Explore the Family Name Ruelas

The meaning of Ruelas

Portuguese and Galician: habitational name from Ruelas in Lamego and Guimarãs or a topographic name from a plural diminutive of rua ‘street’. Some characteristic forenames: Spanish Jose, Jesus, Juan, Miguel, Salvador, Francisco, Raul, Manuel, Roberto, Andres, Jorge, Luis.

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

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

Based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the surname Ruelas has risen significantly in popularity from 2000 to 2010. In 2000, Ruelas was ranked 4,079th most popular surname with a count of 8,033. By 2010, the rank had climbed to 3,140th with an impressive 43.22% increase in count to reach 11,505. The proportion of people with the surname Ruelas per 100,000 also grew by 30.87%, indicating a substantial rise in its prevalence.

20002010Change
Rank#4,079#3,14023.02%
Count8,03311,50543.22%
Proportion per 100k2.983.930.87%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Ruelas

In terms of ethnicity, the Decennial U.S. Census data indicates some shifts between 2000 and 2010. Notably, the largest ethnic identity associated with the surname Ruelas is Hispanic, which increased slightly from 95.05% to 95.45%. There was a small growth in those identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander, rising from 0.44% to 0.62%. However, the proportions of those identifying as two or more races, White, Black, and American Indian and Alaskan Native all decreased. Particularly notable is the decline in those identifying as two or more races, which dropped by nearly 60%.

20002010Change
Hispanic95.05%95.45%0.42%
White3.47%3.23%-6.92%
Asian/Pacific Islander0.44%0.62%40.91%
American Indian and Alaskan Native0.41%0.39%-4.88%
Two or More Races0.42%0.17%-59.52%
Black0.21%0.14%-33.33%

Ruelas 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 Ruelas is Spanish & Portuguese, which comprises 39.3% of all ancestry found in people with the surname. The next two most common ancestries are Indigenous American (34.3%) and British & Irish (11.0%). Additional ancestries include French & German, Ashkenazi Jewish, Eastern European, Senegambian & Guinean, and Italian.

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ANCESTRY BREAKDOWNCOMPOSITION
Spanish & Portuguese39.3%
Indigenous American34.3%
British & Irish11.0%
Other15.4%
Ruelas

Possible origins of the surname Ruelas

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 Ruelas have recent ancestry locations all within Mexico.

RECENT ANCESTRY LocationPercentage
Aguascalientes, Mexico83.50%
Michoacan, Mexico83.50%
Zacatecas, Mexico83.50%
Veracruz, Mexico83.50%
Tamaulipas, Mexico83.50%

What Ruelas 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 Ruelas 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 Ruelas surname are: A2, H, B2. These most commonly trace back to individuals of European ancestry.

ruelasPaternal 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 some of the first Americans

Though the Ice Age was beginning to retreat when your A2 ancestors first entered North America, there were still massive barriers blocking their way. Glaciers and inhospitable climate covered much of the continent, blocking entry into the interior. Nonetheless, researchers have found evidence that a wave of American founders migrated over 13,000 kilometers to reach southern Chile in only 2,000 years, a blink of an eye in the story of human migration! Their highway to the south was the coast of the Pacific, stocked with fish, diverse marine mammals, and other valuable resources in the rich kelp forests of the upper latitudes and in the abundant fresh-water rivers near the equator. Because of this rapid movement south, the A2 haplogroup and its diverse branches are found throughout North and South America.

Maternal Haplo Image

What do people with the surname Ruelas 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

Ruelas

Chocolate Ice Cream

Prefers chocolate flavored ice cream over other flavors.

"Ruelas" Surname 40.7%

23andMe Users 41.3%

Traits

Ruelas

Misophonia

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

"Ruelas" Surname 31.8%

23andMe Users 27.9%

Habits

Ruelas

Sugary Drink

Drinks one or more sugary drinks per day.

"Ruelas" Surname 12.2%

23andMe Users 21.1%

Wellness

Ruelas

Migraine

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

"Ruelas" Surname 20.5%

23andMe Users 16.4%

Are health conditions linked to the last name Ruelas?

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 Ruelas 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

Spanish & Portuguese 56.3%

23andMe Users 57.2%