Explore the Family Name Press
The meaning of Press
1. English: variant of Priest. 2. Welsh: variant of Preece. 3. German: variant of Presser. 4. Jewish (Ashkenazic): metonymic occupational name for someone who ironed clothes, from Yiddish pres ‘flat iron’. Some characteristic forenames: Jewish Meyer, Myer, Tova, Ari, Basya, Isak, Shalom, Shoshanna, Yakov.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Press in the United States?
Based on data from the Decennial U.S. Census, the surname Press has seen a slight decrease in popularity over the last decade. In 2000, it was ranked 8088th most common, but by 2010 it had fallen to 8308th place, marking a drop of 2.72 percent. Despite this decline in rank, the actual number of individuals bearing the surname increased from 3776 to 3989, an increase of 5.64 percent. The proportion of the population with the surname per 100,000 also saw a small decrease, falling from 1.4 in 2000 to 1.35 in 2010.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #8,088 | #8,308 | -2.72% |
| Count | 3,776 | 3,989 | 5.64% |
| Proportion per 100k | 1.4 | 1.35 | -3.57% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Press
The Decennial U.S. Census data also provides insights into the ethnic identity associated with the surname Press. There was an increase among those identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander and those reporting two or more races, rising by 20.97 percent and 81.82 percent respectively between 2000 and 2010. Those identifying as White or Black decreased slightly, down 1.25 percent and 11.42 percent respectively. The proportion of Hispanics with the surname Press increased by 34.88 percent, while American Indian and Alaskan Natives saw a modest increase of 20.69 percent.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 87.45% | 86.36% | -1.25% |
| Black | 7.44% | 6.59% | -11.42% |
| Hispanic | 2.81% | 3.79% | 34.88% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 1.24% | 1.5% | 20.97% |
| Two or More Races | 0.77% | 1.4% | 81.82% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0.29% | 0.35% | 20.69% |
Press 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 Press is Ashkenazi Jewish, which comprises 40.4% of all ancestry found in people with the surname. The next two most common ancestries are British & Irish (26.8%) and French & German (12.7%). Additional ancestries include Eastern European, Italian, Iranian, Caucasian & Mesopotamian, Scandinavian, and Spanish & Portuguese.
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| ANCESTRY BREAKDOWN | COMPOSITION |
|---|---|
| Ashkenazi Jewish | 40.4% |
| British & Irish | 26.8% |
| French & German | 12.7% |
| Other | 20.2% |
Possible origins of the surname Press
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 Press have recent ancestry locations in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and Ireland.
| RECENT ANCESTRY Location | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Greater Manchester, United Kingdom | 51.70% |
| Glasgow City, United Kingdom | 51.70% |
| Greater London, United Kingdom | 51.70% |
| West Midlands, United Kingdom | 51.00% |
| Tyne And Wear, United Kingdom | 51.00% |
What Press 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 Press is E-M34, which is predominantly found among people with European ancestry. Haplogroup E-M34 is descended from haplogroup E-M96. Other common haplogroups include G-M201 and J-CTS5368, which are predominantly found among people with European and European ancestry. Other surnames with similar common haplogroups are: Resnick, Strauss, Lazarus, Schwartz, Elias, Aronson, Markowitz, Sachs, Goldstein, Fein.
The most common maternal haplogroups of people with Press surname are: H1, HV, H. These most commonly trace back to individuals of European ancestry.
Paternal Haplogroup Origins E-M96
Your paternal lineage may be linked to Napolean Bonaparte
The French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte descended from the common ancestor of haplogroup E-M34. The male line of the Bonaparte family was from Tuscany, where Napoleon's earliest known male ancestors lived for at least six generations. Eleven generations before Napoleon, his ancestor, Giovanni, was the first to leave Tuscany for Corsica. The Bonaparte lineage lived in Corsica for ten generations before Napoleon's father, Charles-Marie Bonaparte. Charles-Marie (born in 1746) married Napoleon's mother, Letizia Ramolino, at the age of 18 in 1764.
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 Press 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.
"Press" Surname 40.0%
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.
"Press" Surname 16.7%
23andMe Users 27.9%
Habits
Sugary Drink
Drinks one or more sugary drinks per day.
"Press" Surname 27.0%
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.
"Press" Surname 15.1%
23andMe Users 16.4%
Are health conditions linked to the last name Press?
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 Press are shown below. Important Note: not everyone with a disease allele will develop these health condition