Viljoen is an

Afrikaans Afrikaans (, ) is a West Germanic language that evolved in the Dutch Cape Colony from the Dutch vernacular of Holland proper (i.e., the Hollandic dialect) used by Dutch, French, and German settlers and their enslaved people. Afrikaans gra ...

surname, derived from the French ''Villion''. It was brought to

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

in 1671 by French

Huguenot The Huguenots ( , also , ) were a religious group of French Protestants who held to the Reformed, or Calvinist, tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, the Genevan burgomaster Be ...

s who subsequently intermarried with the local

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

population.Family website
/ref> The progenitors of the extended Viljoen clan are François Villion (born Clermont,

Île-de-France The Île-de-France (, ; literally "Isle of France") is the most populous of the eighteen regions of France. Centred on the capital Paris, it is located in the north-central part of the country and often called the ''Région parisienne'' (; en, Pa ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

) and Cornelia Campenaar (born in

Middelburg Middelburg may refer to: Places and jurisdictions Europe * Middelburg, Zeeland, the capital city of the province of Zeeland, southwestern Netherlands ** Roman Catholic Diocese of Middelburg, a former Catholic diocese with its see in the Zeeland ...

Zeeland , nl, Ik worstel en kom boven("I struggle and emerge") , anthem = "Zeeuws volkslied"("Zeelandic Anthem") , image_map = Zeeland in the Netherlands.svg , map_alt = , m ...

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

). Married in the Cape of Good Hope, they later farmed for a living near

Stellenbosch Stellenbosch (; )A Universal Pronounc ...

. Some of their descendants include: * Annari Viljoen (born 1987), South African Olympic badminton player * Barend Viljoen (born 1908), South African military commander *

Ben Viljoen Benjamin Johannes "Ben" Viljoen (7 September 1869 – 14 January 1917) was an Afrikaner-American Consul, soldier, farmer, Maderista, and Boer general. Viljoen was born in a cave in the Wodehouse district of the Cape Colony to Susanna Magdalen ...

(born 1869), South African military commander *

Bronwyn Law-Viljoen Bronwyn Law-Viljoen is a South African writer, editor, publisher and professor. She is the co-founder of the publisher Fourthwall Books and owns a bookstore called Edition. She acts as the primary editor for works on law and history of South Afr ...

, South African writer, editor, publisher and professor * Christi Viljoen (born 1987), Namibian cricketer *

Christo Viljoen Christo Vladimirov Javacheff (1935–2020) and Jeanne-Claude Denat de Guillebon (1935–2009), known as Christo and Jeanne-Claude, were artists noted for their large-scale, site-specific environmental installations, often large landmarks and ...

(born 1937). South African academic, engineer, genealogist *

Colin Viljoen Colin Viljoen (born 20 June 1948) is a retired footballer who played in midfield for English teams Ipswich Town, Manchester City and Chelsea. Born in South Africa, he won two caps for England under manager Don Revie. Biography Born in Johanne ...

(born 1948), South African born former English international footballer * Dirk Viljoen (born 1977), former cricketer *

Constand Viljoen General Constand Laubscher Viljoen, (28 October 1933 – 3 April 2020) was a South African military commander and politician. He co-founded the Afrikaner Volksfront (Afrikaner People's Front) and later founded the Freedom Front (now F ...

(1933–2020), former South African military commander and politician *

Gerrit Viljoen Gerrit Van Niekerk Viljoen (11 September 1926 in Cape Town – 29 March 2009) was a South African government minister and member of the National Party. He was chair of the Broederbond from 1974 to 1980, Administrator-General of South Wes ...

(born 1926), former South African government minister *

Hardus Viljoen GC Viljoen (born 6 March 1989), known as Hardus Viljoen,Borland K (2016Viljoen desperate to earn a place in the national team, '' The Citizen'', 4 July 2016. Retrieved 23 August 2016. is a South African professional cricketer. Viljoen played for ...

(born 1989), South African cricketer *

Irene van Dyk Irene van Dyk (née Viljoen; born 21 June 1972) is a South African-born New Zealand netball player. A goal-shooter, van Dyk is one of the world's best-known netballers and is the most capped international player of all time: in every game she ...

, née ''Viljoen'' (born 1972), South African and New Zealand international netballer * Joggie Viljoen (born 1945), South African rugby union footballer * Joggie Viljoen (born 1976), South African rugby union footballer * Johannes Viljoen (1904–1976), South African Olympic track and field athlete * Jurie Viljoen (born 1942), Namibian politician * Ken Viljoen (1910–1974), South African cricketer and cricket manager *

Lettie Viljoen Lettie Viljoen was a pseudonym of the South African author Ingrid Winterbach, who primarily writes in Afrikaans. She lives in Jamestown, Stellenbosch. Life and education Winterbach was born in Johannesburg in 1948. She got her early education fr ...

, pseudonym of the South African author Ingrid Winterbach *

Marais Viljoen Marais Viljoen, (2 December 1915 – 4 January 2007) was the last ceremonial state president of South Africa from 4 June 1979 until 3 September 1984. Viljoen became the last of the ceremonial presidents of South Africa when he was succeeded in ...

(1915–2007), ceremonial State President of South Africa *

Nik Viljoen Nicolas "Nik" Viljoen (born 3 December 1976) is a New Zealand Association football, footballer who represented New Zealand national football team, New Zealand at the international level. Viljoen scored the winner after coming on as a substitute ...

, New Zealand international football (soccer) player *

Sunette Viljoen Sunette Stella Viljoen (born 6 October 1983) is a South African sportswoman who has represented her country in both cricket and athletics. In athletics, she competes as a javelin thrower and has won an Olympic silver medal ( in 2016) and two Co ...

(born 1983), South African javelin thrower *

Willem Viljoen Willem Abraham Viljoen (born 5 March 1985) is a South African badminton Badminton is a racquet sport played using racquets to hit a shuttlecock across a net. Although it may be played with larger teams, the most common forms of the game ...

(born 1987), South African Olympic badminton player, brother of Annari

References

{{surname Surnames of French origin Afrikaans-language surnames