Explore the Family Name Costa
The meaning of Costa
1. Spanish, Catalan, Portuguese, Galician, southern French, and Italian: topographic name for someone who lived on a slope or river bank, or on the coast (ultimately from Latin costa ‘rib, side, flank’, also used in a transferred topographic sense), or a habitational name from any of numerous places called with this word. Compare Spanish Cuesta and Lacosta. 2. Jewish (Sephardic): adoption of the Portuguese surname (see 1 above) at the moment of conversion to Roman Catholicism. After the return to Judaism (generations later), some descendants retained the name their families used as Catholics. 3. American shortened (and altered) form of Greek Costas and its standard variant Kostas, or of any of various patronymics and other derivatives of this personal name. Compare Kosta 1. 4. Greek (typically Cypriot): variant of the genitival patronymic Kosta 2. 5. Americanized form of Albanian and Czech Kosta 3, 4, Croatian Košta (see Kosta 5). Some characteristic forenames: Spanish Manuel, Jose, Carlos, Mario, Luis, Fernando, Ana, Francisco, Julio, Eduardo, Jorge, Marcos. Portuguese Joao, Joaquim, Paulo, Duarte, Vasco, Adao, Albano, Anabela, Marcio, Margarida, Serafim, Aderito. Italian Antonio, Angelo, Salvatore, Rocco, Sal, Domenic, Giovanni, Giuseppe, Guido, Luciano, Pasquale, Pietro.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Costa in the United States?
According to data from the Decennial U.S. Census, the surname "Costa" showed a slight decrease in overall popularity between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, it ranked 900th in popularity among all surnames in the United States. By 2010, it had fallen slightly to 904th place, representing a small change of -0.44%. However, the actual count of people bearing the surname increased from 35,227 in 2000 to 38,265 in 2010, an increase of 8.62%. The proportion of individuals with the surname Costa per 100,000 people also saw a minimal decrease of -0.69% during this period.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #900 | #904 | -0.44% |
| Count | 35,227 | 38,265 | 8.62% |
| Proportion per 100k | 13.06 | 12.97 | -0.69% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Costa
The ethnicity data from the Decennial U.S. Census indicates some shifts in the ethnic identities associated with the surname Costa. White remains the predominant ethnicity, showing a slight decrease from 83.35% in 2000 to 83.16% in 2010. The percentage of people identifying as Hispanic with this surname increased by 20.87%, from 8.48% in 2000 to 10.25% in 2010. There was also a significant increase in those identifying as Black, from 1.21% in 2000 to 2.26% in 2010, a change of 86.78%. The proportion of people with the surname Costa identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander also grew by 31.88%. The percentage of people identifying as two or more races decreased significantly, while the American Indian and Alaskan Native category saw a small increase.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 83.35% | 83.16% | -0.23% |
| Hispanic | 8.48% | 10.25% | 20.87% |
| Black | 1.21% | 2.26% | 86.78% |
| Two or More Races | 5.22% | 2.11% | -59.58% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 1.38% | 1.82% | 31.88% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0.36% | 0.39% | 8.33% |
Costa 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 Costa is Spanish & Portuguese, which comprises 39.7% of all ancestry found in people with the surname. The next two most common ancestries are British & Irish (18.7%) and Italian (14.4%). Additional ancestries include French & German, Eastern European, Indigenous American, Scandinavian, and Ashkenazi Jewish.
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| ANCESTRY BREAKDOWN | COMPOSITION |
|---|---|
| Spanish & Portuguese | 39.7% |
| British & Irish | 18.7% |
| Italian | 14.4% |
| Other | 27.2% |
Possible origins of the surname Costa
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 Costa have recent ancestry locations in Portugal and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
| RECENT ANCESTRY Location | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Azores, Portugal | 45.30% |
| Madeira, Portugal | 45.00% |
| Aveiro District, Portugal | 43.00% |
| Lisbon, Portugal | 42.70% |
| Coimbra District, Portugal | 41.00% |
What Costa 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 Costa is R-P311, which is predominantly found among people with European ancestry. Haplogroup R-P311 is descended from haplogroup R-M343. Other common haplogroups include E-V13 and R-CTS241, which are predominantly found among people with European and European ancestry. Other surnames with similar common haplogroups are: Silva, Fernandez, Gomes, Ferreira, Santos, Rodrigues, Pereira, Fernandes, Pinto, Miranda.
The most common maternal haplogroups of people with Costa surname are: A2, H1, 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 Costa 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.
"Costa" Surname 42.5%
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.
"Costa" Surname 28.3%
23andMe Users 27.9%
Habits
Sugary Drink
Drinks one or more sugary drinks per day.
"Costa" Surname 20.2%
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.
"Costa" Surname 16.3%
23andMe Users 16.4%
Are health conditions linked to the last name Costa?
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 Costa are shown below. Important Note: not everyone with a disease allele will develop these health condition