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 singer and dancer 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
I think some of this information is wrong, particularly pertaining to her having Spanish ancestry. You state that her maternal great-grandfather Eugène-Gustave “was the son of Gustave DeRouen and Marie-Estelle Gary, who was of part Spanish descent”. However, this is impossible:
Marie-Estelle Gary was born on 13 November 1851, and Eugène-Gustave was born circa 1860, making it impossible that she was his mother. She married someone by the name of Gustave DeRouen (born 1848) whose grandfather (Jacques DeRouen) was the brother of an Eloi Jacques DeRouen (born 1807): Eugène-Gustave’s likely father.
It is much more likely that Eugène-Gustave’s mother was an unknown slave of his father Eloi’s, meaning Beyoncé does not have any Spanish ancestry. More evidence of this is the fact that Eugène-Gustave was clearly of mixed race, whereas Gustave DeRouen and Marie Estelle Gary were both of European descent.
Sources:
https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/DeRouen-46#_note-0
https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Gary-275
https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/DeRouen-62
Sorry, the first link should be https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/DeRouen-46
I don’t know why people hav a problem with her being mixed. She used to say she was mixed and people called her a self hater.
@Samiiraa Beyonce is African American period she has the same dna makeup as most other African Americans its not about skin tone. Non black people incorrectly assume that black or African American means the color black, no. “Black” was a label created for darker than white skin by slave owners,etc. Not all 100 percent subsaharan Africans have the same skin tone many are light skinned. Here is a link to a 100 percent dna test subsaharan African woman lighter skin toned than Beyonce https://youtu.be/lOTH8_CCr5M
Beyonce is visibly African and some of you are disrespectful diminishing her african blood just because Tina is slightly mixed with european and native american. Tina is part African so that still makes Beyonce 75% Black. That is black enough for me.
I don’t think she is 75% SSA, that’s the average Black American and she is lighter than the average Black American. She is probably 60% Subsaharan African and 40% European mixed with a little Native American.
@samiriraa you must not live in America because Beyonce is not that light for an African American alot of African Americans are Beyonces skin tone. Plus skin tone is not indicative of admixture as there are many 100 percent black Africans lighter than Beyonce and super dark East Indians in Asia darker than Africans. Personally I do not consider Beyonce light skinned at all , she is medium golden brown toned to me. I have black peoplel in my family lighter than Beyonce. Also I believe she bleached her skin as well and had a nose job. Anyway Beyonces dna is no different to the majority of black Americans. Therefore I dont consider her mixed.
@jojo157 Very true. Good post. Creoles are African Americans too with a different title. Beyonces moms French and Irish is over one hundred years old ancestry. Beyonces just uses that fake exoticalness to market herself globally with her fake Caucasian hair weaves and nose job. Beyonce is just a African American no different than any other African American with slavery admixture over 100 years ago. She is not mixed like Mariah Carey but tries to act that way.
Nobody buys what you said. I remember a random conversation with a friend of mine in mid/late 2000s when she was at her peak, and he said she is not black. She has definitely not a full natural look like anybody in showbiz on any kind, but mind her mother is not even a mulatta.
Yet Beyonce says she is black.
She is obviously not a 100% African or anywhere near that, as is the case with many African-Americans and especially Creole celebrities. We have eyes. She’s probably blacker than Vanessa Williams (who isn’t Creole) but less black than Blair Underwood who is 74%.
These discussions are getting boring.
thank you.
Both of her mother’s parents have French last names and pretty immediate Acadian ancestry. Yes Beyoncé is black but you shouldn’t diminish her significant Acadian ancestry, she is a direct descendant of many important Acadians like Joseph Broussard and Jean-Vincent d’Abbadie de Saint-Castin.
Beyoncé is very beautiful, I love it when she wears blonde hair they go great together
So she is mainly Black and French.
Her mother must be at least 50% white . Even beyoncé’s dad said he thought Tina was a white woman and Tina’s relatives were french people that lived right outside of Paris.