Explore the Family Name Knickerbocker
The meaning of Knickerbocker
Americanized form of the Dutch occupational name Knickerbacker ‘marble baker’, i.e., a baker of children’s clay marbles. This lowly occupation became synonymous with the patrician class in NYC through Washington Irving’s attribution of his. History of New York (1809) to a fictitious author named Diedrich Knickerbocker. By the late 1850s the term had also come to denote a type of loose breeches gathered below the knee, evidently because of the resemblance of the garment to the breeches of the Dutchmen in Cruikshank’s illustrations to Irving’s book.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Knickerbocker in the United States?
Based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the surname Knickerbocker saw a slight drop in popularity between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, it ranked as the 10595th most common surname, but by 2010, it had slipped slightly to 11163rd place, representing a decrease of 5.36%. However, the total count of individuals with this surname actually increased from 2776 in 2000 to 2834 in 2010, indicating a growth rate of 2.09%. The proportion of individuals named Knickerbocker per 100,000 people also decreased by 6.8% over this period.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #10,595 | #11,163 | -5.36% |
| Count | 2,776 | 2,834 | 2.09% |
| Proportion per 100k | 1.03 | 0.96 | -6.8% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Knickerbocker
The ethnic identity associated with the Knickerbocker surname also saw some changes between 2000 and 2010, according to Decennial U.S. Census data. While the majority of Knickerbockers identify as White, the percentage decreased from 97.37% in 2000 to 95.66% in 2010. Over the same period, there was a significant increase in those identifying as having two or more races, rising from 0.61% to 2.01%. The percentage identifying as Hispanic also grew from 0.90% to 1.16%. The Asian/Pacific Islander group saw a minor decrease from 0.72% to 0.67%. Interestingly, the census began recording percentages for both Black and American Indian and Alaskan Native ethnic identities in 2010, showing respective proportions of 0.28% and 0.21%.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 97.37% | 95.66% | -1.76% |
| Two or More Races | 0.61% | 2.01% | 229.51% |
| Hispanic | 0.9% | 1.16% | 28.89% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 0.72% | 0.67% | -6.94% |
| Black | 0% | 0.28% | 0% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0% | 0.21% | 0% |
Knickerbocker 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 Knickerbocker is British & Irish, which comprises 44.5% of all ancestry found in people with the surname. The next two most common ancestries are French & German (35.5%) and Scandinavian (5.7%). Additional ancestries include Italian, Eastern European, Spanish & Portuguese, Greek & Balkan, and Indigenous American.
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| ANCESTRY BREAKDOWN | COMPOSITION |
|---|---|
| British & Irish | 44.5% |
| French & German | 35.5% |
| Scandinavian | 5.7% |
| Other | 14.2% |
Possible origins of the surname Knickerbocker
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 Knickerbocker have recent ancestry locations in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and Ireland.
| RECENT ANCESTRY Location | Percentage |
|---|---|
| West Midlands, United Kingdom | 89.00% |
| Tyne And Wear, United Kingdom | 89.00% |
| Merseyside, United Kingdom | 89.00% |
| West Yorkshire, United Kingdom | 89.00% |
| Greater Manchester, United Kingdom | 89.00% |
What Knickerbocker 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 Knickerbocker is O-F2415, which is predominantly found among people with East Asian & Indigenous American ancestry. Haplogroup O-F2415 is descended from haplogroup O-M1359. Other common haplogroups include E-M183 and O-F2859, which are predominantly found among people with European and East Asian & Indigenous American ancestry.
The most common maternal haplogroups of people with Knickerbocker surname are: H1, N, H. These most commonly trace back to individuals of European ancestry.
Paternal Haplogroup Origins O-M1359
Your paternal lineage may be linked to the Cham
One of the many populations harboring members of haplogroup O1b1a1a1a1 is the Cham ethnic group, a group of people who speak Austronesian languages in Mainland Southeast Asia. Austronesian languages make up a language family that is extremely large and widespread, comprising over 350 million people on islands such as Madagascar, Easter Island, and many others. However, Austronesian languages are less common on mainland Asia, with a notable exception being the Chamic language. Research suggests that ancestors of the Cham people migrated from Southeast Asian islands to the mainland around the year 500 BCE, and that early Cham populations quickly began mixing with indigenous southern Vietnamese populations. As a result, the Chamic language now has words that were borrowed from languages spoken by indigenous Vietnamese people. It is likely that an ancestral Kinh population was one of the populations that mixed with the Cham people shortly after their migration to mainland Asia.
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 Knickerbocker 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.
"Knickerbocker" Surname 44.8%
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.
"Knickerbocker" Surname 26.7%
23andMe Users 27.9%
Habits
Sugary Drink
Drinks one or more sugary drinks per day.
"Knickerbocker" Surname 20.9%
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.
"Knickerbocker" Surname 20.2%
23andMe Users 16.4%
Are health conditions linked to the last name Knickerbocker?
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 Knickerbocker are shown below. Important Note: not everyone with a disease allele will develop these health condition