International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

BAR-JONAH

bar-jo'-na (Bar-ionas): Simon Peter's patronymic (Matthew 16:17). Bar is Aramaic for "son" (compare Bar-timaeus, Bartholomew, etc.), and corresponds to Hebrew ben. Thus we are to understand that Peter's father's name was Jonah. But in John 1:42; John 21:15-17, according to the best reading, his name is given as John (so the Revised Version (British and American), instead of the King James Version Jona, Jonas). There are two hypotheses to account for this difference:

(1) Ionas (Jonah) in Matthew 16:17 may be simply a contraction of Ioanes (John);

(2) Peter's father may have been known by two names, Jonah and John.

D. Miall Edwards