Explore the Family Name Free
The meaning of Free
1. English: nickname or status name from Middle English fre ‘free’ (Old English frēo), with reference to either tenurial status (‘free born’) or to character (‘noble, generous, open-handed’). 2. Irish: variant of Freeman. 3. North German: nickname from a variant of Middle Low German wrēd ‘wild, fierce, angry’. 4. Americanized form of Swiss German and German Frei and Frey. 5. Americanized form of Ferree or Ferrée, a surname of French origin.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Free in the United States?
Based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the surname Free has seen a slight change in its popularity between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, it was ranked as the 3385th most popular surname in the United States, with a count of 9666. By 2010, although the rank had dropped to 3586, the count had slightly increased to 9923, marking a change of 2.66%. The proportion of this surname per 100k people also saw a decrease of about 6.15% over the decade.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #3,385 | #3,586 | -5.94% |
| Count | 9,666 | 9,923 | 2.66% |
| Proportion per 100k | 3.58 | 3.36 | -6.15% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Free
When considering ethnicity, the Census data shows some shifts within the Free surname population. White individuals made up the majority, at 88.46% in 2000 and 86.82% in 2010. However, there were notable increases in individuals identifying with two or more ethnicities, Asian/Pacific Islander, Hispanic, and Black categories. The greatest increase was seen in the Hispanic category, which rose from 1.07% to 1.77%, marking a 65.42% change. Meanwhile, the Asian/Pacific Islander representation grew by 25.71%, and those who identified as Black increased by 4.50%. Slight change was noted in American Indian and Alaskan Native category with an increase of 1.32%.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 88.46% | 86.82% | -1.85% |
| Black | 7.56% | 7.9% | 4.5% |
| Hispanic | 1.07% | 1.77% | 65.42% |
| Two or More Races | 1.04% | 1.53% | 47.12% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 1.51% | 1.53% | 1.32% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 0.35% | 0.44% | 25.71% |
Free 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 Free is British & Irish, which comprises 53.4% of all ancestry found in people with the surname. The next two most common ancestries are French & German (25.1%) and Eastern European (3.7%). Additional ancestries include Scandinavian, Ashkenazi Jewish, Italian, Spanish & Portuguese, and Indigenous American.
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| ANCESTRY BREAKDOWN | COMPOSITION |
|---|---|
| British & Irish | 53.4% |
| French & German | 25.1% |
| Eastern European | 3.7% |
| Other | 17.9% |
Possible origins of the surname Free
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 Free have recent ancestry locations in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and Ireland.
| RECENT ANCESTRY Location | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Greater Manchester, United Kingdom | 86.10% |
| Greater London, United Kingdom | 86.10% |
| Glasgow City, United Kingdom | 86.10% |
| West Yorkshire, United Kingdom | 85.60% |
| Merseyside, United Kingdom | 85.60% |
What Free 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 Free is I-Z58, which is predominantly found among people with European ancestry. Haplogroup I-Z58 is descended from haplogroup I-M170. Other common haplogroups include R-CTS241 and R-P311, which are predominantly found among people with European and European ancestry. Other surnames with similar common haplogroups are: Hartmann, Metz, Grey, Joy, Wilde, Schumacher, Hook, Hendrickson, Busch, Jansen.
The most common maternal haplogroups of people with Free surname are: H1, T2b, H. These most commonly trace back to individuals of European ancestry.
Paternal Haplogroup Origins I-M170
Your paternal lineage may be linked to Alexander Hamilton
Early in the morning on July 11, 1804, Aaron Burr (then Vice President of the United States) and Alexander Hamilton (founder of the U.S. Treasury) dueled on the New Jersey side of the Hudson River. This marked the culmination of a bitter personal and political rivalry between the two men. Alexander Hamilton died as a result of the duel, but his intellectual legacy survives in the founding documents of the nation he helped build. A piece of his genetic legacy survives as well: in the 21st century, genealogists documented the paternal haplogroups of dozens of Hamilton's living descendants and concluded that the Founding Father's paternal haplogroup was a branch of I-DF29.
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 Free 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.
"Free" Surname 41.5%
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.
"Free" Surname 31.7%
23andMe Users 27.9%
Habits
Sugary Drink
Drinks one or more sugary drinks per day.
"Free" Surname 24.1%
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.
"Free" Surname 16.1%
23andMe Users 16.4%
Are health conditions linked to the last name Free?
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 Free are shown below. Important Note: not everyone with a disease allele will develop these health condition