaigns of the early 20th century, the name was also adopted as an ornamental name by Finns without surnames and by those wishing to replace Swedish surnames.