Explore the Family Name Shirey

The meaning of Shirey

1. Americanized form of German Scheurer and possibly also of some other German name. 2. Irish: variant of Shirra, a shortened Anglicized form of Mac Séartha ‘son of Geoffrey’ (see Sherry). 3. Irish: in the midlands and north, possibly an Anglicized form of Gaelic Ó Siochfhradha (see Sugrue).

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

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

Based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the surname Shirey has seen a moderate change in popularity between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, Shirey was ranked as the 5487th most popular surname and by 2010 it had slipped to 5757th, denoting a decrease of 4.92%. However, despite the drop in rank, the absolute count of individuals with the surname actually increased from 5829 to 6020, a growth of 3.28%. The proportion per 100,000 people also decreased slightly from 2.16 in 2000 to 2.04 in 2010, illustrating a decline of 5.56%.

20002010Change
Rank#5,487#5,757-4.92%
Count5,8296,0203.28%
Proportion per 100k2.162.04-5.56%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Shirey

When it comes to ethnicity, there have been some noticeable shifts among those carrying the Shirey surname between 2000 and 2010, according to the Decennial U.S. Census. In 2000, a large majority, 96.72%, identified as White, but this percentage declined marginally to 95.61% by 2010. The Hispanic identity experienced significant growth, increasing from 1.05% in 2000 to 1.78% in 2010. Other ethnic identities like Asian/Pacific Islander and Black also saw increases, rising from 0.33% to 0.43% and 0.27% to 0.42% respectively. Simultaneously, the percentage of people identifying as American Indian and Alaskan Native declined slightly from 0.55% to 0.53%.

20002010Change
White96.72%95.61%-1.15%
Hispanic1.05%1.78%69.52%
Two or More Races1.08%1.23%13.89%
American Indian and Alaskan Native0.55%0.53%-3.64%
Asian/Pacific Islander0.33%0.43%30.3%
Black0.27%0.42%55.56%

Shirey 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 Shirey is British & Irish, which comprises 46.0% of all ancestry found in people with the surname. The next two most common ancestries are French & German (37.1%) and Eastern European (2.8%). Additional ancestries include Scandinavian, Italian, Spanish & Portuguese, Ashkenazi Jewish, and Indigenous American.

Ready to learn more about your ancestry? Get the most comprehensive ancestry breakdown on the market by taking our DNA test. Shop 23andMe

ANCESTRY BREAKDOWNCOMPOSITION
British & Irish46.0%
French & German37.1%
Eastern European2.8%
Other14.1%
Shirey

Possible origins of the surname Shirey

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

RECENT ANCESTRY LocationPercentage
Greater Manchester, United Kingdom91.20%
Greater London, United Kingdom91.20%
Tyne And Wear, United Kingdom91.20%
West Midlands, United Kingdom91.20%
Merseyside, United Kingdom91.20%

What Shirey 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 Shirey 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 T-Z709 and R-CTS241, which are predominantly found among people with European and European ancestry. Other surnames with similar common haplogroups are: Tobias, Rabinowitz, Moskowitz, Stevens, Pearlman, Press, Gluck, Eisner, Perlman, Korn.

The most common maternal haplogroups of people with Shirey surname are: H1, T2b, H. These most commonly trace back to individuals of European ancestry.

shireyPaternal Haplogroup Origins E-M96
Paternal Haplo Image

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.

Maternal Haplo Image

What do people with the surname Shirey 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

Shirey

Chocolate Ice Cream

Prefers chocolate flavored ice cream over other flavors.

"Shirey" Surname 35.8%

23andMe Users 41.3%

Traits

Shirey

Misophonia

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

"Shirey" Surname 31.1%

23andMe Users 27.9%

Habits

Shirey

Sugary Drink

Drinks one or more sugary drinks per day.

"Shirey" Surname 15.0%

23andMe Users 21.1%

Wellness

Shirey

Migraine

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

"Shirey" Surname 15.3%

23andMe Users 16.4%

Are health conditions linked to the last name Shirey?

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 Shirey 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

British & Irish 62.1%

23andMe Users 57.2%