Meghan, Duchess of Sussex

Meghan, Duchess of Sussex in 2014, photo by kathclick /Bigstock.com

Birth Name: Rachel Meghan Markle

Place of Birth: Los Angeles, California, United States

Date of Birth: August 4, 1981

Ethnicity:
*father – German, English, Irish, Scottish, Scots-Irish/Northern Irish, and remote French
*mother – African-American

Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, previously known as Meghan Markle, is an American actress, model, author, and humanitarian. She has starred on the show Suits, appeared in the films Remember Me, Horrible Bosses, Dysfunctional Friends, Random Encounters, and Anti-Social, narrated the documentary Elephant (2020), and ran the lifestyle blog The Tig. She has participated in charity work related to women’s issues and social justice, and launched the podcast Archetypes.

Duchess Meghan is the daughter of Doria Loyce (Ragland) and Thomas Wayne Markle, a lighting director who worked on Married… with Children. She was raised in View Park–Windsor Hills, Los Angeles. She is married to Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, with whom she has two children, including Archie Mountbatten-Windsor. The couple has stepped down as working royals. They have launched public organization Archewell, Inc., focusing on non-profit activities and creative media ventures.

Her father is white and her mother is black. A picture of Duchess Meghan with her father can be seen here. Pictures of Duchess Meghan with her mother can be seen here and here. More pictures of her family, specifically her mother’s side, can be seen here.

An essay Duchess Meghan composed about her biracial identity can be read here. She writes, among other things:

‘What are you?’ A question I get asked every week of my life, often every day… ‘Where are your parents from?’… While I could say Pennsylvania and Ohio… I instead give them what they’re after: ‘My dad is Caucasian and my mom is African American. I’m half black and half white.’…

While my mixed heritage may have created a grey area surrounding my self-identification, keeping me with a foot on both sides of the fence, I have come to embrace that. To say who I am, to share where I’m from, to voice my pride in being a strong, confident mixed-race woman. That when asked to choose my ethnicity in a questionnaire as in my seventh grade class, or these days to check ‘Other’, I simply say: ‘Sorry, world, this is not Lost and I am not one of The Others. I am enough exactly as I am.’

She has also specified:

My mom is black and my dad is Dutch and Irish, so the texture of my hair is densely curly. I’ve been getting Brazilian blowouts for a couple of years.

Duchess Meghan’s Dutch ancestry is really Pennsylvania Dutch, the name for ethnic Germans who lived in Pennsylvania; her German ancestry includes Alsatian Germans. Her father also has a preponderance of English ancestry, with Colonial American roots going back to the 1600s, as well as some Irish, Scottish, and Scots-Irish/Northern Irish, and remote French, ancestry. Duchess Meghan and her husband Harry share a common ancestor in the 1500s; the details of this remote genealogical relation can be seen here.

Duchess Meghan’s maternal grandparents were/are both black, from African-American families.

Duchess Meghan has also said:

I took an African-American studies class at Northwestern (university) where we explored colourism; it was the first time I could put a name to feeling too light in the black community, too mixed in the white community… For castings, I was labelled ‘ethnically ambiguous’. Was I Latina? Sephardic (Jewish)? Exotic Caucasian?

Duchess Meghan in 2011, photo by DFree/Bigstock.com

Several web sites have stated that Duchess Meghan’s father is Jewish. This is not accurate. While her wedding to her first husband, producer Trevor Engelson, was Jewish or had Jewish elements, that is because Trevor is Jewish. It is possible that Duchess Meghan converted to Trevor’s faith, but there is no particular indication of this being the case. She joined the Church of England upon marrying Prince Harry.

Duchess Meghan is said to be a distant relative of professional baseball player Mookie Betts, through her Betts line.

Duchess Meghan’s paternal grandfather was Gordon Arnold Markle/Markel (the son of Isaac Thomas Markle/Markel and Ruth Ann Arnold). Gordon was born in Juniata County, Pennsylvania. Isaac was the son of George Benjamin Markle/Markel and Mary Jane Mangle/Mengle. Ruth was the daughter of Adam A. Arnold and Martha J. “Mattie” Sykes, who was born in England; her father was from Kimberworth, South Yorkshire and her mother from Gainsborough, Lincolnshire.

