The name "Tunik" is listed in A Dictionary of selected Jewish Names, by Benzion C. Kaganoff, Schocken Books, New York, 1977. It states "TUNIK (G) From a town near Minsk." (page 204). The (G) refers to "Geographical, place names."
The name "Tunik" has been listed elsewhere as 'Tunik Jewish ( E. Ashkenazie): habitation name from a town so called near Minsk in Belorussia. Var.: Tunick."
The earliest known Tunick/Tunik ancestors were Ashkenazi Jews living in or near the town named Stolbtsy, Belarus (45 miles Southwest of Minsk) during the late 1700's.
However, the following two references from the International Genealogical Index add a dimension of mystery:
1.Katherina TUNICK Christening: 30 Mar 1542 Barkway, Hertford, England
2.Mark TUNICK Marriage: 22 Jun 1671 Earsdon By North Shields, Northumberland, England

Except for aristocrats, wealthy people and well off Jewish merchants, Jews did not get surnames in Eastern Europe until the Napoleonic years of the early 19th century. Most of the Jews from countries captured by Napoleon, Russia, Poland, and Germany were ordered to get surnames. The reason for the last names were for tax purposes. After Napoleon's defeat many Jews dropped their surnames and returned to "son of" names like MENDELSOHN, JACOBSON, LEVINSON, etc.

During the so called Emancipation, Jews were once more ordered to take on surnames. In Austria The Emperor Joseph ordered Jews to take on last names in the late 1700's. Similar edicts occurred in Poland in 1821 and in Russia in 1844. Probably some of our families have had last names for only 175 years or less.

In France and the Anglo Saxon countries surnames went back to the 16th century. Sephardic Jews had surnames stretching back centuries. Spain prior to Ferdinand and Isabella was a golden spot for Jews. They were expelled by Isabella in the same year that Columbus discovered America. The earliest American Jews were Sephardic.
In general there were five types of names (people had to pay for their choice of names, while the poor had assigned names):

1. Names that were descriptive of the head of household: Examples: HOCH (tall), KLEIN (small), GROSS (large), SHEIN (good looking), LEVI (temple singers), COHEN (priest), SCHWARTZ (dark), WEISS (white), BURGER (City dweller)

2. Names describing occupations: Examples: HOLTZKOCKER (wood chopper), GELTSCHMIDT(goldsmith), SCHNEIDER (tailor), KREIGSMAN (warrior), EISEN (iron), FISCHER (fish)

3. Names from city of residence: Examples: BERLIN, FRANKFURTER, DANZIGER, OPPENHEIMER, DEUTSCH (German), POLLACK (Polish), WARSHAW, and probably TUNICK TUNIK

4. Bought names: Examples: GLUXK (luck), ROSEN and ROSENBLATT, ROSENBERG (roses), DIAMOND, KOENIG (king), SPIELMAN (spiel is to play), LIEBER (love)

5. Assigned names (usually undesirable): Examples: KLUTZ (clumsy), BILLIG (cheap), MONTAG (MONDAY) the day of the week troops came into a village to assign names

JEWISH FIRST NAMES