While there is Beverly Johnson and Magic Johnson, we bet you didn’t know that Whoopi Goldberg’s real name is Caryn Elaine Johnson. There’s just over half a million people who share this last name with 529,821. List: Most common black or African-American last names (Non-Hispanic) Most common … You can probably name a ton of people with the last name Williams. The data, which may include people who identified themselves as African-American, African, or other ethnic or racial groups, is derived from the U.S. Bureau of the Census. Over several hundred years, borders have been made, changed and broken, making family history difficult to trace. This is perhaps the most common last name identified with blacks. Most common last names for Blacks in the U.S. (s) means the data was suppressed for privacy. African-American names are an integral part of African-American tradition. For many years, Williams has remained a common surname for a person of African American descent. remove-circle Share or Embed This Item. Some names you might recognize with the same last name are: Isiah Thomas, Sean Patrick Thomas, and Supreme Court Justice, Clarence Thomas. What is it with the last name Jackson that many of them are famous? Rounding out the Top 40, here are the next 30 most common names among African-Americans and Caribbean people: That Sister is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.​, Popular African American And Caribbean Last Names, 6 Best Free & Cheap Things To Do In Nassau Bahamas On Vacation, 9 Authentic African Decor Ideas To Jazz Up Your Home & Living Room In 2021, Taylor (Jayceon Terrel Taylor “The Game”). Also included are percentages listed for each name for the four largest ethnic groups: Non-Hispanic whites, non-Hispanic blacks or African-American, Hispanics of any race, and non-Hispanic Asians, Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander. KENYA f English, African American From the name of the African country. Cumulative proportion / 100,000: the proportion of people in a random selection of 100,000 who would have a given surname. Surname: State: County: Researcher: A : ADAMS. The above African American last names list is a great compilation. For instance, America has more black or African American people with the last name Williams than any other last name. This is why you hardly see an African man bearing a Western name as his last name. Similarly, Nigerian last names have a wonderful history and an interesting way of being given. Nigerian Last Names – Popular Surnames and Their Meanings . Just think of how large the continent is! According to US census records, Williams is the 16th most common last name associated with African Americans. https://www.thoughtco.com/common-us-surnames-and-their-meanings-1422658 Black names are often derived from existing Biblical names, Arabic and Muslim names, French names, and other European names. With a 6.3% increase in the last name, there 375,576 Jacksons identified in 2010. Image: Pretoria, South Africa. Last names come from indigenous, colonialist and diasporic roots. If you’re scratching your head for some people whose last name is Williams, there’s Venus and Serena Williams, Vanessa Williams, Michelle Williams, Pharrell Williams, and more. Racking your brain for some people with the last name Harris? From a census data conducted recently in the United States of America, it was made known that there are over 700,000 African Americans with the surname Williams. As crude as this will come across, slave owners did not give their last names to their slaves, any more than pet owners today bestow their last names on Fido or Puff. This is an 8.1% increase from 2000 where they came across approximately 58,000 less Williams. This might come as a surprise to you, as it’s not always a surname that’s stereotyped. From the census data, a whopping 716,704 individuals self-identified as “blacks.” This would see the name rank first among blacks, but third, however, in the US considering its total occurrence in the country was a record of 1,534,042. After emancipation, many free men and women adopted the surnames of their former owners as their own. There’s actress Naomie Harris and rapper T.I. Nigeria, a beautiful, diverse, African country home to the Niger River, and a rich history of culture and tradition. With that being said, there’s probably one Smith that immediately comes to mind when you think of the last name – Will Smith! This last name is one of them that experienced the most growth during the decade with an 8% increase. Here are the Top 10 names that came up during the 2010 census. There are around 624,252 people with this last name, a 7.1% increase from the previous decade. In 2010, Johnson came in 2nd place, and that’s its same rank within the entire population of African-Americans and Caribbean people. Coming in 8th among the total population of black people, Davis ranked 7th in 2010. The Unknown History Behind African American Last Names The history behind African American surnames isn’t actually that well known, and it is a little upsetting. The data, which may include people who identified themselves as African-American, African, or other ethnic or racial groups, is derived from the U.S. Bureau of the Census. It has been used as a given name in the English-speaking world since the 1960s. How African American families got their surnames is often misunderstood, affecting your ability to connect into your Irish ancestor. Surnames, on the other hand, are shared with most other American groups, which is largely because of their history. You probably know tons of Jacksons and even more Johnsons. One given name the child’s family selected and kept secret and one the child was known by given by the slave owner. If a surname was needed, the slave owner’s family name might be used. The lowest ranking name on this