Explore the Family Name Irvine

The meaning of Irvine

1. Scottish, also common in northern Ireland: habitational name from Irvine in Ayrshire, which is named from a Celtic river, Welsh ir, yr ‘green, fresh’ + afon ‘water’. There has been much confusion with Irving and Irwin. 2. Irish: variant of Irvin 2. 3. English: variant of Erwin 2.

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

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

Based on the Decennial U.S. Census, the surname Irvine has seen slight shifts in popularity from 2000 to 2010. In terms of rank, Irvine moved from being the 3572nd most popular surname in 2000 to the 3769th in 2010, representing a 5.52% decrease in popularity. The count of the surname increased by 2.96%, with a total of 9127 instances recorded in 2000 and 9397 in 2010. However, the proportion of the surname per 100k people decreased by 5.62% going from 3.38 in 2000 to 3.19 in 2010.

20002010Change
Rank#3,572#3,769-5.52%
Count9,1279,3972.96%
Proportion per 100k3.383.19-5.62%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Irvine

When considering the ethnic identity associated with the surname Irvine, the data from the Decennial U.S. Census reveals varied changes between 2000 and 2010. The percentage of those identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander grew by 21.87%, while those identifying with two or more races saw an increase of 23.90%. People with the surname Irvine who identified as White experienced a slight decrease (1.92%), but still held a significant majority at 86.99% in 2010. Hispanic identifiers grew by 38.42%, while Black identifiers had a small increase of 3.6%. Lastly, those identifying as American Indian and Alaskan Native also saw an increase, rising by 17.39%.

20002010Change
White88.69%86.99%-1.92%
Black5.83%6.04%3.6%
Two or More Races2.05%2.54%23.9%
Hispanic1.77%2.45%38.42%
Asian/Pacific Islander0.96%1.17%21.87%
American Indian and Alaskan Native0.69%0.81%17.39%

Irvine 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 Irvine is British & Irish, which comprises 56.9% of all ancestry found in people with the surname. The next two most common ancestries are French & German (20.8%) and Eastern European (4.7%). Additional ancestries include Scandinavian, Italian, Spanish & Portuguese, Ashkenazi Jewish, and Indigenous American.

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ANCESTRY BREAKDOWNCOMPOSITION
British & Irish56.9%
French & German20.8%
Eastern European4.7%
Other17.6%
Irvine

Possible origins of the surname Irvine

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

RECENT ANCESTRY LocationPercentage
Glasgow City, United Kingdom88.00%
Greater Manchester, United Kingdom88.00%
Greater London, United Kingdom88.00%
Tyne And Wear, United Kingdom87.70%
West Midlands, United Kingdom87.70%

What Irvine 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 Irvine is R-L555, which is predominantly found among people with European ancestry. Haplogroup R-L555 is descended from haplogroup R-M343. Other common haplogroups include R-CTS241 and R-L21, which are predominantly found among people with European and European ancestry. Other surnames with similar common haplogroups are: Irwin, Irvin, Erwin, Ervin, Irving, Haddock, Byers, Phillips, Morgan, Mcdonald.

The most common maternal haplogroups of people with Irvine surname are: H1c, H1, H. These most commonly trace back to individuals of European ancestry.

irvinePaternal Haplogroup Origins R-M343

Your maternal lineage may be linked to the nomadic Tuareg of the Sahara

Though haplogroup H1 rarely reaches high frequencies beyond western Europe, over 60% of eastern Tuareg in Libya belong to haplogroup H1. The Tuareg call themselves the Imazghan, meaning “free people.” They are an isolated, semi-nomadic people who inhabit the West-Central Sahara and are known today for a distinctive dark blue turban worn by the men, and for their long history as gatekeepers of the desert.How did women carrying H1 make it all the way from western Europe to this isolated community? They likely migrated from Spain across the Strait of Gibraltar into Morocco after the Last Ice Age, where they were assimilated into the Berbers of the Mediterranean coast. Then, about 5,000 years ago, the Sahara shifted from a period of relative habitable conditions to its dramatically arid desert environment. This shift may have caused migrations throughout the Sahara, prompting the ancient Tuaregs to meet and mingle with the Berbers, bringing H1 lineages into their population.

Maternal Haplo Image

What do people with the surname Irvine 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

Irvine

Chocolate Ice Cream

Prefers chocolate flavored ice cream over other flavors.

"Irvine" Surname 43.1%

23andMe Users 41.3%

Traits

Irvine

Misophonia

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

"Irvine" Surname 34.7%

23andMe Users 27.9%

Habits

Irvine

Sugary Drink

Drinks one or more sugary drinks per day.

"Irvine" Surname 23.0%

23andMe Users 21.1%

Wellness

Irvine

Migraine

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

"Irvine" Surname 21.8%

23andMe Users 16.4%

Are health conditions linked to the last name Irvine?

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 Irvine 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%