Duchess Meghan has said:

I rarely saw my Grandma Markle, as she hailed from New Hampshire and spent much of her life in Pennsylvania and Florida…

Duchess Meghan’s paternal grandmother was Doris Mary Rita Sanders (the daughter of Fred George Sanders and Gertrude May Merrill). Doris was born in New Hampshire. Fred was born in Lake Village, now Lakeport, Belknap, New Hampshire, the son of George Sanders, who was born in England, and of Maria Belle Ellsworth. Gertrude was born in Meredith, Belknap, New Hampshire, the daughter of George David Merrill and Mary Bird, who was born on Malta, to an English father and an Irish mother, from Ballinasloe, County Galway. Her family moved to Canada.

Duchess Meghan’s maternal grandfather was Alvin Azell Ragland (the son of Steve R. Ragland and Lois Russell). Alvin was born in Tennessee, and was African-American. Steve was born in Georgia, the son of Jeremiah/Jerry M. Ragland and Claudie/Claudia Ritchie/Richie. Lois was born in Tennessee, the daughter of James Russell and Virginia Bettes/Betts.

Duchess Meghan’s maternal grandmother was Jeanette Arnold (the daughter of James Arnold and Nettie M. Allen). Jeanette was born in Sandusky, Erie, Ohio, and was African-American. Nettie was the daughter of Luther Hunter Allen and Gertrude Parks/Gertrude Elizabeth Sadler.

Meghan Markle

Duchess Meghan in 2011, Photo by kathclick/Bigstock.com

Duchess Meghan’s father’s ancestry first publicly documented on the internet on her ethnicelebs page, by Follers (May 21, 2017)

Sources: Family histories of Meghan, Duchess of Sussex – http://www.dailymail.co.uk
http://www.dailymail.co.uk

Genealogies of Meghan, Duchess of Sussex – http://gw.geneanet.org
https://www.geni.com
http://i.dailymail.co.uk
http://www.famechain.com
https://famouskin.com
https://www.wikitree.com
https://1.bp.blogspot.com

Genealogy of Meghan, Duchess of Sussex (focusing on her father’s side) – http://www.dailyitem.com

Marriage announcement of Duchess Meghan’s paternal grandparents, Gordon Arnold Markle/Markel and Doris Mary Rita Sanders – https://www.newspapers.com

Marriage record of Duchess Meghan’s paternal grandparents, Gordon Arnold Markle/Markel and Doris Mary Rita Sanders – https://familysearch.org

Duchess Meghan’s paternal grandfather, Gordon Arnold Markle/Markel, on the 1930 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org

Genealogy of Duchess Meghan’s father (focusing on his mother’s side) – http://www.gamblinfamily.org

Duchess Meghan’s paternal grandmother, Doris Mary Rita Sanders, on the 1930 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org
Doris Mary Rita Sanders on the 1940 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org

Marriage record of Duchess Meghan’s paternal great-grandparents, Fred George Sanders and Gertrude May Merrill – https://familysearch.org

Duchess Meghan’s paternal great-grandparents, Fred George Sanders and Gertrude May Merrill, on the 1910 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org

Genealogy of Duchess Meghan’s paternal great-grandmother, Gertrude May Merrill (focusing on her own father’s side) – https://www.findagrave.com

Duchess Meghan’s paternal great-grandmother, Gertrude May Merrill, on the 1900 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org

Duchess Meghan’s paternal great-great-grandparents, George David Merrill and Mary Bird, on the 1920 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org

Information about Duchess Meghan’s paternal great-great-grandmother, Mary Bird’s, family – http://www.dailymail.co.uk

Duchess Meghan’s maternal great-grandfather, Steve R. Ragland, on the 1920 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org

Duchess Meghan’s maternal great-great-grandfather, Jeremiah/Jerry M. Ragland, on the 1940 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org

Death record of Duchess Meghan’s maternal great-great-grandfather, Jeremiah/Jerry M. Ragland – https://familysearch.org

Genealogy of Meghan’s maternal grandmother, Jeanette (Arnold) Johnson – https://www.familysearch.org

145 Responses

  1. WTF says:

    so she’s black and white, but why does she look cuban or puerto rican???????

  2. AnonymousPerson says:

    She’s pretty. Most mixed people are attractive.

  3. ShawntheGod says:

    She married a white man like all mulattas do.

