Explore the Family Name Dabney
The meaning of Dabney
1. Altered form of French Daubigné, a habitational name, with fused preposition d(e) ‘from’, for someone from any of various places in France called Aubigné, including one in Deux-Sèvres, named with the Gallo-Roman personal name Albinius (a derivative of Latin albus ‘white’; compare Albin) + the habitational suffix -acum. The surname Daubigné is found mainly in Charente-Maritime. 2. English (of Norman origin): variant of Daubney, a cognate of 1 above. History: The American Dabneys are mostly descended from Théodore Agrippa d’Aubigné (1552–1630), a French Huguenot poet and soldier, whose grandson Agrippa Théodore emigrated with his children to England in the early 17th century. It were Agrippa Théodore’s sons and grandsons, including a son and a grandson named Cornelius, who established the Dabney families in North America in the 17th and early 18th centuries. Théodore Agrippa d’Aubigné is listed in the (US) National Huguenot Society’s register of qualified Huguenot ancestors, while in the similar register of the Huguenot Society of America his sons Cornelius, Jean, and Robert d’Aubigné, the actual settlers in North America, are listed as Huguenot ancestors.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Dabney in the United States?
Based on the Decennial U.S. Census, the surname Dabney saw minor changes in its popularity between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, this surname ranked as the 4,712th most popular in the United States, while in 2010 it fell slightly to the 4,793rd position, showing a decrease of 1.72%. Despite this drop in rank, the actual count of individuals carrying the Dabney surname increased from 6,878 in 2000 to 7,376 in 2010, showing a growth rate of 7.24%. The proportion of individuals with this surname per 100,000 also decreased slightly during this period, moving from 2.55 to 2.5, representing a decline of 1.96%.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #4,712 | #4,793 | -1.72% |
| Count | 6,878 | 7,376 | 7.24% |
| Proportion per 100k | 2.55 | 2.5 | -1.96% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Dabney
When considering the ethnic identity associated with the Dabney surname, data from the Decennial U.S. Census reveals some interesting shifts between 2000 and 2010. While the largest proportion of individuals with this surname identified themselves as Black (increasing marginally from 55.03% to 56.03%), there was a notable increase in those identifying with two or more races, which rose from 2.09% to 3.23% - an increase of 54.55%. Those identifying as White saw a slight decrease from 40.80% to 38.11%, a change of -6.59%. The proportions identifying as Hispanic and Asian/Pacific Islander both increased during this decade, with Hispanics moving from 1.26% to 1.67% (a 32.54% increase) and Asian/Pacific Islanders from 0.39% to 0.52% (a 33.33% increase). Those identifying as American Indian and Alaskan Native had minimal change, increasing from 0.42% to 0.45%.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Black | 55.03% | 56.03% | 1.82% |
| White | 40.8% | 38.11% | -6.59% |
| Two or More Races | 2.09% | 3.23% | 54.55% |
| Hispanic | 1.26% | 1.67% | 32.54% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 0.39% | 0.52% | 33.33% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0.42% | 0.45% | 7.14% |
Dabney 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 Dabney is British & Irish, which comprises 51.5% of all ancestry found in people with the surname. The next two most common ancestries are French & German (19.7%) and Nigerian (8.2%). Additional ancestries include Ghanaian, Liberian & Sierra Leonean, Angolan & Congolese, Spanish & Portuguese, Ashkenazi Jewish, and Eastern European.
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| ANCESTRY BREAKDOWN | COMPOSITION |
|---|---|
| British & Irish | 51.5% |
| French & German | 19.7% |
| Nigerian | 8.2% |
| Other | 20.6% |
Possible origins of the surname Dabney
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 Dabney have recent ancestry locations in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and Ireland.
| RECENT ANCESTRY Location | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Glasgow City, United Kingdom | 75.20% |
| Greater Manchester, United Kingdom | 75.20% |
| West Midlands, United Kingdom | 75.20% |
| Greater London, United Kingdom | 75.20% |
| Merseyside, United Kingdom | 75.20% |
What Dabney 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 Dabney is R-CTS241, which is predominantly found among people with European ancestry. Haplogroup R-CTS241 is descended from haplogroup R-M343. Other common haplogroups include R-L21 and I-M170, which are predominantly found among people with European and European ancestry. Other surnames with similar common haplogroups are: Brundage, Elam, Strother, Staggs, Mccabe, Pauley, Messick, Beaumont, Crandall, Phelan.
The most common maternal haplogroups of people with Dabney surname are: N, H, L1. These most commonly trace back to individuals of European and Sub-Saharan African 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 Dabney 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.
"Dabney" Surname 28.0%
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.
"Dabney" Surname 40.6%
23andMe Users 27.9%
Habits
Sugary Drink
Drinks one or more sugary drinks per day.
"Dabney" Surname 25.0%
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.
"Dabney" Surname 13.9%
23andMe Users 16.4%
Are health conditions linked to the last name Dabney?
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 Dabney are shown below. Important Note: not everyone with a disease allele will develop these health condition