Explore the Family Name Behar
The meaning of Behar
1. Spanish (Béhar): variant of Bejar. 2. Jewish (from the Ottoman Empire): acronymic surname from the first letters of the Hebrew expression ben kvod rabbi ‘son of a honored rabbi’, in which the last word does not necessarily mean a spiritual leader of a Jewish community; it represents a title of respect for a man close to English Mister. In the Ottoman Empire, Jews who had no fixed surname were traditionally named in Hebrew documents according to the pattern X bekhar Y, where X and Y are male personal names. For example, Abraham bekhar Moshe means ‘Abraham, the son of Mister Moshe’. At the turn of the 20th century, for numerous Ottoman Jews having no surname, Be(k)har was recorded as their surname. Compare Bachar 1 and Bahar 4. Some characteristic forenames: Spanish Jose, Alberto, Roberto, Hortensia, Isidoro, Ruben, Ana, Jaime, Marcos, Mauricio, Rafael. Jewish Moises, Gady, Arie, Isadore, Isak, Menahem, Moshe, Nissin, Ori, Salomon, Yoshua. French Jacques, Andre, Armand, Henri, Lucien, Marcel, Raymonde, Yves.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Behar in the United States?
Based on data from the Decennial U.S. Census, the surname Behar saw a slight decrease in popularity between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, it was ranked as the 17,685th most common surname in the U.S., but by 2010 it had dropped to the 18,819th spot, marking a 6.41% decrease. The number of people with this surname also fell slightly during this period, going from 1,462 in 2000 to 1,455 in 2010, a decline of 0.48%. Consequently, the proportion of people named Behar per 100,000 U.S. residents also declined from 0.54 to 0.49, a drop of 9.26%.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #17,685 | #18,819 | -6.41% |
| Count | 1,462 | 1,455 | -0.48% |
| Proportion per 100k | 0.54 | 0.49 | -9.26% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Behar
The ethnicity of individuals with the surname Behar also experienced some shifts between 2000 and 2010, according to the Decennial U.S. Census. In 2000, 75.03% identified as White, but this percentage decreased to 67.42% by 2010. However, the percentage identifying as Hispanic increased significantly from 22.64% to 30.24%. Additionally, there was a slight increase in those identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander, growing from 0.96% to 1.03%. Notably, the percentage of people identifying as Black rose from 0% to 0.76%, while the percentage identifying with two or more races dropped from 0.89% to 0%. No data was reported for American Indian and Alaskan Native identity.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 75.03% | 67.42% | -10.14% |
| Hispanic | 22.64% | 30.24% | 33.57% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 0.96% | 1.03% | 7.29% |
| Black | 0% | 0.76% | 0% |
| Two or More Races | 0.89% | 0% | 0% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0% | 0% | 0% |
Behar 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 Behar is Ashkenazi Jewish, which comprises 36.1% of all ancestry found in people with the surname. The next two most common ancestries are Italian (15.3%) and British & Irish (10.8%). Additional ancestries include Spanish & Portuguese, French & German, Eastern European, Greek & Balkan, and Iranian, Caucasian & Mesopotamian.
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| ANCESTRY BREAKDOWN | COMPOSITION |
|---|---|
| Ashkenazi Jewish | 36.1% |
| Italian | 15.3% |
| British & Irish | 10.8% |
| Other | 37.9% |
Possible origins of the surname Behar
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 Behar have recent ancestry locations spanning a few countries, mostly in Italy, and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
| RECENT ANCESTRY Location | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Sicily, Italy | 27.80% |
| West Midlands, United Kingdom | 22.80% |
| Greater London, United Kingdom | 22.80% |
| Tyne And Wear, United Kingdom | 22.80% |
| Greater Manchester, United Kingdom | 22.80% |
What Behar 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 Behar is O-F2415, which is predominantly found among people with East Asian & Indigenous American ancestry. Haplogroup O-F2415 is descended from haplogroup O-M1359. Other common haplogroups include E-M183 and O-F2859, which are predominantly found among people with European and East Asian & Indigenous American ancestry.
The most common maternal haplogroups of people with Behar surname are: N, H1, H. These most commonly trace back to individuals of European ancestry.
Paternal Haplogroup Origins O-M1359
Your paternal lineage may be linked to the Cham
One of the many populations harboring members of haplogroup O1b1a1a1a1 is the Cham ethnic group, a group of people who speak Austronesian languages in Mainland Southeast Asia. Austronesian languages make up a language family that is extremely large and widespread, comprising over 350 million people on islands such as Madagascar, Easter Island, and many others. However, Austronesian languages are less common on mainland Asia, with a notable exception being the Chamic language. Research suggests that ancestors of the Cham people migrated from Southeast Asian islands to the mainland around the year 500 BCE, and that early Cham populations quickly began mixing with indigenous southern Vietnamese populations. As a result, the Chamic language now has words that were borrowed from languages spoken by indigenous Vietnamese people. It is likely that an ancestral Kinh population was one of the populations that mixed with the Cham people shortly after their migration to mainland Asia.
Your 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 Behar 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.
"Behar" Surname 56.2%
23andMe Users 41.3%
Habits
Kinesthetic Learner
Preferring to learn and process information through hands-on activities, practical experiences, and active engagement.
"Behar" Surname 46.2%
23andMe Users 61.5%
Wellness
Migraine
A severe headache characterized by intense pain, sensitivity to light and sound, and often accompanied by nausea and vomiting.
"Behar" Surname 8.8%
23andMe Users 16.4%
Are health conditions linked to the last name Behar?
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 Behar are shown below. Important Note: not everyone with a disease allele will develop these health condition