  4. ConfusedBreed says:

    She looks Latina! Not black. Very sexy…

    • gottlob says:

      Of course she doesn’t look JUST Black she is mixed race. She looks part Native American. Basically African American.

      • theropod says:

        She’s still ‘mixed’ in my book rather than African American. She is too light to be referred as ‘black’. She has that Demi Lovato look – Jewish/Italian…If African American is black, I wouldn’t classify her that.

        • follers says:

          Demi Lovato is not Jewish nor Italian. She has a Mexican (American) dad and a WASP mother.

        • fuzzybear44 says:

          @theropod

          African American is a cultural Identity/heritage,it not fixed skin color.Black is an umbrella term in this country (encompassing a lot of different shades).I do understand around you guys,the black maybe more of a singular color.However black people have been in this country a long time,and black may actually mean,soul brotha brown(red brown,brown,copper tone etc.).However we have to pay attention to how she ID”s herself

          • Anasie says:

            jesus Fuzzybear…soul brotha brown…You people surprise me. Of course black doesn’t mean you are the colour of midnight, thats like white meaning you are the colour of snow. How do you still think this in 2013? Do you not leave the house and interact with people?

          • fuzzybear44 says:

            @Anasie

            Yes I know this comment is three yrs old, but I’m going answer anyhow.

            Quote(jesus Fuzzybear…soul brotha brown)

            Yes I said soul brotha brown, so what. I was watching a movie called (South Central), and they used that phrase. I liked it, because it was showing solidarity among the black men in the movie. A solidarity, that is sorely lacking in the Black community today(therefore I used it myself). So for you to get upset about that phrase, shows some deep seeded issues you need to deal with, before you come at somebody else.

            Quote(You people surprise me. Of course black doesn’t mean you are the colour of midnight, thats like white meaning you are the colour of snow. How do you still think this in 2013? Do you not leave the house and interact with people?)

            This shows how much you need to get more. Because even in the year 2016, there are still people who don’t understand umbrella terms like (Black , Asian, Latino, and White) when it comes to populations. Which is what others and myself were trying to explain to theropod. Which is who you should have directed your comment to, because it’s obvious that person didn’t understand

            You couldn’t find anything else wrong with my comment, so you decided to nitpick at that phrase

        • kj216 says:

          What do you mean? If she’s African American she’s African American. In case you didn’t know “Black” comes in many different complexions ranging from very dark to very light. You can’t just take away what she s by your incorrect perceptions of what being “Black” is. Also so if she was darker are you saying she would be considered black and not mixed regardless of her ethnicity? Sounds really ignorant.

        • midori29 says:

          @theropd you have no idea what BLACK means. Black in America or the Carribean does not mean 100% African. And 100% Africans can be light skinned too. Black Africans have all sorts of looks. What do you think a black person looks like?

        • midori29 says:

          @theropod still stuck in ignorance. All African Americans have been mixed 98% of them.

    • PandaCutie says:

      I’m pretty sure there are black people in latin american countries and wtf are you talking about? “She looks Latina! Not black. Very sexy…” like wtf? are you basically saying that black women aren’t attractive? Well obviously her father thought so…they produced her.

      • Princess says:

        Her mother isn’t fully Black. She has pictures of her mom in Instagram. She looks mixed.

        Both of her parents are ugly, but she turned out pretty. Strange.

      • midori29 says:

        @Pandacuties in the MAJORITY of Latin American countries the population is black African mixed. Most Latinos are African mixed. They are a hodge podge of black African,European and Asian that’s what latinos are. Latino is NOT a race.
        For example the average Mexican is 6 to 10% black African admixed, the average Puerto Rican is 20 to 50% black African admixed, the Average Dominican is 50% to 90% black African and so on. There are only 3 races on earth. African black, Caucasian-white, and Asian Mongoloid. Everyone else is a mixture. Latinas get their “curves and curls” and the thick lips from sub-Saharan black Africa. Native Indians and Europeans are not that curvy and they do not have the big spiral curly hair either in large populations.

    • midori29 says:

      @ConfusedBreed Latina is NOT A RACE. Latinos can be white, black or mixed.

    • midori29 says:

      @Confusedbreed. You are VERY confused her mom is BLACK get over it.
      This so called Latina is over 90 percent black too/
      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gqTdX5E2eHI

  5. Mm says:

    She’s pretty. She looks a lot like a friend of mine who’s of the exact same ethnic mix.

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