The surname "Gingerich" has been established as being Swiss in origin. Yost was one of the early settlers of that name in Pennsylvania. Some postulate that he emigrated circa 1710. No ships lists have yet been found to verify this, nor have any records yet been found in Europe to establish this origin. We do know that in 1747, Yost bought land in what is now Lebanon County, Pennsylvania. He and his wife, Anna Huber, had at least eight children. This first volume will examine Yost, his possible origin, the origin of the surname, and the children of his first child, John. Even though the research is being thus limited, there is still a lot of material available. Use was made of the internet, genealogy books, on-line research sources, and communication with other researchers. Errors are possible and the facts should always be rechecked. About 450 surnames are mentioned in this first volume, with over 25 variations in spelling. At least 31 surnames have 10 or more first name references. This last group of surnames includes: Bashore, Bradley, Burkholder, Burtner, Detweiler, Eby, Espenshade, Evans, Funk, Gingerich, Harner, Heinly, Kaufmann, Kirkpatrick, Kramer, Laws, Mast, May, O'Neal, Rickenbaugh, Sallee, Shawbell, Shelly, Stauffer, Stoner, Strayer, Sykes, Thomas, Wallace, Weaver, and Zook.