Explore the Family Name Flower
The meaning of Flower
1. English: nickname from Middle English flo(u)r ‘flower, blossom’ (Old French flur, from Latin flos, genitive floris). This was a conventional term of endearment in medieval romantic poetry, and as early as the 13th century it is also regularly found as a female personal name. In the US, it may also be a translation of a name in another language meaning ‘flower’, such as German Blum or Dutch Bloem. 2. English: metonymic occupational name for a miller or flour merchant, or perhaps a nickname for someone with a pale complexion, from Middle English flo(u)r ‘flour’. This is in origin the same word as in 1 above, with the transferred sense ‘flower, pick of the meal’. Although the two words are now felt to be accidental homophones, they were not distinguished in spelling before the 18th century. 3. English: occupational name for an arrowsmith, from Middle English floer ‘arrow maker’, an agent derivative of Middle English flō ‘arrow’ (Old English flān). 4. Welsh: Anglicized form of the personal name Llywarch, of unexplained etymology. 5. English: variant of Floor.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Flower in the United States?
According to the Decennial U.S. Census data, the popularity of the surname "Flower" has seen a slight decrease between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, it was ranked at 8,136 but dropped to 8,828 by 2010, a change of -8.51%. The count of people with this surname also declined slightly from 3,753 in 2000 to 3,711 in 2010, which represents a small decrease of -1.12%. Similarly, the proportion per 100,000 people in the population dipped by -9.35% over these years.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #8,136 | #8,828 | -8.51% |
| Count | 3,753 | 3,711 | -1.12% |
| Proportion per 100k | 1.39 | 1.26 | -9.35% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Flower
The same Decennial U.S. Census data provides interesting insights into the ethnic identity associated with the surname "Flower". There has been an increase in those identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander and those claiming two or more races, with their proportions growing by 26.56% and 61.79%, respectively, between 2000 and 2010. However, the percentage of White individuals with the Flower surname decreased slightly, down -0.74%. Similarly, Black identification saw a drop of -14.24% while American Indian and Alaskan Native went down by -5.80%. Meanwhile, there was a noticeable growth among those identifying as Hispanic, with an increase of 54.63%.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 85.11% | 84.48% | -0.74% |
| Black | 10.18% | 8.73% | -14.24% |
| Hispanic | 2.16% | 3.34% | 54.63% |
| Two or More Races | 1.23% | 1.99% | 61.79% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 0.64% | 0.81% | 26.56% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0.69% | 0.65% | -5.8% |
Flower 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 Flower is British & Irish, which comprises 53.7% of all ancestry found in people with the surname. The next two most common ancestries are French & German (22.7%) and Italian (4.4%). Additional ancestries include Scandinavian, Eastern European, Ashkenazi Jewish, Spanish & Portuguese, and Indigenous American.
Ready to learn more about your ancestry? Get the most comprehensive ancestry breakdown on the market by taking our DNA test. Shop 23andMe
| ANCESTRY BREAKDOWN | COMPOSITION |
|---|---|
| British & Irish | 53.7% |
| French & German | 22.7% |
| Italian | 4.4% |
| Other | 19.2% |
Possible origins of the surname Flower
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 Flower have recent ancestry locations in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and Ireland.
| RECENT ANCESTRY Location | Percentage |
|---|---|
| West Midlands, United Kingdom | 84.10% |
| Tyne And Wear, United Kingdom | 84.10% |
| Greater Manchester, United Kingdom | 84.10% |
| Greater London, United Kingdom | 84.10% |
| Glasgow City, United Kingdom | 83.00% |
What Flower 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 Flower 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 Flower surname are: H1, K1a, 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 Flower 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.
"Flower" Surname 36.8%
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.
"Flower" Surname 30.6%
23andMe Users 27.9%
Habits
Sugary Drink
Drinks one or more sugary drinks per day.
"Flower" Surname 12.8%
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.
"Flower" Surname 23.8%
23andMe Users 16.4%
Are health conditions linked to the last name Flower?
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 Flower are shown below. Important Note: not everyone with a disease allele will develop these health condition