Explore the Family Name Agarwal
The meaning of Agarwal
Indian (northern states): Bania and Jain habitational name from the placenames Agroha or Agar + the Hindi or Punjabi adjectival suffix -wāl (equivalent to -er in English), i.e. ‘person from Agroha’. Agroha (in Hissar district, formerly in the Punjab, now in Haryana) is said to have been named as the capital city of Agar Sen, a legendary Vaishya king whom the Agarwals claim as their ancestor. Alternatively, the placename in question may be Agar, a city forty miles northeast of Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh. The Agarwals are one of the most prominent mercantile communities of northern India. Some characteristic forenames: Indian Anil, Arun, Satish, Sudhir, Ashok, Rajesh, Ramesh, Sanjay, Amit, Mahesh, Rakesh, Vivek.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Agarwal in the United States?
Based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the popularity of the surname Agarwal has seen a significant increase from 2000 to 2010. In 2000, it ranked 11,523 in terms of prevalent surnames and jumped to 6,285 by 2010, marking a 45.46% rank change. Additionally, the count of individuals carrying this surname also more than doubled during this time period, from 2,504 in 2000 to 5,436 in 2010, which represents a 117.09% change. The proportion per 100,000 also nearly doubled from 0.93 to 1.84, indicating a 97.85% change.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #11,523 | #6,285 | 45.46% |
| Count | 2,504 | 5,436 | 117.09% |
| Proportion per 100k | 0.93 | 1.84 | 97.85% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Agarwal
The ethnicity table for the surname Agarwal indicates a dominant Asian/Pacific Islander identity based on the Decennial U.S. Census data. From 2000 to 2010, the percentage of individuals with Agarwal as their surname who identified as Asian/Pacific Islander increased slightly from 92.01% to 94.35%, an increase of 2.54%. Identification with two or more races decreased by 42.06%, while those identifying as White saw a decrease of 28.68%. Hispanic identity was not represented in 2000 but appeared in 2010 at 0.29%. Similarly, American Indian and Alaskan Native identities were unrepresented in 2000 but surfaced at 0.37% in 2010. The representation of Black identity reduced from 0.24% to 0.15%, marking a decrease of 37.50%.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 92.01% | 94.35% | 2.54% |
| White | 3.87% | 2.76% | -28.68% |
| Two or More Races | 3.59% | 2.08% | -42.06% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0% | 0.37% | 0% |
| Hispanic | 0% | 0.29% | 0% |
| Black | 0.24% | 0.15% | -37.5% |
Agarwal ancestry composition
23andMe computes an ancestry breakdown for each customer. People may have ancestry from just one population or they may have ancestry from several populations. The most commonly-observed ancestry found in people with the surname Agarwal is Northern Indian & Pakistani, which comprises 89.7% of all ancestry found in people with the surname. The next two most common ancestries are Southern Indian & Sri Lankan (2.9%) and British & Irish (2.5%). Additional ancestries include Bengali & Northeast Indian, Southern Indian Subgroup, Eastern European, Italian, and French & German.
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| ANCESTRY BREAKDOWN | COMPOSITION |
|---|---|
| Northern Indian & Pakistani | 89.7% |
| Southern Indian & Sri Lankan | 2.9% |
| British & Irish | 2.5% |
| Other | 4.9% |
Possible origins of the surname Agarwal
Your DNA provides clues about where your recent ancestors may have lived. Having many distant relatives in the same location suggests that you may all share common ancestry there. Locations with many distant relatives can also be places where people have migrated recently, such as large cities. If a large number of individuals who share your surname have distant relatives in a specific area, it could indicate a connection between your surname and that location, stemming from either recent ancestral ties or migration.
Based on 23andMe data, people with last name Agarwal have recent ancestry locations spanning a few countries, mostly in Pakistan, and India.
| RECENT ANCESTRY Location | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Punjab, Pakistan | 18.50% |
| Uttar Pradesh, India | 11.80% |
| Punjab, India | 10.90% |
| Maharashtra, India | 10.10% |
| Delhi, India | 9.20% |
What Agarwal haplogroups can tell you
Haplogroups are genetic population groups that share a common ancestor on either your paternal or maternal line. These paternal and maternal haplogroups shed light on your genetic ancestry and help tell the story of your family.
The top paternal haplogroup of people with the surname Agarwal is H-M2914, which is predominantly found among people with Central & South Asian ancestry. Haplogroup H-M2914 is descended from haplogroup H-L901. Other common haplogroups include H-M52 and H-Z4417, which are predominantly found among people with Central & South Asian and Central & South Asian ancestry. Other surnames with similar common haplogroups are: Gupta, Jain, Agrawal, Aggarwal, Sen, Garg, Anand, Akhtar, Zaman, Kumar.
The most common maternal haplogroups of people with Agarwal surname are: U2a, U2, M30. These most commonly trace back to individuals of Central & South Asian and European ancestry.
Paternal Haplogroup Origins H-L901Your maternal lineage may be linked to the Markina Gora man
At an estimated 36,000 years old, the Markina Gora Skeleton is the second most ancient modern human to have his DNA fully sequenced. He was discovered in 1954 in southwest Russia, and recently analyzed to find clues about ancient European ancestry.This man is estimated to have been 20 to 25 years old, and at just below 5'2'' tall, he was short by modern standards. His DNA contained variants that suggested he had dark skin and brown eyes, and his skeletal features suggest he looked much like populations from tropical regions of the world, suggesting recent migration to the north. He also had more Neanderthal DNA than is found in Asians and Europeans today, which supports the hypothesis that humans mixed with Neanderthals early on in our history beyond Africa.
What do people with the surname Agarwal have in common?
Spoiler alert: it's complicated. People with the same last name are usually no more genetically similar than a randomly sampled group of people from the same population. That said, people with the same surname are more likely to have similar ancestries than randomly sampled individuals. The reason is the tendency of people with similar cultural or geographical backgrounds to preferentially mate with one another. That's why people who share a surname may be more likely to share traits and tendencies in common than people within the general population. Check out the percentages below to see the prevalences of tastes, habits, and traits of people with your surname compared with prevalences among 23andMe users.
Preferences
Chocolate Ice Cream
Prefers chocolate flavored ice cream over other flavors.
"Agarwal" Surname 50.0%
23andMe Users 41.3%
Traits
Misophonia
When sounds made by others, like the sound of chewing or yawning, provoke strong emotional reactions in an individual.
"Agarwal" Surname 50.0%
23andMe Users 27.9%
Habits
Sugary Drink
Drinks one or more sugary drinks per day.
"Agarwal" Surname 19.4%
23andMe Users 21.1%
Wellness
Migraine
A severe headache characterized by intense pain, sensitivity to light and sound, and often accompanied by nausea and vomiting.
"Agarwal" Surname 8.3%
23andMe Users 16.4%
Are health conditions linked to the last name Agarwal?
The short answer is that, if there is an association between surname and health, it's usually more about your ancestry than your name. Individuals with a given surname are no more genetically similar than the general population but often have similar ancestries. The populations of people associated with those shared ancestries often have sets of genetic variations, also known as alleles, in common. Some of those alleles are associated with a greater likelihood of developing certain diseases.
Disease variant frequency by ancestry
Disease allele frequencies in populations associated with the surname Agarwal are shown below. Important Note: not everyone with a disease allele will develop these health condition