Explore the Family Name Rubin

The meaning of Rubin

1. Jewish (Ashkenazic): from the Hebrew personal name Reuven, Biblical Reuben, interpreted in Genesis 29:32 as reu ‘behold’ + ben ‘son’. This Biblical name influenced the selection of Ashkenazic surnames, such as Rubinfeld, that are ostensibly derived from the German, Yiddish, Polish, Ukrainian, and Russian vocabulary word rubin ‘ruby’ (see 2 below). See also 5 below. 2. German, French, Slovenian, and Croatian; Czech and Slovak (Rubín): from Middle High German rubn, Old French rubi, Slovenian and Croatian rubin, Czech and Slovak rubín ‘ruby’ (all ultimately from Late Latin rubinus lapis, a derivative of rubeus ‘red’), probably used as a metonymic occupational name for a jeweler. 3. German and Swiss German: from a pet form of the personal name Ruprecht (see Rupprecht). 4. East German (of Sorbian origin) and Sorbian: habitational name from Ruben (Sorbian Rubyn) near Cottbus (Chóśebuz) in Lusatia. Compare Ruben 2. 5. Czech (Rubín) and Welsh: from a variant of the Biblical personal name Ruben (Czech), Reuben (English); see 1 above. 6. English: variant of Ruby, a cognate of 2 above. 7. Italian: variant of Rubino. Some characteristic forenames: Jewish Hyman, Meyer, Chaim, Emanuel, Isadore, Myer, Moshe, Yael, Dov, Ari.

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

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

According to data from the Decennial U.S. Census, the surname Rubin has seen a slight decline in popularity between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, Rubin was ranked 1425th most popular surname in the United States, but by 2010 it had slipped to the 1553rd position, marking an 8.98% drop. However, the actual count of individuals with this surname saw a marginal increase from 22,969 in 2000 to 23,165 in 2010, reflecting a growth rate of 0.85%. The proportion of people named Rubin per 100k decreased by 7.76%.

20002010Change
Rank#1,425#1,553-8.98%
Count22,96923,1650.85%
Proportion per 100k8.517.85-7.76%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Rubin

As for the ethnicity associated with the surname Rubin, based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, there have been some shifts over the decade from 2000 to 2010. Those identifying as White still constitute the majority at 88.22% in 2010, although this was a 2.04% decrease from 2000. The percentage of Asian/Pacific Islander, Hispanic, Black, and American Indian and Alaskan Native individuals bearing the Rubin surname all increased during this period. Asian/Pacific Islanders experienced the most significant growth at 52.81%, followed by Hispanics at 37.28%, American Indian and Alaskan Natives at 42.86%, and Blacks at 6.28%. Those reporting two or more races also grew by 11.50%.

20002010Change
White90.06%88.22%-2.04%
Black5.57%5.92%6.28%
Hispanic2.28%3.13%37.28%
Asian/Pacific Islander0.89%1.36%52.81%
Two or More Races1.13%1.26%11.5%
American Indian and Alaskan Native0.07%0.1%42.86%

Rubin 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 Rubin is Ashkenazi Jewish, which comprises 58.6% of all ancestry found in people with the surname. The next two most common ancestries are British & Irish (15.1%) and French & German (8.7%). Additional ancestries include Italian, Eastern European, Spanish & Portuguese, Scandinavian, and Iranian, Caucasian & Mesopotamian.

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ANCESTRY BREAKDOWNCOMPOSITION
Ashkenazi Jewish58.6%
British & Irish15.1%
French & German8.7%
Other17.6%
Rubin

Possible origins of the surname Rubin

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 Rubin have recent ancestry locations in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and Ireland.

RECENT ANCESTRY LocationPercentage
Greater London, United Kingdom37.70%
Merseyside, United Kingdom37.40%
Greater Manchester, United Kingdom37.30%
Glasgow City, United Kingdom37.30%
West Midlands, United Kingdom36.40%

What Rubin 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 Rubin is J-CTS5368, which is predominantly found among people with European ancestry. Haplogroup J-CTS5368 is descended from haplogroup J-M304. Other common haplogroups include E-L791 and E-L29, which are predominantly found among people with European and European ancestry. Other surnames with similar common haplogroups are: Goldberg, Friedman, Rosen, Goldstein, Silverman, Berman, Rosenberg, Bernstein, Weiss, Feldman.

The most common maternal haplogroups of people with Rubin surname are: K1a1b1a, H1, H. These most commonly trace back to individuals of European ancestry.

rubinPaternal Haplogroup Origins J-M304
Paternal Haplo Image

Your paternal lineage may be linked to men who spread the Semitic languages

Men carrying the J-M267 lineage took part in many waves of migrations over the millennia, and domesticated animals and plants weren't the only things they carried. They may also have been among the communities that spread the Semitic languages, a diverse group that bloomed from a single proto-Semitic tongue in the Levant nearly 5,750 years ago. These men likely carried branches of both haplogroup J and of the Semitic language family through the Arabian Peninsula to the Horn of Africa. Still later, some J-M267-bearing men re-expanded from the Arabian Peninsula back through the Middle East and across North Africa in migrations associated with the emergence and spread of Islam.

Your maternal lineage may be linked to many people of Ashkenazi Jewish descent

A few branches of haplogroup K, such as K1a9, K2a2a, and K1a1b1a, are specific to Jewish populations and especially to Ashkenazi Jews, whose roots lie in central and eastern Europe. These branches of haplogroup K are found at levels of 30% among the Ashkenazim. But they are also found at lower levels in Jewish populations from the Middle East and Africa, and among Sephardic Jews who trace their roots to medieval Spain. That indicates an origin of those K haplogroup branches in the Middle East before 70 AD, when the Roman destruction of Jerusalem scattered the Jewish people around the Mediterranean and beyond.About 1.7 million Ashkenazi Jews living today (nearly 20% of the population) share a single branch of the K haplogroup, K1a1b1a. The diversity of that haplogroup suggests that it arose in the Middle East between 2,000 and 3,000 years ago, and that everyone who shares it today could descend from a woman who lived as recently as 700 years ago. A similar pattern in two other K branches, K1a9 and K2a2, as well as the N1b branch of haplogroup N, has led researchers to conclude that 40% of the Ashkenazim living today – about 3.4 million people – could descend from as few as four women who lived within the last 2,000 years.

Maternal Haplo Image

What do people with the surname Rubin 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

Rubin

Chocolate Ice Cream

Prefers chocolate flavored ice cream over other flavors.

"Rubin" Surname 45.2%

23andMe Users 41.3%

Traits

Rubin

Misophonia

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

"Rubin" Surname 24.8%

23andMe Users 27.9%

Habits

Rubin

Sugary Drink

Drinks one or more sugary drinks per day.

"Rubin" Surname 13.7%

23andMe Users 21.1%

Wellness

Rubin

Migraine

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

"Rubin" Surname 15.8%

23andMe Users 16.4%

Are health conditions linked to the last name Rubin?

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 Rubin 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

Ashkenazi Jewish 57.0%

23andMe Users 57.2%