Explore the Family Name Paschal
The meaning of Paschal
1. English: from the Middle English personal name Pascal, derived from Old French Pasquale and ultimately from Latin Paschalis ‘pertaining to Easter’ (from pascha ‘Easter’, via Greek and Aramaic from Hebrew pesah ‘Passover’). This was popular as a personal name throughout Christian Europe in the Middle Ages, mainly in honor of the festival of Christ’s crucifixion and resurrection, often signifying someone born at Easter, but also in honor of a 9th-century pope and saint who bore the name. 2. French: variant of Pascal (a cognate of 1) and, in North America, (also) an altered form of this. 3. American shortened form of Greek Paschalis, which is of the same ultimate origin as 1 above, or of its patronymics and other derivatives, e.g. Paschalakis, Paschalides, Paschalidis, and Paschaloudis. Compare Pascal. 4. Americanized form of Italian Pasquale, also of the same ultimate origin as 1 above. History: Many Americans with the surname Paschal trace their ancestry back to an early immigrant Willam Paschall, who in the beginning of the 18th century lived in NJ and later moved to NC. His father was an Englishman from the vicinity of Bristol. The form Paschall was changed back to the original form Paschal after a generation or two and the latter is today characteristic for the US and very rare in Great Britain.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Paschal in the United States?
Based on data from the Decennial U.S. Census, the popularity of the surname Paschal saw a subtle shift between 2000 and 2010. While the ranking dipped by approximately 7.92% from 5290 in 2000 to 5709 in 2010, the actual count of individuals with the Paschal name increased slightly by 0.3%, moving from 6057 to 6075. The proportion per 100,000 people also decreased by 8.44%, indicating a slight decrease in its overall prevalence.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #5,290 | #5,709 | -7.92% |
| Count | 6,057 | 6,075 | 0.3% |
| Proportion per 100k | 2.25 | 2.06 | -8.44% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Paschal
Turning to ethnic identity, the census data reveals some changes within the distribution of the Paschal surname among different ethnic groups between 2000 and 2010. The percentage of bearers of the Paschal name who identified as Asian/Pacific Islander dropped significantly by nearly 40%. However, the percentage identifying as having two or more ethnicities rose by 35.79%. The proportions for those identifying as White and Black also saw minor changes, with a small decrease of 2.41% for White and a modest increase of 5.89% for Black. Meanwhile, Hispanic and American Indian/Alaskan Native representation also grew by 67.89% and 7.41% respectively. This data underscores the diversity and changing nature of America's ethnic landscape as seen through the lens of the Paschal surname.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 65.03% | 63.46% | -2.41% |
| Black | 27.67% | 29.3% | 5.89% |
| Two or More Races | 1.9% | 2.58% | 35.79% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 3.76% | 2.26% | -39.89% |
| Hispanic | 1.09% | 1.83% | 67.89% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0.54% | 0.58% | 7.41% |
Paschal 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 Paschal is British & Irish, which comprises 58.1% of all ancestry found in people with the surname. The next two most common ancestries are French & German (17.7%) and Nigerian (3.9%). Additional ancestries include Scandinavian, Eastern European, Spanish & Portuguese, Ghanaian, Liberian & Sierra Leonean, and Korean.
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| ANCESTRY BREAKDOWN | COMPOSITION |
|---|---|
| British & Irish | 58.1% |
| French & German | 17.7% |
| Nigerian | 3.9% |
| Other | 20.3% |
Possible origins of the surname Paschal
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 Paschal have recent ancestry locations all within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
| RECENT ANCESTRY Location | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Greater London, United Kingdom | 83.50% |
| Glasgow City, United Kingdom | 83.50% |
| West Midlands, United Kingdom | 82.50% |
| Tyne And Wear, United Kingdom | 82.50% |
| Greater Manchester, United Kingdom | 82.50% |
What Paschal 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 Paschal 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 Paschal surname are: H1, H, J1. 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 Paschal 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.
"Paschal" Surname 44.4%
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.
"Paschal" Surname 28.0%
23andMe Users 27.9%
Habits
Sugary Drink
Drinks one or more sugary drinks per day.
"Paschal" Surname 28.2%
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.
"Paschal" Surname 17.0%
23andMe Users 16.4%
Are health conditions linked to the last name Paschal?
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 Paschal are shown below. Important Note: not everyone with a disease allele will develop these health condition