Explore the Family Name Sternberg

The meaning of Sternberg

1. German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): habitational name from any ofvarious places so named all over Germany. 2. Jewish (Ashkenazic): artificial name from German Stern ‘star’ + Berg ‘mountain, hill’. Some characteristic forenames: Jewish Aizik, Chaim, Emanuel, Shlomo, Ari, Aron, Eytan, Faina, Hyman, Isadore, Menachem, Meyer. German Armin, Hans, Bernhard, Claus, Helmut, Herwig, Hilde, Kurt, Manfred, Oskar, Otto, Siegfried.

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

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

Based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the popularity of the surname Sternberg saw a minor shift between 2000 and 2010. The rank of the surname dropped from 7920 to 8405, marking a decrease of 6.12%. Despite this fall in rank, the actual count of people with the Sternberg surname increased slightly from 3,875 to 3,935 – an increase of 1.55%. However, when considering proportion per 100,000, there was a decrease of 7.64%, taking the figure from 1.44 in 2000 to 1.33 in 2010.

20002010Change
Rank#7,920#8,405-6.12%
Count3,8753,9351.55%
Proportion per 100k1.441.33-7.64%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Sternberg

On the ethnic identity front, the Sternberg surname showed some significant changes over the same decade, again according to the Decennial U.S. Census data. While White ethnicity remained dominant at 95.63% in 2010, it did show a slight decrease from 97.39% in 2000. There was a notable rise in those identifying as Hispanic with the surname Sternberg, jumping by 120.75% to reach 2.34% in 2010. People of Asian/Pacific Islander identity with the Sternberg surname also rose by 21.54% to make up 0.79% of the total. An increase was seen in those identifying as having two or more ethnicities, up by a significant 81.63% to 0.89%. In contrast, fewer people identified as Black or American Indian and Alaskan Native with these figures dropping by 16.67% and 13.04% respectively.

20002010Change
White97.39%95.63%-1.81%
Hispanic1.06%2.34%120.75%
Two or More Races0.49%0.89%81.63%
Asian/Pacific Islander0.65%0.79%21.54%
American Indian and Alaskan Native0.23%0.2%-13.04%
Black0.18%0.15%-16.67%

Sternberg 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 Sternberg is Ashkenazi Jewish, which comprises 46.3% of all ancestry found in people with the surname. The next two most common ancestries are British & Irish (23.1%) and French & German (16.3%). Additional ancestries include Scandinavian, Eastern European, Italian, Spanish & Portuguese, and Indigenous American.

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ANCESTRY BREAKDOWNCOMPOSITION
Ashkenazi Jewish46.3%
British & Irish23.1%
French & German16.3%
Other14.3%
Sternberg

Possible origins of the surname Sternberg

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

RECENT ANCESTRY LocationPercentage
Greater London, United Kingdom50.70%
Glasgow City, United Kingdom50.70%
Merseyside, United Kingdom50.00%
West Midlands, United Kingdom50.00%
Lancashire, United Kingdom50.00%

What Sternberg 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 Sternberg is G-M377, which is predominantly found among people with European ancestry. Haplogroup G-M377 is descended from haplogroup G-M201. Other common haplogroups include R-M417 and R-P312, which are predominantly found among people with European and European ancestry. Other surnames with similar common haplogroups are: Mandel, Loeb, Levinson, Pollack, Lerner, Frankel, Ehrlich, Silverstein, Rosenfeld, Weiner.

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

sternbergPaternal Haplogroup Origins G-M201

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 Sternberg 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

Sternberg

Chocolate Ice Cream

Prefers chocolate flavored ice cream over other flavors.

"Sternberg" Surname 26.1%

23andMe Users 41.3%

Traits

Sternberg

Misophonia

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

"Sternberg" Surname 19.4%

23andMe Users 27.9%

Habits

Sternberg

Sugary Drink

Drinks one or more sugary drinks per day.

"Sternberg" Surname 32.0%

23andMe Users 21.1%

Wellness

Sternberg

Migraine

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

"Sternberg" Surname 22.6%

23andMe Users 16.4%

Are health conditions linked to the last name Sternberg?

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 Sternberg 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%