A little girl, Rachael Runyon, was kidnapped and murdered several years ago. She lived just north of Salt Lake City. That was what popped into my mind when I saw the name. That's the only time I've heard of a Runyon.
The name is more common in Appalachia, especially in southwestern West Virginia, and there are at least three common spellings of it: Runyon, Runyan, and Runion. Everyone with this surname is believed to be descended from a Huguenot named Vincent Rongnion who immigrated to New Jersey.
I don't know about Utah but Damon Runyon was one of the great short story writers of the early 20th century. Probably one of his best "The idylls of Miss Sarah Brown" was the basis for the great Broadway musical "Guys and Dolls". (Just some trivia)
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/07/2014 12:55PM by thedesertrat1.
Thanks for the replies everyone. I was just interested if the name. My cousin was raised southern baptist in Virginia so I was concerned about her marrying a Mormon. I sort of get the impression he's not active or an ex mo.