Explore the Family Name Etienne

The meaning of Etienne

French and Mauritian (Étienne); West Indian (in Haiti, Martinique, and Guadeloupe Étienne); Walloon: from the personal name French Étienne, Walloon Etienne, vernacular forms of Latin Stephanus (see Steven). This surname is most common in Haiti. Some characteristic forenames: French Jacques, Pierre, Andre, Luc, Yves, Dieudonne, Fernand, Francois, Jean Claude, Mathieu, Philomene, Renald.

Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.

How common is the last name Etienne in the United States?

According to the Decennial U.S. Census data, the surname Etienne has seen a rise in popularity over the years. In 2000, it was ranked 5603, but by 2010, it climbed up to rank 4510, marking a significant increase of 19.51%. The number of individuals with the surname also jumped from 5678 to 7867 during this decade, representing a substantial growth of 38.55%. The data shows that for every 100,000 people, there were about 2.1 Etiennes in 2000, which increased to approximately 2.67 by 2010, reflecting a 27.14% boost.

20002010Change
Rank#5,603#4,51019.51%
Count5,6787,86738.55%
Proportion per 100k2.12.6727.14%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Etienne

In terms of ethnic identity, the Decennial U.S. Census data reveals some interesting shifts between 2000 and 2010. While the percentage of Etienne's identifying as Black saw an increase of 11.26%, going from 73.88% to 82.20%, there was a noticeable decrease among those identifying as White or of two or more races. The percentage of White Etiennes fell by 22.25%, from 14.83% to 11.53%, while those identifying as of two or more races dropped sharply by 68.43%, from 8.14% to 2.57%. During this period, there was a slight uptick in the percentage of Hispanic Etiennes, rising from 2.59% to 3.28%. There were also small fractions of Etiennes identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander and American Indian and Alaskan Native in 2010, where there were none reported in these categories in 2000.

20002010Change
Black73.88%82.2%11.26%
White14.83%11.53%-22.25%
Hispanic2.59%3.28%26.64%
Two or More Races8.14%2.57%-68.43%
Asian/Pacific Islander0%0.27%0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native0%0.15%0%

Etienne 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 Etienne is French & German, which comprises 22.1% of all ancestry found in people with the surname. The next two most common ancestries are British & Irish (18.3%) and Nigerian (17.4%). Additional ancestries include Ghanaian, Liberian & Sierra Leonean, Angolan & Congolese, Spanish & Portuguese, Eastern European, and Senegambian & Guinean.

Ready to learn more about your ancestry? Get the most comprehensive ancestry breakdown on the market by taking our DNA test. Shop 23andMe

ANCESTRY BREAKDOWNCOMPOSITION
French & German22.1%
British & Irish18.3%
Nigerian17.4%
Other42.2%
Etienne

Possible origins of the surname Etienne

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 Etienne have recent ancestry locations in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and Haiti.

RECENT ANCESTRY LocationPercentage
Greater Manchester, United Kingdom26.60%
Greater London, United Kingdom26.60%
Glasgow City, United Kingdom26.60%
Merseyside, United Kingdom26.60%
West Midlands, United Kingdom25.50%

What Etienne 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 Etienne 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 Etienne surname are: H1, H, L2a1. These most commonly trace back to individuals of European and Sub-Saharan African ancestry.

etiennePaternal Haplogroup Origins O-M1359
Paternal Haplo Image

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.

Maternal Haplo Image

What do people with the surname Etienne 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

Etienne

Chocolate Ice Cream

Prefers chocolate flavored ice cream over other flavors.

"Etienne" Surname 43.5%

23andMe Users 41.3%

Traits

Etienne

Misophonia

When sounds made by others, like the sound of chewing or yawning, provoke strong emotional reactions in an individual.

"Etienne" Surname 31.6%

23andMe Users 27.9%

Habits

Etienne

Vitamin Use

Takes vitamins on a regular basis.

"Etienne" Surname 50.0%

23andMe Users 45.5%

Are health conditions linked to the last name Etienne?

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 Etienne are shown below. Important Note: not everyone with a disease allele will develop these health condition

Age-Related Macular Degeneration

Y402H variant

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the most common cause of irreversible vision loss among older adults. The disease results in damage to the central part of the retina (the macula), impairing vision needed for reading, driving, or even recognizing faces. The 23andMe Health + Ancestry DNA test includes the two most common variants associated with an increased risk of developing the condition: the Y402H variant in the CFH gene and the A69S variant in the ARMS2 gene. Learn more about Age-Related Macular Degeneration

French & German 60.8%

23andMe Users 57.2%