Explore the Family Name Amos
The meaning of Amos
1. English and Scottish: variant of Amis, assimilated in spelling to the Biblical name (see 2 below). It occurs chiefly in southeastern England. 2. Jewish, German, English, Scottish, and Welsh: from the Hebrew personal name Amos, of uncertain origin, in some traditions connected with the Hebrew verb amos ‘to carry’, and assigned the meaning ‘borne by God’. This was the name of a Biblical prophet of the 8th century bc, whose oracles are recorded in the Book of Amos. This was one of the Biblical names taken up by Puritans and Nonconformists in the 16th–17th centuries, too late to have had much influence on surname formationm in Britain, except in Wales.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Amos in the United States?
Based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the surname Amos has seen a slight decline in popularity between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, Amos was ranked as the 1436th most popular surname, however, it slipped to the 1517th spot by 2010, marking a drop of 5.64%. Despite this fall in rank, the actual count of people bearing the Amos surname increased from 22,817 to 23,621, a growth of 3.52%. This indicates that although the proportion of people with the Amos name per 100k decreased by 5.32%, the overall number of people with this surname has risen.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #1,436 | #1,517 | -5.64% |
| Count | 22,817 | 23,621 | 3.52% |
| Proportion per 100k | 8.46 | 8.01 | -5.32% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Amos
In terms of ethnicity, the Decennial U.S. Census data reveals some shifts among those with the surname Amos. The largest increase was seen in individuals identifying with two or more races, jumping from 1.42% in 2000 to 2.38% in 2010, an impressive spike of 67.61%. Similarly, the percentage of those identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander and Hispanic also rose, at rates of 20.27% and 33.01% respectively. Conversely, the percentage of White individuals with the Amos surname saw a minor decrease of 4.72%, dropping from 65.71% in 2000 to 62.61% in 2010. The percentages of those identifying as Black and American Indian and Alaskan Native continued to hold steady with modest increases of 4.27% and 4.55% respectively.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 65.71% | 62.61% | -4.72% |
| Black | 28.1% | 29.3% | 4.27% |
| Hispanic | 2.06% | 2.74% | 33.01% |
| Two or More Races | 1.42% | 2.38% | 67.61% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 1.98% | 2.07% | 4.55% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 0.74% | 0.89% | 20.27% |
Amos 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 Amos is British & Irish, which comprises 53.9% of all ancestry found in people with the surname. The next two most common ancestries are French & German (23.5%) and Nigerian (3.9%). Additional ancestries include Scandinavian, Italian, Ghanaian, Liberian & Sierra Leonean, Eastern European, and Spanish & Portuguese.
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| ANCESTRY BREAKDOWN | COMPOSITION |
|---|---|
| British & Irish | 53.9% |
| French & German | 23.5% |
| Nigerian | 3.9% |
| Other | 18.7% |
Possible origins of the surname Amos
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 Amos have recent ancestry locations all within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
| RECENT ANCESTRY Location | Percentage |
|---|---|
| West Midlands, United Kingdom | 85.40% |
| Greater London, United Kingdom | 85.40% |
| Merseyside, United Kingdom | 85.20% |
| Greater Manchester, United Kingdom | 85.20% |
| Glasgow City, United Kingdom | 85.00% |
What Amos 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 Amos is R-L21, which is predominantly found among people with European ancestry. Haplogroup R-L21 is descended from haplogroup R-M343. Other common haplogroups include G-M3302 and R-CTS241, which are predominantly found among people with European and European ancestry. Other surnames with similar common haplogroups are: O'Brien, Mcalister, Franklin, Person, Penn, Christie, Black, Mcfarland, Griffiths, Obrien.
The most common maternal haplogroups of people with Amos surname are: H1, T2b, H. These most commonly trace back to individuals of European ancestry.
Paternal Haplogroup Origins R-M343Your maternal lineage may be linked to Marie Antoinette
Because it is so dominant in the general European population, haplogroup H also appears quite frequently in the continent's royal houses. Marie Antoinette, an Austrian Hapsburg who married into the French royal family, inherited the haplogroup from her maternal ancestors. So did Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, whose recorded genealogy traces his female line to Bavaria. Scientists also discovered that famed 16th century astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus traced his maternal lineages to haplogroup H.
What do people with the surname Amos 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.
"Amos" Surname 46.3%
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.
"Amos" Surname 28.1%
23andMe Users 27.9%
Habits
Sugary Drink
Drinks one or more sugary drinks per day.
"Amos" Surname 23.4%
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.
"Amos" Surname 19.0%
23andMe Users 16.4%
Are health conditions linked to the last name Amos?
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 Amos are shown below. Important Note: not everyone with a disease allele will develop these health condition