Explore the Family Name Akhtar
The meaning of Akhtar
Muslim (mainly the Indian subcontinent and Afghanistan): from the Persian personal name Akhtar ‘star’, also used to mean ‘good fortune’. In Urdu Akhtar is used in combination with other words, for example Akhtar ud-Dīn ‘star of religion (i.e. Islam)’. Compare Akhter and Aktar 1. Some characteristic forenames: Arabic/Muslim Syed, Mohammad, Muhammad, Saeed, Mahmood, Malik, Masood, Naeem, Naseem, Saleem, Mohammed, Nasim.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Akhtar in the United States?
Based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the surname Akhtar has seen a significant rise in popularity from 2000 to 2010. In 2000, it ranked as the 11,734th most common surname but jumped to the 7,785th position by 2010, marking an upward change of approximately 33.65%. The count of people bearing this surname also rose dramatically from 2,445 in 2000 to 4,260 in 2010, indicating a notable increase of 74.23%. Furthermore, the proportion per 100,000 people increased by 58.24%, going from 0.91 to 1.44.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #11,734 | #7,785 | 33.65% |
| Count | 2,445 | 4,260 | 74.23% |
| Proportion per 100k | 0.91 | 1.44 | 58.24% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Akhtar
On the other hand, the ethnic identity associated with the surname Akhtar has shown some interesting shifts between 2000 and 2010 according to the Decennial U.S. Census data. A significant majority, around 89.81% of individuals with the surname Akhtar, identified as Asian/Pacific Islander in 2010, up from 76.56% in 2000. There was a marked decrease in those identifying with two or more races, dropping from 14.07% in 2000 to just 3.45% in 2010. Correspondingly, the percentage of individuals identifying as White fell from 7.32% to 4.88%. Those identifying as Hispanic remained relatively steady, while there were small new percentages in 2010 of those identifying as Black and American Indian and Alaskan Native.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 76.56% | 89.81% | 17.31% |
| White | 7.32% | 4.88% | -33.33% |
| Two or More Races | 14.07% | 3.45% | -75.48% |
| Hispanic | 1.23% | 1.22% | -0.81% |
| Black | 0% | 0.47% | 0% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0% | 0.16% | 0% |
Akhtar 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 Akhtar is Northern Indian & Pakistani, which comprises 69.4% of all ancestry found in people with the surname. The next two most common ancestries are British & Irish (7.0%) and Bengali & Northeast Indian (5.6%). Additional ancestries include Central Asian, Iranian, Caucasian & Mesopotamian, French & German, Southern Indian & Sri Lankan, and Spanish & Portuguese.
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| ANCESTRY BREAKDOWN | COMPOSITION |
|---|---|
| Northern Indian & Pakistani | 69.4% |
| British & Irish | 7.0% |
| Bengali & Northeast Indian | 5.6% |
| Other | 18.0% |
Possible origins of the surname Akhtar
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 Akhtar have recent ancestry locations spanning a few countries, mostly in Pakistan, and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
| RECENT ANCESTRY Location | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Punjab, Pakistan | 61.70% |
| Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan | 27.70% |
| Azad Jammu And Kashmir, Pakistan | 19.10% |
| Sindh, Pakistan | 16.00% |
| Tyne And Wear, United Kingdom | 12.80% |
What Akhtar 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 Akhtar is R-Y6, which is predominantly found among people with Central & South Asian ancestry. Haplogroup R-Y6 is descended from haplogroup R-M420. Other common haplogroups include H-M2914 and J-L26, which are predominantly found among people with Central & South Asian and European ancestry. Other surnames with similar common haplogroups are: Siddiqui, Nair, Rao, Varghese, Hussain, Iqbal, Kumar, Khan, Ahmad, Chaudhry.
The most common maternal haplogroups of people with Akhtar surname are: M, H, R. These most commonly trace back to individuals of European ancestry.
Paternal Haplogroup Origins R-M420Your maternal lineage may be linked to many people of Europe and Asia
Most of Europe's most common haplogroups, including H, J, T, V and U, are offshoots of R. Some, like U, were involved in some of the earliest migrations to Europe, while others spread from the Middle East with the dawn of agriculture. These groups spread east as well, reaching Central Asia and India first with early farmers and then with Iron Age migrants. In East Asia, R gave rise to the dominant haplogroups F and B. Members of just one branch of B, B2, migrated from Siberia to the Americas after the peak of the Ice Age 18,000 years ago, where their descendants are found today. However, no other branches of R have been found in the indigenous people of North and South America.
What do people with the surname Akhtar 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.
Wellness
Migraine
A severe headache characterized by intense pain, sensitivity to light and sound, and often accompanied by nausea and vomiting.
"Akhtar" Surname 14.9%
23andMe Users 16.4%
Are health conditions linked to the last name Akhtar?
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 Akhtar are shown below. Important Note: not everyone with a disease allele will develop these health condition