Explore the Family Name Vila
The meaning of Vila
1. Catalan: topographic name for someone who lived in a vila (see 3 below), which in Catalonia denoted a small town or village with certain privileges not common for villages, or a habitational name from any of the places called La Vila or Vila. This is one of the most common surnames in Catalonia. 2. Catalan (Vilà): variant of Vilar. 3. Galician and Portuguese: habitational name from any of the very numerous places called Vila, from vila ‘village, small town’ (from Latin villa ‘country house, estate’, later used of a group of houses forming a settlement). 4. Croatian, Serbian, and Bosniak: nickname from Croatian, Serbian, and Bosnian vila ‘fairy’. 5. Albanian: habitational name from Vilë (definite form Vila), the name of several villages in Albania. Some characteristic forenames: Spanish Jose, Carlos, Luis, Juan, Manuel, Jorge, Francisco, Pedro, Ramon, Eduardo, Efrain, Enrique.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Vila in the United States?
Based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the surname Vila has seen a steady rise in popularity from 2000 to 2010. In the year 2000, Vila ranked 11,538 in terms of popularity but climbed to 10,615 by 2010, which represents an 8% increase. The count of individuals with this last name also grew during this period, moving from 2,499 persons in 2000 to 3,016 in 2010, marking a substantial 20.69% increase. The proportion of people named Vila per 100,000 population also rose by 9.68%, reaching 1.02 in 2010 from 0.93 in 2000.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #11,538 | #10,615 | 8% |
| Count | 2,499 | 3,016 | 20.69% |
| Proportion per 100k | 0.93 | 1.02 | 9.68% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Vila
In terms of ethnic identity, the Decennial U.S. Census data reveals some shifts among those who bear the surname Vila between 2000 and 2010. The percentage of individuals identifying as Asian or Pacific Islander increased by 22.29%, reaching 5.87% in 2010. Those identifying as having two or more ethnic identities decreased by 25.89%, down to 0.83%. For those identifying as White, there was a slight decrease of 2.29%, resulting in 22.21% in 2010. Individuals identifying as Hispanic maintained the majority, with a minor decrease from 70.63% to 70.29%. There was a new appearance of individuals identifying as Black and American Indian or Alaskan Native within this surname, comprising 0.63% and 0.17% in 2010, respectively.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hispanic | 70.63% | 70.29% | -0.48% |
| White | 22.73% | 22.21% | -2.29% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 4.8% | 5.87% | 22.29% |
| Two or More Races | 1.12% | 0.83% | -25.89% |
| Black | 0% | 0.63% | 0% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0% | 0.17% | 0% |
Vila 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 Vila is Spanish & Portuguese, which comprises 51.8% of all ancestry found in people with the surname. The next two most common ancestries are Indigenous American (8.2%) and Greek & Balkan (6.9%). Additional ancestries include British & Irish, French & German, Italian, Ashkenazi Jewish, and Filipino & Austronesian.
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| ANCESTRY BREAKDOWN | COMPOSITION |
|---|---|
| Spanish & Portuguese | 51.8% |
| Indigenous American | 8.2% |
| Greek & Balkan | 6.9% |
| Other | 33.1% |
Possible origins of the surname Vila
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 Vila have recent ancestry locations in Spain and Cuba.
| RECENT ANCESTRY Location | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Andalusia, Spain | 46.70% |
| Galicia, Spain | 45.30% |
| Catalonia, Spain | 44.00% |
| Castile And Leon, Spain | 44.00% |
| Basque Country, Spain | 40.00% |
What Vila 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 Vila 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 Vila surname are: A2, H1, H. These most commonly trace back to individuals of European ancestry.
Paternal Haplogroup Origins O-M1359
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 the nomadic Tuareg of the Sahara
Though haplogroup H1 rarely reaches high frequencies beyond western Europe, over 60% of eastern Tuareg in Libya belong to haplogroup H1. The Tuareg call themselves the Imazghan, meaning “free people.” They are an isolated, semi-nomadic people who inhabit the West-Central Sahara and are known today for a distinctive dark blue turban worn by the men, and for their long history as gatekeepers of the desert.How did women carrying H1 make it all the way from western Europe to this isolated community? They likely migrated from Spain across the Strait of Gibraltar into Morocco after the Last Ice Age, where they were assimilated into the Berbers of the Mediterranean coast. Then, about 5,000 years ago, the Sahara shifted from a period of relative habitable conditions to its dramatically arid desert environment. This shift may have caused migrations throughout the Sahara, prompting the ancient Tuaregs to meet and mingle with the Berbers, bringing H1 lineages into their population.
What do people with the surname Vila 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.
"Vila" Surname 53.3%
23andMe Users 41.3%
Traits
Cheek Dimples
Small indentations that appear on the cheeks when a person smiles.
"Vila" Surname 45.5%
23andMe Users 37.6%
Wellness
Migraine
A severe headache characterized by intense pain, sensitivity to light and sound, and often accompanied by nausea and vomiting.
"Vila" Surname 12.9%
23andMe Users 16.4%
Are health conditions linked to the last name Vila?
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 Vila are shown below. Important Note: not everyone with a disease allele will develop these health condition