Beyoncé
Beyoncé in 2010, photo by kathclick/bigstock.com
Birth Name: Beyoncé Giselle Knowles
Place of Birth: Houston, Harris, Texas, U.S.
Date of Birth: September 4, 1981
Ethnicity:
*father – African-American
*mother – Louisiana Creole, including African, French, Acadian/French-Canadian, as well as distant Irish, Breton, and Belgian Walloon, remote Penobscot First Nations
Beyoncé, also known as Harmonies by The Hive, Queen Bey or Queen B, Third Ward Trill, Sasha Fierce, and Beyoncé Knowles, is an American singer, songwriter, actress, director, and businessperson. She was a member of R&B girl group Destiny’s Child, along with Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams, and also, originally, LeToya Luckett and LaTavia Roberson. As a solo artist, she has won the most Grammy Awards of any person, at 32, and has sold over 200 million records worldwide. Often exploring themes of feminism and womanism, her songs include “Crazy in Love,” “Baby Boy,” “Me, Myself and I,” “Check on It,” “Déjà Vu,” “Irreplaceable,” “Beautiful Liar,” “If I Were a Boy,” “Single Ladies,” “Halo,” “Run the World (Girls),” “Drunk in Love,” “Formation,” “Perfect Duet,” “Break My Soul,” “Cuff It,” “Texas Hold ‘Em,” and “II Most Wanted.” Beyoncé has starred in the films Carmen: A Hip Hopera, Austin Powers in Goldmember, The Fighting Temptations, The Pink Panther (2006), Dreamgirls, Cadillac Records, Obsessed (2009), Epic (2013), and Disney’s The Lion King (2019), the latter two in voice role. She co-directed her music films Life Is But a Dream, Lemonade, and Black Is King, which she also co-wrote; and directed and wrote her music films Homecoming: A Film by Beyoncé and Renaissance: A Film by Beyoncé.
Beyoncé is the daughter of Tina Knowles (born Célestine Ann Beyoncé), a fashion designer, and Mathew C. Knowles, a businessperson and talent manager. Her sister is singer and actress Solange Knowles. They are the first sisters to have each had No. 1 albums. She is married to rapper and music producer Jay-Z, with whom she has three children, including Blue Ivy Carter. Beyoncé and Jay-Z are in a musical superduo together, The Carters. Beyoncé is a step-sister of actress Bianca Lawson. Her mother is married to Bianca’s father, actor Richard Lawson. Beyoncé founded management company Parkwood Entertainment.
Beyoncé’s father is African-American. Beyoncé’s maternal grandparents were French-speaking Louisiana Creoles, with roots in New Iberia; their ancestry was mostly African and French, including French ancestors who lived in Canada. Through her mother’s line, Beyoncé is a great-great-great-great-great-great-granddaughter of Acadian leader Joseph Broussard, who led French-speaking Catholics from Nova Scotia, Canada to Louisiana in 1765. He was among the first 200 Acadians to arrive in Louisiana that year. She is also a descendant of French military officer Jean-Vincent d’Abbadie de Saint-Castin (born c. 1652 in Escout, France), and of his wife, Marie Mathilde Pidianske/Penobscot (born c. 1658), who was the daughter of Madockawando Abenaki, a chief of the Penobscot (Panawahpskek) people. Through Marie Mathilde, Beyoncé is of 1/1024 Indigenous descent. Beyoncé is also of approximately 1/32 Irish ancestry, and has distant Breton and Belgian Flemish roots on her mother’s side, the latter including her ancestor Albert de Cuir, from Hainaut Province, Wallonia. Her name, Beyoncé, is a tribute to her mother’s family name, Beyincé. Through her Broussard line, she is a third cousin of gospel singer and graphic artist Karen Showell.
Beyoncé has said that she has Nigerian ancestry. She may have discovered this through a DNA test.
Beyoncé’s parents Mathew and Tina, 2007, photo by bigstock.com
Beyoncé’s mother has also been described as having Cherokee and/or Choctaw Native American ancestry. It is not clear if this ancestry has been verified/documented. No Cherokee or Choctaw Native American ancestors appear on publicly available family trees of Beyoncé’s mother. One book biography, Crazy in Love: The Beyoncé Knowles Biography, also refers to Beyoncé’s mother having Spanish, Jewish, Chinese, and Indonesian ancestry. It is also not clear if this is accurate.
Beyoncé does not speak French or Spanish, but she has sung in Spanish before.
A picture of Beyoncé’s maternal grandparents can be seen here.
Beyoncé’s paternal grandfather was Matthew/Mathew Q. Knowles (the son of Taylor Knowles and Girlie/Gurlie/Gerlie Mae Miller). Matthew was born in Alabama. Taylor was the son of James Isaac Knowles and Sarah Elizabeth Dixon. Girlie was the daughter of Prophet Miller and Jane Hall.
Beyoncé’s paternal grandmother is Lou Helen Hogue (the daughter of Davis/Dave Hogue and Hester Moore). Lou was born in Alabama. Davis was the son of Jim Hogue and Rosetta Moore. Hester was the daughter of Pinkney Madison Moore and Arenia Goree.
Beyoncé’s maternal grandfather was Lumis/Lumas Albert Beyincé/Buyincé (the son of Alexandre/Alexon Beyincé/Buyincé and Mary Olevia). Lumis was born in Delcambre, Vermilion, Louisiana.
