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Vol. I · 2026
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Tier B
Music & Performing Arts · USA · Russian Empire

Jon Bon Jovi

Джон Бон Джови

Singer, songwriter and founder of Bon Jovi, born in Perth Amboy, New Jersey

🇺🇸 Fame: USA🇷🇺 Origin: Russian Empire🔗 Connection: Ancestry
JB
Profile #475
ProfessionMusician
Russian originMother of German and Russian descent per Wikipedia; genealogies show Polish and Swiss-German maternal grandparents (no Russian Empire ancestor named)Russian Empire
ConnectionAncestryJohn Francis Bongiovi Sr. & Carol Sharke…
RussianUnknown
CategoryMusic & Performing ArtsTier B
Biography

Jon Bon Jovi — musician with roots in the Russian Empire

Jon Bon Jovi. Singer, songwriter and founder of Bon Jovi, born in Perth Amboy, New Jersey. Born John Francis Bongiovi Jr. in Perth Amboy in 1962. His father was of Italian and Slovak descent; Wikipedia describes his mother, Carol Sharkey, as of German and Russian descent, but no Russian-born ancestor is named, and genealogies give her parents as of Polish and Swiss-German descent.

Russian Connection

Tracing the roots — Mother of German and Russian descent per Wikipedia; genealogies show Polish and Swiss-German maternal grandparents (no Russian Empire ancestor named)

Born John Francis Bongiovi Jr. in Perth Amboy in 1962. His father was of Italian and Slovak descent; Wikipedia describes his mother, Carol Sharkey, as of German and Russian descent, but no Russian-born ancestor is named, and genealogies give her parents as of Polish and Swiss-German descent.

Mother's partial Russian roots.[web:17]

Family Tree
Subject
Jon Bon Jovi🇺🇸 USA
↑
Ancestors
John Francis Bongiovi Sr.
Carol Sharkey
↑
Origin
Mother of German and Russian descent per Wikipedia; genealogies show Polish and Swiss-German maternal grandparents (no Russian Empire ancestor named)🇷🇺 Russian Empire
Historical context
Russian Empire · c. 1721–1917
Map of the Russian Empire

Mother of German and Russian descent per Wikipedia; genealogies show Polish and Swiss-German maternal grandparents (no Russian Empire ancestor named). At the time, this region lay within the Russian Empire, which spanned from Poland to the Pacific.

Map: Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA)
Key Achievements

A career defined by ambition

01
Founded Bon Jovi in 1983; Slippery When Wet (1986) and Livin' on a Prayer
02
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with Bon Jovi (2018)
03
Founded the Jon Bon Jovi Soul Foundation
Russian diaspora
Sources