Explore the Family Name Harper

The meaning of Harper

English (Staffordshire), Scottish, Irish (Antrim and Down), and Dutch: occupational name for a player on the harp, from Middle English harper(e) ‘harper’ (Old English hearpere) and Middle Dutch harper, herper. The harper was one of the most important figures of a medieval baronial hall, especially in Scotland and northern England, and the office of harper was sometimes hereditary. The Scottish surname is probably an Anglicized form of Gaelic Mac Chruiteir ‘son of the harper’ (from Gaelic cruit ‘harp’, ‘stringed instrument’). This surname has long been present in Ireland.

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

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

Based on data from the Decennial U.S. Census, the surname Harper has seen some fluctuations in its popularity over the years. In 2000, it was ranked as the 226th most popular surname, but by 2010 it had slipped to 245th place, a decrease of 8.41%. However, the actual count of people bearing the Harper surname increased marginally, from 119,868 in 2000 to 124,461 in 2010, marking an increase of 3.83%. Despite this rise in numbers, the proportion of Harpers per 100,000 people dropped by 5.04%, from 44.43 to 42.19.

20002010Change
Rank#226#245-8.41%
Count119,868124,4613.83%
Proportion per 100k44.4342.19-5.04%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Harper

In terms of ethnicity, the Harper surname revealed some interesting trends according to the Decennial U.S. Census data. The number of Asian/Pacific Islander individuals with this surname saw a significant increase of 36.11% between 2000 and 2010, while those identifying as two or more races also rose by 33.33%. On the other hand, the number of white individuals with the Harper surname decreased slightly, from 70.12% to 67.90%. Hispanic representation among Harpers increased by 54.00%, and those identifying as black saw a modest increase of 2.26%. The American Indian and Alaskan Native population with the Harper surname also grew by 20.00%.

20002010Change
White70.12%67.9%-3.17%
Black25.64%26.22%2.26%
Two or More Races1.77%2.36%33.33%
Hispanic1.5%2.31%54%
American Indian and Alaskan Native0.6%0.72%20%
Asian/Pacific Islander0.36%0.49%36.11%

Harper 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 Harper is British & Irish, which comprises 55.1% of all ancestry found in people with the surname. The next two most common ancestries are French & German (21.9%) and Nigerian (3.6%). Additional ancestries include Scandinavian, Eastern European, Ghanaian, Liberian & Sierra Leonean, Italian, and Spanish & Portuguese.

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ANCESTRY BREAKDOWNCOMPOSITION
British & Irish55.1%
French & German21.9%
Nigerian3.6%
Other19.5%
Harper

Possible origins of the surname Harper

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

RECENT ANCESTRY LocationPercentage
Greater London, United Kingdom85.90%
Greater Manchester, United Kingdom85.60%
Merseyside, United Kingdom85.50%
Glasgow City, United Kingdom85.50%
West Midlands, United Kingdom85.30%

What Harper 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 Harper is G-PF3378, which is predominantly found among people with European ancestry. Haplogroup G-PF3378 is descended from haplogroup G-M201. Other common haplogroups include R-P311 and R-CTS241, which are predominantly found among people with European and European ancestry. Other surnames with similar common haplogroups are: Smith, Brown, Harris, Williams, Taylor, Martin, Walker, Thompson, Wilson, Davis.

The most common maternal haplogroups of people with Harper surname are: H1, T2b, H. These most commonly trace back to individuals of European ancestry.

harperPaternal Haplogroup Origins G-M201
Paternal Haplo Image

Your paternal lineage may be linked to Ötzi the Iceman

Ötzi the Iceman was discovered in 1991, protruding from a snow-bank high in the Alps near the Austrian-Italian border. His 5,300-year-old remains turned out to be so well preserved that researchers were able to construct a detailed account of his life and death. Chemical analysis of Ötzi's teeth indicates he came from the Italian side of the Alps. He had suffered during the year before his death with whipworm, a stomach parasite that was found in his digestive tract. Yet he was fit enough to climb 6,500 feet in elevation during the day or two before he met his end in a rocky alpine hollow. Ötzi apparently was murdered, struck by a stone arrow point that was found lodged in his left shoulder. The twisted position of his body indicates that the murderer, or one of his accomplices, pulled the arrow's shaft out of Ötzi's prone body.Yet whoever killed Ötzi did not take the valuable and finely wrought copper axe that he carried with him — an indicator that at the age of 45, the Ice Man may have been a figure of some importance in his community. Recently, scientists who were able to extract DNA from Ötzi's remains discovered that he belonged to a paternal lineage that stems from haplogroup G-M201. Today, Ötzi's lineage reaches its highest levels in Sardinia and Corsica, and was once common among early European farmers.

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 Harper 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

Harper

Chocolate Ice Cream

Prefers chocolate flavored ice cream over other flavors.

"Harper" Surname 40.5%

23andMe Users 41.3%

Traits

Harper

Misophonia

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

"Harper" Surname 28.9%

23andMe Users 27.9%

Habits

Harper

Sugary Drink

Drinks one or more sugary drinks per day.

"Harper" Surname 21.8%

23andMe Users 21.1%

Wellness

Harper

Migraine

A severe headache characterized by intense pain, sensitivity to light and sound, and often accompanied by nausea and vomiting.

"Harper" Surname 18.4%

23andMe Users 16.4%

Are health conditions linked to the last name Harper?

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 Harper 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

British & Irish 62.1%

23andMe Users 57.2%