Explore the Family Name Nunnally

The meaning of Nunnally

Irish: probably a variant of Munnelly.

Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.

How common is the last name Nunnally in the United States?

Based on the Decennial U.S. Census, the surname Nunnally saw a slight decline in popularity between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, Nunnally ranked as the 7,680th most popular surname in the United States, but by 2010, it fell to the 8,168th position, indicating a 6.35% decrease in rank. However, the actual count of people with this surname increased marginally from 3,997 in 2000 to 4,058 in 2010, reflecting a 1.53% increase. The proportion of the population with this surname per 100,000 also dropped by 6.76% over this period.

20002010Change
Rank#7,680#8,168-6.35%
Count3,9974,0581.53%
Proportion per 100k1.481.38-6.76%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Nunnally

As for ethnic identity, according to the Decennial U.S. Census, the majority of individuals with the surname Nunnally identified as White in both 2000 and 2010, though there was a small decrease (5.55%) across these years. There are also significant percentages identifying as Black, showing a slight increase from 29.52% in 2000 to 30.93% in 2010. Other ethnic identities also showed changes: there was a notable increase in those identifying as having two or more races, going from 1.43% in 2000 to 2.61% in 2010 — an increase of 82.52%. In 2000, only 0.48% identified as Asian/Pacific Islander, but this percentage rose to 0.57% in 2010, representing an 18.75% increase. The Hispanic identity also saw a marked rise from 1.20% in 2000 to 2.14% in 2010, demonstrating a growth of 78.33%. Lastly, those identifying as American Indian and Alaskan Native also saw a 30.00% increase, though they remain a small percentage of the total.

20002010Change
White67.08%63.36%-5.55%
Black29.52%30.93%4.78%
Two or More Races1.43%2.61%82.52%
Hispanic1.2%2.14%78.33%
Asian/Pacific Islander0.48%0.57%18.75%
American Indian and Alaskan Native0.3%0.39%30%

Nunnally 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 Nunnally is British & Irish, which comprises 57.3% of all ancestry found in people with the surname. The next two most common ancestries are French & German (18.9%) and Nigerian (5.0%). Additional ancestries include Spanish & Portuguese, Scandinavian, Ghanaian, Liberian & Sierra Leonean, Angolan & Congolese, and Eastern European.

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ANCESTRY BREAKDOWNCOMPOSITION
British & Irish57.3%
French & German18.9%
Nigerian5.0%
Other18.8%
Nunnally

Possible origins of the surname Nunnally

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 Nunnally have recent ancestry locations all within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

RECENT ANCESTRY LocationPercentage
Glasgow City, United Kingdom87.80%
Tyne And Wear, United Kingdom87.80%
Greater London, United Kingdom87.80%
Greater Manchester, United Kingdom87.80%
Merseyside, United Kingdom86.60%

What Nunnally 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 Nunnally 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 Nunnally surname are: H1, T2b, H. These most commonly trace back to individuals of European ancestry.

nunnallyPaternal Haplogroup Origins O-M1359
Paternal Haplo Image

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 the nomadic Tuareg of the Sahara

Though haplogroup H1 rarely reaches high frequencies beyond western Europe, over 60% of eastern Tuareg in Libya belong to haplogroup H1. The Tuareg call themselves the Imazghan, meaning “free people.” They are an isolated, semi-nomadic people who inhabit the West-Central Sahara and are known today for a distinctive dark blue turban worn by the men, and for their long history as gatekeepers of the desert.How did women carrying H1 make it all the way from western Europe to this isolated community? They likely migrated from Spain across the Strait of Gibraltar into Morocco after the Last Ice Age, where they were assimilated into the Berbers of the Mediterranean coast. Then, about 5,000 years ago, the Sahara shifted from a period of relative habitable conditions to its dramatically arid desert environment. This shift may have caused migrations throughout the Sahara, prompting the ancient Tuaregs to meet and mingle with the Berbers, bringing H1 lineages into their population.

Maternal Haplo Image

What do people with the surname Nunnally 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

Nunnally

Chocolate Ice Cream

Prefers chocolate flavored ice cream over other flavors.

"Nunnally" Surname 52.4%

23andMe Users 41.3%

Traits

Nunnally

Misophonia

When sounds made by others, like the sound of chewing or yawning, provoke strong emotional reactions in an individual.

"Nunnally" Surname 29.4%

23andMe Users 27.9%

Habits

Nunnally

Sugary Drink

Drinks one or more sugary drinks per day.

"Nunnally" Surname 37.0%

23andMe Users 21.1%

Wellness

Nunnally

Migraine

A severe headache characterized by intense pain, sensitivity to light and sound, and often accompanied by nausea and vomiting.

"Nunnally" Surname 18.2%

23andMe Users 16.4%

Are health conditions linked to the last name Nunnally?

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 Nunnally are shown below. Important Note: not everyone with a disease allele will develop these health condition

Age-Related Macular Degeneration

Y402H variant

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the most common cause of irreversible vision loss among older adults. The disease results in damage to the central part of the retina (the macula), impairing vision needed for reading, driving, or even recognizing faces. The 23andMe Health + Ancestry DNA test includes the two most common variants associated with an increased risk of developing the condition: the Y402H variant in the CFH gene and the A69S variant in the ARMS2 gene. Learn more about Age-Related Macular Degeneration

British & Irish 62.1%

23andMe Users 57.2%