The surname Africa
A surname, carried by 509 people in the United States.
Pronounced /ˈæfɹɪkə/ 3 syllables Soundex A162
Origin
Inherited from Middle English Affrike, from Old French Affrique, Affrike, from Latin Āfrica, from Āfrī, singular Āfer (inhabitant of the country of Carthage), in turn either from: * The Punic or Phoenician word 𐤏𐤐𐤓 (ʿpr /ʿafar/, “dust”), from Proto-Semitic *ʕapar- (“dust, soil”), which has cognates in other Semitic languages. * The Berber word ifri (“cave”), plural ifran, in reference to cave dwellers of Tunisia (see Tataouine). Folk etymologies include: * Ancient Greek ἀ- (a-) + φρίκη f (phríkē), meaning "without cold" * Latin aprica (“sunny”).
Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).
How common it is
2010 US Census
There were 509 people named Africa in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 606,573 Americans. That is up 13% since 2000, when the Census counted 452.
Who is named Africa
Race and Hispanic origin as people reported it in the 2010 Census
50% of people named Africa identified as Asian and Pacific Islander, 36% as white (not Hispanic) and 7.5% as Black (not Hispanic).
- Asian and Pacific Islander 50%
- White (not Hispanic) 36%
- Black (not Hispanic) 7.5%
- Two or more races 3.1%
- Hispanic or Latino (any race) 3.0%
Compare: most common surnames among Asian and Pacific Islander Americans.
Spellings and sound-alikes
Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling
Variant spellings
- Afrika
- Affrike
- Afric
- Africk
- Afficky
Africa has the Soundex code A162, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code A162.
Questions
- Where does the surname Africa come from?
- Inherited from Middle English Affrike, from Old French Affrique, Affrike, from Latin Āfrica, from Āfrī, singular Āfer (inhabitant of the country of Carthage), in turn either from: * The Punic or Phoenician word 𐤏𐤐𐤓 (ʿpr /ʿafar/, “dust”), from Proto-Semitic *ʕapar- (“dust, soil”), which has…
- How common is the surname Africa?
- 509 people in the United States had the surname Africa in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 606,573 Americans. It ranked 42,579th of 162,253 surnames.
- What ethnicity is the surname Africa?
- In the 2010 Census, 50% of people named Africa identified as Asian and Pacific Islander, and 36% as white (not Hispanic).
- How do you pronounce Africa?
- Africa is /ˈæfɹɪkə/, 3 syllables.
- Is the surname Africa getting more or less common?
- More common. 452 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 509 in 2010, up 13%.
- What are other spellings of Africa?
- Afrika, Affrike, Afric, Africk and Afficky.