Explore the Family Name Starkey
The meaning of Starkey
1. English: habitational name from a lost or unidentified place, probably in Lancashire. This English surname has been established in Ireland (Dublin) since the 14th century. 2. English: variant of Starkin, itself perhaps from an unrecorded Old French personal name Starkin, a pet form of ancient Germanic names beginning in Stark- ‘strong’, such as Starc(w)ulf and Starcher, both of which appear in 1086 as names of Domesday Book tenants in East Anglia: Starcolf (Norfolk) and Starker (Suffolk). However, no medieval evidence for Starkin as a personal name or a surname has been found. An alternative possibility is a derivation from an unrecorded Middle English starking ‘strong one’ (see Stark), but in the absence of any medieval evidence this is highly conjectural. 3. Altered form of German Starke, written thus to preserve the second syllable.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Starkey in the United States?
Based on data from the Decennial U.S. Census, the popularity of the surname Starkey experienced a slight dip between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, the surname was ranked 2,297th in popularity, but it dropped to 2,415th in 2010, marking a decrease of 5.14%. Despite this decline in rank, the total count of individuals with the Starkey surname actually rose from 14,483 in 2000 to 15,004 in 2010, indicating a growth rate of 3.6%. However, when considering the proportion per 100,000 people, the popularity of the surname also decreased slightly from 5.37 in 2000 to 5.09 in 2010.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #2,297 | #2,415 | -5.14% |
| Count | 14,483 | 15,004 | 3.6% |
| Proportion per 100k | 5.37 | 5.09 | -5.21% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Starkey
As for the ethnic identity associated with the surname Starkey, the Decennial U.S. Census data reveals some interesting shifts. The majority of individuals with the Starkey surname identified as White in both 2000 and 2010, though there was a small decrease from 90.40% to 88.28%. The percentage identifying as Black grew from 5.53% to 6.35%, and those identifying as having two or more ethnicities increased from 1.28% to 1.79%. There was also an upswing in the number of individuals who identified as Hispanic, moving from 1.44% in 2000 to 2.15% in 2010. Meanwhile, those identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander also saw a rise from 0.51% to 0.63%, while the proportion of American Indian and Alaskan Native held steady around 0.8%.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 90.4% | 88.28% | -2.35% |
| Black | 5.53% | 6.35% | 14.83% |
| Hispanic | 1.44% | 2.15% | 49.31% |
| Two or More Races | 1.28% | 1.79% | 39.84% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0.84% | 0.8% | -4.76% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 0.51% | 0.63% | 23.53% |
Starkey 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 Starkey is British & Irish, which comprises 52.8% of all ancestry found in people with the surname. The next two most common ancestries are French & German (26.3%) and Eastern European (4.7%). Additional ancestries include Scandinavian, Italian, Spanish & Portuguese, Indigenous American, and Nigerian.
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| ANCESTRY BREAKDOWN | COMPOSITION |
|---|---|
| British & Irish | 52.8% |
| French & German | 26.3% |
| Eastern European | 4.7% |
| Other | 16.3% |
Possible origins of the surname Starkey
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 Starkey have recent ancestry locations in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and Ireland.
| RECENT ANCESTRY Location | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Merseyside, United Kingdom | 90.20% |
| Greater London, United Kingdom | 90.20% |
| Greater Manchester, United Kingdom | 90.20% |
| West Midlands, United Kingdom | 89.90% |
| Glasgow City, United Kingdom | 89.90% |
What Starkey 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 Starkey is R-L238, which is predominantly found among people with European ancestry. Haplogroup R-L238 is descended from haplogroup R-M343. Other common haplogroups include R-M467 and R-CTS241, which are predominantly found among people with European and European ancestry. Other surnames with similar common haplogroups are: Stowell, Tenney, Reedy, Townley, Asher, Horner, Buck, Floyd, Rex, Simpson.
The most common maternal haplogroups of people with Starkey surname are: H1, T2b, H. These most commonly trace back to individuals of European ancestry.
Paternal Haplogroup Origins R-M343Your 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 Starkey 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.
"Starkey" Surname 40.4%
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.
"Starkey" Surname 29.8%
23andMe Users 27.9%
Habits
Sugary Drink
Drinks one or more sugary drinks per day.
"Starkey" Surname 24.8%
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.
"Starkey" Surname 15.7%
23andMe Users 16.4%
Are health conditions linked to the last name Starkey?
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 Starkey are shown below. Important Note: not everyone with a disease allele will develop these health condition