Explore the Family Name Heller
The meaning of Heller
1. German: nickname from the small medieval coin known as the häller or heller because it was first minted (in 1208) at the Swabian town of (Schwäbisch) Hall. Compare Hall. 2. German: topographic name for someone living by a field named with a word meaning ‘hell’ (see Helle 1). 3. Dutch: variant of Helder. 4. English: variant of Hillier. 5. English: in some cases, a topographic name from Middle English heller ‘dweller on the hill’, a term that belongs to southern England, especially Surrey, Kent, Sussex, and Hampshire. See Hiller and Huller. 6. Jewish (Ashkenazic): habitational name for someone from Schwäbisch Hall. 7. Jewish (Ashkenazic): nickname for a person with fair hair or a light complexion, from an inflected form, used before a male personal name, of German hell ‘light, bright’, Yiddish hel. History: The Jewish surname Heller (in the sense 6) is one of the old Ashkenazic surnames. In Eastern Europe, it was used by rabbinical families well before the mass adoption of surnames by local Jews at the turn of the 19th century.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Heller in the United States?
The Heller surname saw a slight drop in popularity in the United States between 2000 and 2010, according to data from the Decennial U.S. Census. In 2000, Heller was ranked 1274th most popular, but by 2010 it had fallen to 1399th, reflecting a 9.81% decrease in rank. However, the actual count of people with the Heller surname remained virtually unchanged over the decade, with just a tiny growth of 0.01%, from 25,371 to 25,373. The proportion per 100,000 people also dropped slightly from 9.4 in 2000 to 8.6 in 2010.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #1,274 | #1,399 | -9.81% |
| Count | 25,371 | 25,373 | 0.01% |
| Proportion per 100k | 9.4 | 8.6 | -8.51% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Heller
In terms of ethnic identity, the Heller surname shows a diverse range of backgrounds, again based on the Decennial U.S. Census data. In 2010, majority of those named Heller were White, accounting for 94.13%, down from 95.27% in 2000. Over the same period, there was an increase in the percentage of Hellers identifying as Hispanic, from 1.42% to 2.20%. There was also a small increase among those identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander and Black. Meanwhile, the percentage of Hellers who identify as American Indian and Alaskan Native slightly decreased. Those reporting two or more races went up from 0.97% to 1.19%.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 95.27% | 94.13% | -1.2% |
| Hispanic | 1.42% | 2.2% | 54.93% |
| Black | 1.68% | 1.71% | 1.79% |
| Two or More Races | 0.97% | 1.19% | 22.68% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 0.45% | 0.58% | 28.89% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0.21% | 0.19% | -9.52% |
Heller 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 Heller is French & German, which comprises 27.6% of all ancestry found in people with the surname. The next two most common ancestries are British & Irish (27.5%) and Ashkenazi Jewish (23.9%). Additional ancestries include Eastern European, Scandinavian, Italian, Spanish & Portuguese, and Greek & Balkan.
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| ANCESTRY BREAKDOWN | COMPOSITION |
|---|---|
| French & German | 27.6% |
| British & Irish | 27.5% |
| Ashkenazi Jewish | 23.9% |
| Other | 21.0% |
Possible origins of the surname Heller
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 Heller have recent ancestry locations in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and Ireland.
| RECENT ANCESTRY Location | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Greater London, United Kingdom | 64.30% |
| Merseyside, United Kingdom | 63.90% |
| Greater Manchester, United Kingdom | 63.90% |
| Glasgow City, United Kingdom | 63.20% |
| West Yorkshire, United Kingdom | 63.20% |
What Heller 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 Heller is R-U152, which is predominantly found among people with European ancestry. Haplogroup R-U152 is descended from haplogroup R-M343. Other common haplogroups include R-S14328 and R-CTS6, which are predominantly found among people with European and European ancestry. Other surnames with similar common haplogroups are: Kramer, Herman, Klein, Berger, Frank, Stein, Schneider, Hoffman, Goodman, Simon.
The most common maternal haplogroups of people with Heller surname are: K1a1b1a, H1, H. These most commonly trace back to individuals of European 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 Heller 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.
"Heller" Surname 42.7%
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.
"Heller" Surname 30.8%
23andMe Users 27.9%
Habits
Sugary Drink
Drinks one or more sugary drinks per day.
"Heller" Surname 21.2%
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.
"Heller" Surname 14.3%
23andMe Users 16.4%
Are health conditions linked to the last name Heller?
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 Heller are shown below. Important Note: not everyone with a disease allele will develop these health condition