Explore the Family Name Pickens
The meaning of Pickens
1. Scottish and Irish: variant of Picken. 2. Possibly also an altered form of French Picon. History: General Andrew Pickens (1739–1817) of the American Revolution was a great grandson of Robert (Andrew) Pickens alias Robert (André) Picon, reportedly a Huguenot who in 1685 left France to avoid religious persecution and settled briefly in Scotland and finally in Northern Ireland. The name of this ancestor is listed in the (US) National Huguenot Society’s register of qualified Huguenot ancestors, where he is said to have been born in France to André Picon, while some other sources claim he was a Scotsman who, having married a French Huguenot woman, lived in France until 1685.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Pickens in the United States?
Based on the Decennial U.S. Census, the surname Pickens saw a slight decrease in popularity between 2000 and 2010, with its rank falling by 2.91% from 2133 to 2195. However, the number of people bearing the Pickens surname increased by 6.28%, rising from 15,597 to 16,577 individuals. The proportion per 100,000 people also dropped slightly by 2.77%, indicating that while the overall count increased, the density of this surname within the population reduced slightly.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #2,133 | #2,195 | -2.91% |
| Count | 15,597 | 16,577 | 6.28% |
| Proportion per 100k | 5.78 | 5.62 | -2.77% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Pickens
In terms of ethnic identity, data from the Decennial U.S. Census reveals shifts among those with the Pickens surname between 2000 and 2010. The percentage identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander and Hispanic grew by 53.57% and 51.59% respectively, albeit from a small base. Those acknowledging two or more races rose by 45.45%. There was a minor increase in the percentage identifying as Black (1.14%) and American Indian and Alaskan Native (28.07%). Meanwhile, the percentage of individuals identifying as White decreased by 3.65%. These shifts suggest an increasing diversity in the ethnicity of individuals with the Pickens surname.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 58.63% | 56.49% | -3.65% |
| Black | 37.6% | 38.03% | 1.14% |
| Two or More Races | 1.65% | 2.4% | 45.45% |
| Hispanic | 1.26% | 1.91% | 51.59% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0.57% | 0.73% | 28.07% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 0.28% | 0.43% | 53.57% |
Pickens 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 Pickens is British & Irish, which comprises 52.5% of all ancestry found in people with the surname. The next two most common ancestries are French & German (21.7%) and Nigerian (6.2%). Additional ancestries include Ghanaian, Liberian & Sierra Leonean, Italian, Scandinavian, Angolan & Congolese, and Eastern European.
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| ANCESTRY BREAKDOWN | COMPOSITION |
|---|---|
| British & Irish | 52.5% |
| French & German | 21.7% |
| Nigerian | 6.2% |
| Other | 19.6% |
Possible origins of the surname Pickens
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 Pickens have recent ancestry locations in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and Ireland.
| RECENT ANCESTRY Location | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Greater London, United Kingdom | 77.20% |
| Greater Manchester, United Kingdom | 77.20% |
| Merseyside, United Kingdom | 77.20% |
| West Midlands, United Kingdom | 76.50% |
| Lancashire, United Kingdom | 76.50% |
What Pickens 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 Pickens is J-M67, which is predominantly found among people with European ancestry. Haplogroup J-M67 is descended from haplogroup J-M304. Other common haplogroups include R-CTS241 and E-P252, which are predominantly found among people with European and Sub-Saharan African ancestry. Other surnames with similar common haplogroups are: Yancey, Lavin, Isom, Ison, Vassallo, Porto, Piazza, Wilkie, Godinez, Laroche.
The most common maternal haplogroups of people with Pickens surname are: H1, T2b, H. These most commonly trace back to individuals of European ancestry.
Paternal Haplogroup Origins J-M304Your 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 Pickens 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.
"Pickens" Surname 46.1%
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.
"Pickens" Surname 20.5%
23andMe Users 27.9%
Habits
Sugary Drink
Drinks one or more sugary drinks per day.
"Pickens" Surname 20.5%
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.
"Pickens" Surname 14.7%
23andMe Users 16.4%
Are health conditions linked to the last name Pickens?
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 Pickens are shown below. Important Note: not everyone with a disease allele will develop these health condition