Explore the Family Name Kinsey
The meaning of Kinsey
1. English: from the Middle English personal name Kynsey (Old English Cynesige from cyne- ‘royal’ + sige ‘victory’). 2. Possibly also an Americanized form of Swiss German Künzi (see Kuenzi). History: The paternal grandfather of NJ and PA legislator John Kinsey (1693–1750) was one of the commissioners sent out from England in 1677 by the West Jersey proprietors to buy land from the Indians and to lay out a town. John was the leader of the Quaker party in the PA assembly and chief justice of the PA supreme court.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Kinsey in the United States?
According to the Decennial U.S. Census data, the popularity of the surname Kinsey saw a slight decline between 2000 and 2010. The rank of the surname dropped from 2169 in 2000 to 2258 in 2010, representing a 4.1% decrease. Despite this drop in ranking, the number of people carrying the Kinsey surname actually increased during this period, with the count rising by 4.85% from 15,357 to 16,102.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #2,169 | #2,258 | -4.1% |
| Count | 15,357 | 16,102 | 4.85% |
| Proportion per 100k | 5.69 | 5.46 | -4.04% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Kinsey
The ethnicity data from the Decennial U.S. Census reveals several shifts in the ethnic identity associated with the Kinsey surname between 2000 and 2010. While the percentage of individuals identifying as White declined slightly by 3.01% to 76.31%, there were increases in other ethnicities. The representation among Asian/Pacific Islanders grew by 38.89% to make up 0.50% of the total, while those reporting two or more races increased by 36% to represent 2.04%. Hispanic representation also saw a notable increase of 47.24% to 2.40%. The proportion of Black individuals rose slightly by 5.28% to 17.76%, while American Indian and Alaskan Native representation remained relatively stable with a minor increase of 4.21% to 0.99%.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 78.68% | 76.31% | -3.01% |
| Black | 16.87% | 17.76% | 5.28% |
| Hispanic | 1.63% | 2.4% | 47.24% |
| Two or More Races | 1.5% | 2.04% | 36% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0.95% | 0.99% | 4.21% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 0.36% | 0.5% | 38.89% |
Kinsey 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 Kinsey is British & Irish, which comprises 51.9% of all ancestry found in people with the surname. The next two most common ancestries are French & German (26.0%) and Eastern European (4.4%). Additional ancestries include Italian, Scandinavian, Nigerian, Ghanaian, Liberian & Sierra Leonean, and Spanish & Portuguese.
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| ANCESTRY BREAKDOWN | COMPOSITION |
|---|---|
| British & Irish | 51.9% |
| French & German | 26.0% |
| Eastern European | 4.4% |
| Other | 17.6% |
Possible origins of the surname Kinsey
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 Kinsey have recent ancestry locations in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and Ireland.
| RECENT ANCESTRY Location | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Tyne And Wear, United Kingdom | 86.80% |
| Merseyside, United Kingdom | 86.80% |
| Greater London, United Kingdom | 86.80% |
| West Midlands, United Kingdom | 86.80% |
| Greater Manchester, United Kingdom | 86.80% |
What Kinsey 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 Kinsey is J-L70, which is predominantly found among people with European ancestry. Haplogroup J-L70 is descended from haplogroup J-M304. Other common haplogroups include I-Z138 and R-DF88, which are predominantly found among people with European and European ancestry. Other surnames with similar common haplogroups are: Betz, Perkins, Michael, James, Rollins, Bridges, Barnett, Walker, Haskins, Paul.
The most common maternal haplogroups of people with Kinsey surname are: H1, T2b, H. These most commonly trace back to individuals of European ancestry.
Paternal Haplogroup Origins J-M304Your 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 Kinsey 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.
"Kinsey" Surname 43.8%
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.
"Kinsey" Surname 21.4%
23andMe Users 27.9%
Habits
Sugary Drink
Drinks one or more sugary drinks per day.
"Kinsey" Surname 24.8%
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.
"Kinsey" Surname 18.9%
23andMe Users 16.4%
Are health conditions linked to the last name Kinsey?
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 Kinsey are shown below. Important Note: not everyone with a disease allele will develop these health condition