Beyoncé’s maternal grandmother was Agnès/Agnèz DeRouen/Deréon (the daughter of Eugène-Gustave DeRouen/Deréon/Derezen and Odelia/Odilia Broussard). Agnès was born in Louisiana, and was a prominent seamstress. Eugène-Gustave likely was the son of Eloi Jacques DeRouen. Odelia was the daughter of Éloi/Éloy-René Rosemond Broussard, who was white, of French descent, and of Celestine Joséphine Lessee/Lesse/Lesser/Lacy/Lacey/Lessassier, who was black/mixed-race black, and the daughter of a slave mother. Éloi and Joséphine had many children together, and possibly married. A picture of Beyoncé’s great-grandfather Eugène-Gustave can be seen here.
LOS ANGELES – FEB 10: Beyoncé arrives to the Grammy Awards on February 10, 2013 in Hollywood, CA photo by DFree/Bigstock.com
Sources: Genealogies of Beyoncé – http://www.geni.com
https://famouskin.com
Family histories of Beyoncé – https://www.hollywoodancestry.com
https://www.dailymail.co.uk
https://jack.canalplus.com
Family history of Beyoncé, by Megan Smolenyak Smolenyak – http://www.huffingtonpost.com
Beyoncé’s paternal grandfather, Matthew/Mathew Q. Knowles, on the 1930 U.S. Census – https://www.familysearch.org
Beyoncé’s paternal grandmother, Lou Helen Hogue, on the 1930 U.S. Census – https://www.familysearch.org
Beyoncé’s maternal grandmother, Agnès/Agnèz DeRouen/Deréon, on 1910 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org
Article about Beyoncé’s maternal great-great-great-great-great-great-grandfather, Joseph Broussard – http://www.biographi.ca
She really is about 80 percent black. My grandma is creole and just because they have french names doesn’t make them french. Slaves have sometimes adopted these names. She’s no more mixed than any other black person. What black person these days in America DOESN’T have a little European and Native blood. Very few of them don’t
How can you tell her percentages without a DNA test? I get that it is annoying this splitting hairs when she is essentially a person of African descent. And most African Americans are of mixed origin. But we have to allow that Creoles are a different ethnicity. Like whites and other racial groups we do have different ethnic groups. Some Afr-Americans have Carribean ancestry or native African. It doesn’t necessarily mean that they are trying to escape their race-it’s their reality and we should respect that.
Louisiana Creoles have a distinct culture and language. We run the spectrum of black as night to bright white in the SAME family. It is not that we deny we are African American. By definition, blood and culture, African American is part of our heritage as well as being part, French, Spanish and Native American. Many Cajuns and Creoles also have Irish, German and English thrown in smaller quantities.
Louisiana Creoles are a gumbo people. We are mixed blood despite what skin color, hair texture or physical features dominate our looks. We are a product of Louisiana History. We accept all of our heritage. Not all African Americans are Creole but all Louisiana Creoles should embrace every line in their lineage.
What others think they “see”” when they look at me is up to them. I am Creole and Proud of it!
All you have to do is look up the ancestry on her moms side of the tree. A majority were black. Her mom is about half, and some change, if not more. Simple research. Try it
Dear Administrator–Please remove my previous comment.
Wow. Ok… so you know her exact percentage huh? Who cares how much percent she is – it’s OBVIOUS from appearance that she has black african background, and caucasian european background. She has a typical mediterranean, spanish body (hourglass – that’s not a black african body type) and whatever surgeries she may have had are too minor to even point out.
Yeah, uh huh. Sure.
She’s black. 1/32 percent (3.125%)of French doesn’t make you a mixed race. She needs to accepts herself, and her heritage. Yet, with every skin bleaching session, multiple rhinoplasty’s, blonde weaves and contacts I feel she’s becoming obsessed with being white, like the late Michael Jackson. Tina Knowles also stated this year “I’m not black”. Sista- we ain’t blind!!
Upset by the truth? Google Beyoncé with Gwyneth Paltrow 2013 – They look like sisters, and she ain’t no sister!!
On a side note, I’m a proud African American sister whose proud of her Ethiopian heritage.
http://www.mediatakeout.com/2008/4279-tacky_tina_knowles_i_am_not_black.html
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-UU-3mig_qvE/URS6aM_kABI/AAAAAAAAaj8/tsO6_dYQYXQ/s1600/Beyonce-nose-job-before-and-after.png
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FMcQirJuc6s/T_HSEduOLqI/AAAAAAAAADg/3VcQ5QKNIy4/s400/beyonce-skin-lightening-loreal.jpg
http://hiphop.popcrunch.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/Beyonce-Skin-Lightening.jpg
http://hiphop.popcrunch.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/Beyonce-Bleach-Blonde.jpg
To be fair, Beyoncé isn’t just 1/32 French. Most Creoles are roughly half French/other caucasian and half African. So her mother is probably around half African, and this genealogy roughly supports that.
http://worldconnect.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=PED&db=swla2010&id=I245665
well, one drop rule still rules. Have they ever seen a full “black” person? no, there aren’t in US. All these celebs in showbiz are heavily mixed, but they say they’re black. Ok..
@Andrew
Akosua Busia is a full blood celeb,at least I think she is
@follers
( Most Creoles are roughly half French/other caucasian and half African.)
I have to disagree with you on this.Creoles have no fixed percentage,especially these days.They can be all kinds of blood combinations.Some are more white,some more black.Some have native heritage,some have Asian.
Basically her mother is Creole and African and her dad is black because distant is like going down the line hella far
i mean French and African
She’s a cute mixed girl.
<3
Beyonce you are multiracial. OWN IT.