Explore the Family Name Kaminsky

Possible origins of the surname Kaminsky

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 Kaminsky have recent ancestry locations spanning a few countries, mostly in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and Ireland.

What Kaminsky 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 Kaminsky is G-P287, which is predominantly found among people with European ancestry. Haplogroup G-P287 is descended from haplogroup G-M201. Other common haplogroups include R-P312 and E-M34, which are predominantly found among people with European and European ancestry. Other surnames with similar common haplogroups are: Kroll, Eisner, Reich, Hyman, Kaye, Emanuel, Held, Millett, Millet, Millen.

The most common maternal haplogroups of people with Kaminsky surname are: K1a1b1a, H1, H. These most commonly trace back to individuals of European ancestry.

Your paternal lineage may be linked to Richard III

The much-maligned English Monarch, King Richard III, died in the Battle of Bosworth Field in 1485 — likely the result of a severe blow to the back of his head. Richard's body was buried in a friary church in Leicester, but the structure was demolished less than 100 years later thanks to the dissolution of the Catholic Church in England, and many thought his skeleton lost to time. But, in 2012, a team of researchers decided to launch a hunt for the monarch's remains. On the first day of excavations, archaeologists uncovered a human skeleton with signs of scoliosis and severe head wounds, which matched descriptions of the English King. To confirm his identity, scientists compared the skeleton's paternal haplogroup, haplogroup G-P287, to the Y-chromosomes of living, paternal-line descendants of Richard's great-great-grandfather, King Edward III. But, there was a mismatch, suggesting that if the skeleton did indeed belong to Richard III, there must have been at least one instance of false-paternity in the 19-plus generations separating King Edward III from his living descendants. However, the scientists also tested Richard's mitochondrial DNA, and found an exact match with a documented matrilineal descendant of Richard's sister, Anne of York. In early 2013, the University of Leicester announced that — beyond any reasonable doubt — the skeleton belonged to Richard. Richard III's paternal lineage belongs to the G-P287 (G2) branch of haplogroup G-M201 (G).

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.