Explore the Family Name Knight
The meaning of Knight
1. English: status or occupational name from Middle English knight ‘retainer, attendant’ (Old English cniht ‘boy, youth, lad)’. The specialized feudal sense ‘a high-ranking tenant bound to serve his lord as a mounted soldier’ is not known to have ever given rise to the surname, although it is not out of the question that it may occasionally have been used as a nickname, perhaps for someone who played the part of an armed knight in a local pageant. 2. Irish: sometimes adopted for Gaelic Mac an Ridire ‘son of the knight’. See also McKnight.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Knight in the United States?
Based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the popularity of the surname "Knight" saw a minor decrease between 2000 and 2010. It's rank dropped from 199 to 209, indicating a decline of 5.03%. However, the actual count of people bearing the surname increased by 3.68% from 131,860 to 136,713. The proportion of individuals with the Knight surname per 100k also decreased slightly, falling by 5.18%.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #199 | #209 | -5.03% |
| Count | 131,860 | 136,713 | 3.68% |
| Proportion per 100k | 48.88 | 46.35 | -5.18% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Knight
In terms of ethnic identity, the Decennial U.S. Census data reveals some changes over the ten-year period from 2000 to 2010. The percentage of individuals with the Knight surname identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander, having two or more races, Hispanic, Black, and American Indian and Alaskan Native all increased. The largest growth was seen within the Hispanic community, which saw an increase of 53.37%. Meanwhile, those identifying as White decreased from 74.79% to 72.31%, a change of -3.32%.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 74.79% | 72.31% | -3.32% |
| Black | 20.78% | 21.61% | 3.99% |
| Hispanic | 1.63% | 2.5% | 53.37% |
| Two or More Races | 1.67% | 2.17% | 29.94% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0.74% | 0.9% | 21.62% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 0.4% | 0.52% | 30% |
Knight 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 Knight is British & Irish, which comprises 55.4% of all ancestry found in people with the surname. The next two most common ancestries are French & German (22.2%) and Scandinavian (3.3%). Additional ancestries include Eastern European, Nigerian, Italian, Spanish & Portuguese, and Ghanaian, Liberian & Sierra Leonean.
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| ANCESTRY BREAKDOWN | COMPOSITION |
|---|---|
| British & Irish | 55.4% |
| French & German | 22.2% |
| Scandinavian | 3.3% |
| Other | 19.1% |
Possible origins of the surname Knight
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 Knight have recent ancestry locations all within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
| RECENT ANCESTRY Location | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Greater London, United Kingdom | 87.80% |
| Glasgow City, United Kingdom | 87.70% |
| Merseyside, United Kingdom | 87.60% |
| Greater Manchester, United Kingdom | 87.40% |
| West Midlands, United Kingdom | 87.30% |
What Knight 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 Knight is R-U152, which is predominantly found among people with European ancestry. Haplogroup R-U152 is descended from haplogroup R-M343. Other common haplogroups include R-CTS241 and R-L257, which are predominantly found among people with European and European ancestry. Other surnames with similar common haplogroups are: Miller, Weber, Smith, Green, White, Thompson, Dennis, Brown, Dean, Weaver.
The most common maternal haplogroups of people with Knight surname are: H1, T2b, H. These most commonly trace back to individuals of European ancestry.
Paternal Haplogroup Origins R-M343Your 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 Knight 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.
"Knight" Surname 40.6%
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.
"Knight" Surname 27.2%
23andMe Users 27.9%
Habits
Sugary Drink
Drinks one or more sugary drinks per day.
"Knight" 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.
"Knight" Surname 18.2%
23andMe Users 16.4%
Are health conditions linked to the last name Knight?
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 Knight are shown below. Important Note: not everyone with a disease allele will develop these health condition