Explore the Family Name Ketcham
The meaning of Ketcham
English: perhaps a habitational name from Kitcham in Devon, but more likely a shortened form of Kitchenham, a habitational name from a place so named in East Sussex. History: Edward Ketcham (died 1655) immigrated from Cambridge, England, to Massachusetts Bay Colony c.1629–30, and subsequently moved to Stratford, CT.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Ketcham in the United States?
According to the Decennial U.S. Census, the popularity of the surname Ketcham has experienced a slight decrease in rank and proportion per 100k from 2000 to 2010. The surname's rank fell by 7.01% from 7,515th place in 2000 to 8,042nd in 2010. Concurrently, its proportion per 100k also decreased by 7.28%, going from 1.51 in 2000 to 1.4 in 2010. Interestingly, despite these declines, the count of people with the Ketcham surname increased slightly by 0.71%, totaling 4,115 individuals in 2010 compared to 4,086 in 2000.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #7,515 | #8,042 | -7.01% |
| Count | 4,086 | 4,115 | 0.71% |
| Proportion per 100k | 1.51 | 1.4 | -7.28% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Ketcham
Diving into the ethnic identity associated with the Ketcham surname as per the Decennial U.S. Census, it is predominantly White, with 94% identifying as such in 2010, a slight decrease from 95.28% in 2000. The number of individuals with this surname identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander and those identifying as belonging to two or more races saw an increase over the decade, rising by 19.61% and 32.04%, respectively. Hispanic identification also saw a significant boost of 36.22%. American Indian and Alaskan Native identification experienced the most dramatic change, increasing by 51.72%. In contrast, the percentage of Black individuals bearing the surname Ketcham decreased negligibly by 1.08%. Overall, although predominantly White, the surname Ketcham showed growing diversity in its ethnic affiliations over the ten-year period.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 95.28% | 94% | -1.34% |
| Hispanic | 1.96% | 2.67% | 36.22% |
| Two or More Races | 1.03% | 1.36% | 32.04% |
| Black | 0.93% | 0.92% | -1.08% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 0.51% | 0.61% | 19.61% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0.29% | 0.44% | 51.72% |
Ketcham 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 Ketcham is British & Irish, which comprises 43.7% of all ancestry found in people with the surname. The next two most common ancestries are French & German (29.8%) and Scandinavian (7.4%). Additional ancestries include Italian, Eastern European, Filipino & Austronesian, Ashkenazi Jewish, and Greek & Balkan.
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| ANCESTRY BREAKDOWN | COMPOSITION |
|---|---|
| British & Irish | 43.7% |
| French & German | 29.8% |
| Scandinavian | 7.4% |
| Other | 19.1% |
Possible origins of the surname Ketcham
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 Ketcham have recent ancestry locations in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and Ireland.
| RECENT ANCESTRY Location | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Greater Manchester, United Kingdom | 85.10% |
| Glasgow City, United Kingdom | 85.10% |
| Merseyside, United Kingdom | 85.10% |
| Greater London, United Kingdom | 85.10% |
| Tyne And Wear, United Kingdom | 84.20% |
What Ketcham 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 Ketcham 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 I-M253 and R-P312, which are predominantly found among people with European and European ancestry. Other surnames with similar common haplogroups are: Houle, Shifflett, Matheny, Fontenot, Embry, Folsom, Ostrander, Oxford, Ketchum, Mendenhall.
The most common maternal haplogroups of people with Ketcham 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 Ketcham 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.
"Ketcham" Surname 50.0%
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.
"Ketcham" Surname 32.0%
23andMe Users 27.9%
Habits
Vitamin Use
Takes vitamins on a regular basis.
"Ketcham" Surname 52.9%
23andMe Users 45.5%
Wellness
Migraine
A severe headache characterized by intense pain, sensitivity to light and sound, and often accompanied by nausea and vomiting.
"Ketcham" Surname 21.0%
23andMe Users 16.4%
Are health conditions linked to the last name Ketcham?
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 Ketcham are shown below. Important Note: not everyone with a disease allele will develop these health condition