Explore the Family Name Buckley
The meaning of Buckley
1. English: habitational name from any of the many places so named, most of which are from Old English bucc ‘buck, male deer’ or bucca ‘he-goat’ + lēah ‘woodland clearing’. Places called Buckley and Buckleigh, in Devon, are named with Old English boga ‘bow’ + clif ‘cliff’. 2. English: in Somerset perhaps alternatively a variant of the now extinct Bugley, a habitational name from Bugley in Dorset or Wiltshire, named from the Old English female personal name Bucge + lēah ‘woodland clearing’. 3. Irish: Anglicized form of Gaelic Ó Buachalla ‘descendant of Buachaill’, a byname meaning ‘cowherd, servant’. 4. Altered form of German of Büchle or Bücheli, variants of Buechel.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Buckley in the United States?
Based on data from the Decennial U.S. Census, the popularity of the surname Buckley has seen a slight decline in the period from 2000 to 2010. In the year 2000, Buckley ranked 772nd among common surnames, but slipped to 834th place by 2010, marking an 8.03% decrease in rank. However, in terms of raw count, the number of individuals carrying the Buckley surname did rise slightly by 1.58%, from 40,706 in 2000 to 41,348 in 2010. This indicates that despite the drop in rank, the surname Buckley might be more prevalent than it first appears.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #772 | #834 | -8.03% |
| Count | 40,706 | 41,348 | 1.58% |
| Proportion per 100k | 15.09 | 14.02 | -7.09% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Buckley
Regarding ethnicity, the Decennial U.S. Census provides some interesting insights into the distribution of the surname Buckley. The majority of those with this surname identified as White, although this group experienced a slight decrease from 85.21% in 2000 to 83.18% in 2010. The proportion of individuals identifying as Black rose by 7.09%, while the fastest growing ethnic identity was Hispanic, which saw a rise of 38.6%. Other notable increases were seen amongst those identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander and those claiming two or more races, with increases of 23.91% and 35.2% respectively. Finally, there was a modest increase of 14.06% amongst those identifying as American Indian and Alaskan Native.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 85.21% | 83.18% | -2.38% |
| Black | 10.72% | 11.48% | 7.09% |
| Hispanic | 1.71% | 2.37% | 38.6% |
| Two or More Races | 1.25% | 1.69% | 35.2% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0.64% | 0.73% | 14.06% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 0.46% | 0.57% | 23.91% |
Buckley 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 Buckley is British & Irish, which comprises 59.6% of all ancestry found in people with the surname. The next two most common ancestries are French & German (16.6%) and Eastern European (4.6%). Additional ancestries include Italian, Scandinavian, Spanish & Portuguese, Ashkenazi Jewish, and Nigerian.
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| ANCESTRY BREAKDOWN | COMPOSITION |
|---|---|
| British & Irish | 59.6% |
| French & German | 16.6% |
| Eastern European | 4.6% |
| Other | 19.2% |
Possible origins of the surname Buckley
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 Buckley have recent ancestry locations in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and Ireland.
| RECENT ANCESTRY Location | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Greater London, United Kingdom | 86.30% |
| Greater Manchester, United Kingdom | 86.20% |
| Merseyside, United Kingdom | 86.10% |
| West Midlands, United Kingdom | 86.00% |
| Glasgow City, United Kingdom | 86.00% |
What Buckley 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 Buckley is R-Z255, which is predominantly found among people with European ancestry. Haplogroup R-Z255 is descended from haplogroup R-M343. Other common haplogroups include I-L233 and R-L21, which are predominantly found among people with European and European ancestry. Other surnames with similar common haplogroups are: Murphy, Burns, Geary, Doyle, Mackey, Whitmore, Mack, Walsh, Cullen, Barker.
The most common maternal haplogroups of people with Buckley 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 Buckley 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.
"Buckley" Surname 40.3%
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.
"Buckley" Surname 29.4%
23andMe Users 27.9%
Habits
Sugary Drink
Drinks one or more sugary drinks per day.
"Buckley" Surname 20.1%
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.
"Buckley" Surname 17.2%
23andMe Users 16.4%
Are health conditions linked to the last name Buckley?
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 Buckley are shown below. Important Note: not everyone with a disease allele will develop these health condition