list, it comes in #30 for the entire population of African-Americans and Caribbean people. Most Popular African Last Names on FamilyEducation: Ba, Ballo, Diallo. Number of occurrences: Estimate of the number of people with the surname in the United States. Africans attach lots of importance to … If you’re not African, it’s easy to think that the same last name isn’t common. The following is a list of the most common surnames for people who self-identified as "Black" in America during the 2000 Census. Most Popular African American Last Names – Williams; It is popularly agreed that the name Williams is the most common last name in the circle of African Americans. African American names first became popular and distinctive in the 1950's and 1960's. EMBED (for wordpress.com hosted blogs and archive.org item tags) Want more? Advanced embedding details, examples, and help! I decided to publish this adapted "chart" about surname rankings in the United States after publishing a pancocojams post about Elmore James' Blues song "The Sky Is Crying"*. Some African-Americans that were made to pick cotton, have last names such as Cotton, reflecting the occupation. whose name is Clifford Harris Jr. Rounding out this top 10 list, we have Robinson. Every ten years, there’s a U.S. Census and we can use this information to figure out just how many people have the same last name. It may also be your ancestors were not slaves. There are slightly more Browns and Jones with 1.43 million people. Even so, in the total general population, Williams ranks as the third most common last name overall. Of course, not all African-Americans share the names in this generator, but the names in this generator are pretty unique to African-American culture, so you'd rarely find them anywhere else. While it ranks lower at 16, the last name came in 8th during the 2010 census. There was a 36,579 increase in the last name over a 10 year period pulling the entire population to a total of 1.4 million people. However, less than half of the people with the last name Williams are black or African American. Even so, Smith ranked third in the last census and between 2000 and 2010, there was a 6.9% increase in the last name. Fort Bend Co. Tonya Smith: ALLEN: Missouri: Macon Co. Anitra Lane An "(S)" appears where the percentages were suppressed for confidentiality. One of the biggest increases, the last name saw a 7.3% increase over a 10 year period. EMBED. Pronunciation : case sensitive: see the pronunciation key for a guide on how to write the sounds; sounds can only be searched in names that have been assigned pronunciations * is a wildcard that will match zero or more letters in the pronunciation example: *lee matches names which end with the sound lee _ is a wildcard that will match exactly one letter in the pronunciation Not only have Black American naming traditions changed, even the names used to describe African Americans have changed as Jocelyn observed in her name essay. When they were enslaved, African Americans were given last names that belonged to their “owners”. Working on African American families in Gallia County, Ohio, I've found a recurring theme with free African Americans born in Virginia before the Civil War. 150 Unique and Most Common African Last Names (Surnames) Prev Article Next Article . Often surnames were used for several generations within a family. 131 views. When it comes to last names, Smith is the most popular of last names among black people. The following are among the most common last names of African Americans: Williams. That’s why this last name was ranked 5th during the 2010 census and ranks 4th overall. With the actor leading the way, there are also athletes Emmitt Smith and J. R. Smith on the list. The names on these lists are slaveholders who were some of the largest slaveholders in the listed County in 1860. The last name Jones ranked 4th in the 2010 and ranks 5th overall when considering the entire black population. This is due to the 7.3% increase seen in the 10 year gap. The last name Jackson definitely isn’t as popular as the other names we’ve previously mentioned. In African culture, it is very important to have the clan’s name with their name even though you don’t have a surname. KESHAUN m African American (Modern) Combination of the popular name prefix Ke and SHAUN. List of African Last Names Texas. The daughters took the last names of their mothers and the sons took the last names of their fathers. African-American Surnames +3 votes . Of course, we have the Jackson family with Michael and Janet leading the way. During this time, it was very common for immigrants to change their children's names to better assimilate into American culture. Between African-Americans, Caribbean, and African people, here are the most common last names. African American Last Names Item Preview African American Last Names.jpg . There’s Melanie B(rown) from Spice Girls and Bobby Brown. You’d be wrong; there are thousands and thousands of Africans who share the same name. You could probably easily name someone with the last name Brown. – Johnson; The next most common African American … There’s Chris Brown, Jim Brown, and James Brown. During the last census, this name was the most common with over 774,000. % Non-Hispanic White Only: Percentage of people with a given surname who classified themselves as "non-hispanic white" (race), % Non-Hispanic Black Only: Percentage of people with a given surname who classified themselves as "non-hispanic black" (race), % Non-Hispanic Asian & Pacific Islander Only: Percentage of people with a given surname who classified themselves as "non-hispanic Asian & Pacific Islander" (race), % Non-Hispanic American Indian & Alaskan Native Only: Percentage of people with a given surname who classified themselves as "non-hispanic American Indian & Alaskan Native" (race), % Non-Hispanic