Explore the Family Name Landis
The meaning of Landis
1. Swiss German and South German: nickname for a highwayman or for someone who lays waste to the land, Middle High German landoese. The surname of Swiss German origin is also found in France (Alsace), where it is rare. Compare Landes and Lantis. 2. Americanized form of German Landers 3. Alternatively, an altered form of Landers 4. Compare Landess. History: The ancestor of many of the Americans with the surname Landis was Christopher (or Christian) Landis or Landers from Germany who settled in VA (now WV) in the middle of the 18th century and later moved to NC. The original form of his surname is not known; both the surnames Landis and Landers are found in Germany and they are both established among his descendants, as is the (other) Americanized form Landess. — This is also the name of a Swiss Mennonite family, originating from the canton of Zurich, whose members settled, after the expulsion from Switzerland in the 17th century, in the Palatinate, Germany, and in Alsace, France, or immigrated to America. In both Germany and America the change of the name from Landis to Landes occured. In the first half of the 18th century there were several Mennonites named Landis or Landes who immigrated to PA. The town of Landisville in Lancaster County, PA, is named for one of them.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Landis in the United States?
Based on the Decennial U.S. Census, the surname Landis has seen a slight decrease in popularity between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, Landis was ranked as the 1792nd most common surname in the United States, with 18,388 occurrences. Ten years later, its rank has slipped to 1912, despite the count of people bearing this surname rising slightly to 18,826. This indicates that other surnames have become more prevalent during this period. The proportion of Landis per 100,000 people also decreased by 6.45 percent over the decade.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #1,792 | #1,912 | -6.7% |
| Count | 18,388 | 18,826 | 2.38% |
| Proportion per 100k | 6.82 | 6.38 | -6.45% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Landis
As for the ethnic identities associated with the surname Landis, the Decennial U.S. Census data shows some interesting changes between 2000 and 2010. The majority of individuals with this surname identified as White, although the percentage dropped from 95.52 percent to 94.41 percent over the ten-year span. There was a significant increase in those identifying as Hispanic, from 0.96 percent to 1.55 percent, marking a 61.46 percent change. Similarly, there were increases in those identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander and those reporting two or more races. Conversely, the percentage of American Indian and Alaskan Native Landis holders declined by 7.89 percent while the Black population with this surname saw a modest increase of 4.85 percent.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 95.52% | 94.41% | -1.16% |
| Black | 1.65% | 1.73% | 4.85% |
| Hispanic | 0.96% | 1.55% | 61.46% |
| Two or More Races | 1.09% | 1.45% | 33.03% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 0.39% | 0.53% | 35.9% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0.38% | 0.35% | -7.89% |
Landis 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 Landis is French & German, which comprises 43.7% of all ancestry found in people with the surname. The next two most common ancestries are British & Irish (35.0%) and Ashkenazi Jewish (5.3%). Additional ancestries include Eastern European, Scandinavian, Italian, Spanish & Portuguese, and Greek & Balkan.
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| ANCESTRY BREAKDOWN | COMPOSITION |
|---|---|
| French & German | 43.7% |
| British & Irish | 35.0% |
| Ashkenazi Jewish | 5.3% |
| Other | 16.0% |
Possible origins of the surname Landis
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 Landis have recent ancestry locations in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and Ireland.
| RECENT ANCESTRY Location | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Greater London, United Kingdom | 76.40% |
| Glasgow City, United Kingdom | 75.90% |
| Greater Manchester, United Kingdom | 75.90% |
| Merseyside, United Kingdom | 75.70% |
| West Midlands, United Kingdom | 75.70% |
What Landis 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 Landis is I-F2642, which is predominantly found among people with European ancestry. Haplogroup I-F2642 is descended from haplogroup I-M170. Other common haplogroups include I-M253 and R-CTS241, which are predominantly found among people with European and European ancestry. Other surnames with similar common haplogroups are: Cornelison, Felts, Olney, Moxley, Bolduc, Greiner, Neufeld, Ashworth, Landes, Abell.
The most common maternal haplogroups of people with Landis 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 Landis 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.
"Landis" Surname 39.6%
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.
"Landis" Surname 24.3%
23andMe Users 27.9%
Habits
Sugary Drink
Drinks one or more sugary drinks per day.
"Landis" Surname 18.9%
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.
"Landis" Surname 19.7%
23andMe Users 16.4%
Are health conditions linked to the last name Landis?
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 Landis are shown below. Important Note: not everyone with a disease allele will develop these health condition