of 2 or More Races: Percentage of people with a given surname who classified themselves as "non-hispanic two or more races" (race), % Hispanic Origin: Percentage of people with a given surname who classified themselves as "Hispanic origin" (race). Before then, most names were heavily influenced by European-American culture. While many Black Americans use names that are popular with wider American culture, a number of specific naming trends have emerged within African-American culture. Africans used to live in colonies and clans and hence they give a lot of importance to their tribe while adopting a surname. Garcia and Martinez represent the rapid growth of several Hispanic communities in the United States. The majority of African American names have a great history and are also shared in the family. Occurrences / 100,000 people: The number of occurrences of a given surname per 100,000 in the United States. 150 Unique and Most Common African Last Names (Surnames) Culture. No_Favorite. When it comes to last names, Smith is the most popular of last names among black people. When it comes to famous names you might recognize, there’s Miles Davis, Viola Davis, and Angela Davis. In 2001, I began a process of transcribing names of some of the largest slaveholders and matching the surnames with numbers of African Americans on the 1870 census. 50 most common last names in America Posted Oct 02, 2019 US actor and cast member Will Smith arrives to the promotional event for the movie Gemini Man … It is also interesting to notice last names that are or are not shared among the different groups. Between African-American and Caribbean people, many of them share the same last name regardless of their country of origin and culture. There are over 2.4 million African-American and Caribbean people with that last name. Over time, African Americans … Prior to the emancipation of the American slaves in 1863, those African-Americans held in bondage had usually just one or two given names. History. To start, simply click on the button to generate 10 random names. Even so, Smith ranked third in the last census and between 2000 and 2010, there was a 6.9% increase in the last name. Pronunciation : case sensitive: see the pronunciation key for a guide on how to write the sounds; sounds can only be searched in names that have been assigned pronunciations * is a wildcard that will match zero or more letters in the pronunciation example: *lee matches names which end with the sound lee _ is a wildcard that will match exactly one letter in the pronunciation According to the 2010 census, they came across hundreds of thousands of Jacksons that it brought the name up to #6 for the decade. We can’t forget other famous celebrities like Samuel L. Jackson, Jesse Jackson, and Randy Jackson. Names are of huge significance in the continent and that is why some cultures go as far as having naming ceremonies where families officially name their children in the presence of other people. Adébáyọ̀ Origin: Nigerian (Yoruba) Meaning: ‘He came in a joyful time’ or ‘the king/crown/royalty … Number of occurrences among people self-identifying as 'black', % of people with surname self-identifying as 'black'. There are over 2.4 million African-American and Caribbean people with that last name. Thomas is another last name that wouldn’t rank in the top 10 when considering the entire population. You may find your family did not have a “slave name” at all. The following is a list of the most common surnames for people who self-identified as "Black" in America during the 2000 Census. 1 comment: Azizi Powell May 4, 2017 at 5:31 PM. Virginia: Luray, Page Co. Deanna Adams: ALEXANDER. Adébáyọ̀ Origin: Nigerian (Yoruba) Meaning: ‘He came in a joyful time’ or ‘the king/crown/royalty … Coming 9th on this list, Harris normally ranks at #25 when considering the entire population of black people. African American last names are connected to a long history of slavery. In total, there are just fewer than 2 million black people with the last name Johnson with a 6.6% increase within the decade. The country is named for Mount Kenya, which in the Kikuyu language is called Kĩrĩnyaga meaning "the one having stripes". When it comes to surnames, there are some that are very clearly unique, but then there are others that you could probably attribute to 2 or 3 people that you know. British surnames such as Williams, Jackson, Robinson, Harris, Davis, Brown and Jones are also common among people of non-British descent, such as African Americans due to slavery. With a 22,811 increase from 2000 to 2010, there are over 1.1 million black people who currently share that last name. Note: You’ll find popular African American and Caribbean last names below, or skip to the next page for common African surnames. African last names are the perfect example of colonial influence. Abiodun: Hailing from the ethnic group Yoruba, Abiodun is often used both as a surname and a first … I have compiled name lists that can be linked to through this page. There’s actor James Earl Jones, music producer Quincy Jones, TV personality Star Jones, and more! The popular notion is that the slaves took the surname of the last master. African last names or surnames have deeper meanings than many think. Today we’re going to look at some of the most popular and common black last names around. Labels: African American surnames, names and nicknames, United States most common surnames, US Census. 22,811 increase from 2000 where they came across approximately 58,000 less Williams their mothers and the sons the... Came across approximately 58,000 less Williams English-speaking world since the 1960s were given last names that came up the! The one having stripes '' interesting to notice last names have a wonderful history and an way... 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