Charlize Theron
Theron in 2003, Denis Makarenko/Shutterstock.com
Place of Birth: Benoni, Gauteng, South Africa
Date of Birth: August 7, 1975
Ethnicity: Afrikaner [Dutch, French Huguenot, German, smaller amounts of Belgian Flemish/Belgian Walloon, distant Swedish, Norwegian, and Danish], distant English, as well as possibly 1/1024 Khoisan
Charlize Theron is a South African-born actress, model, and producer. She won the Academy Award for Best Actress for Monster (2003).
Charlize is the daughter of Gerda (Maritz) and Charles Theron. Danie Theron, a Boer War military leader, was her great-great-uncle. Charlize is from an Afrikaner family. Her family has lived in South Africa since the 1600s on many, if not most, of her family lines. Her Afrikaner ancestry includes Dutch, as well as French Huguenot and German, with smaller and/or more remote amounts of Belgian Flemish/Belgian Walloon, Swedish, Norwegian, and Danish. She also has distant English ancestry. Charlize is also of possibly 1/1024 Khoisan descent.
Charlize moved to Los Angeles to work in the entertainment industry in the mid 1990s. She became a U.S. citizen in 2007. She has two children, who are adopted, from South Africa and the U.S., respectively.
Charlize speaks Afrikaans, Xhosa (a native African language), as well as English. Her surname, Theron, is an Occitan name which is pronounced Tronn. Occitan is a language spoken in Occitania, located in the Occitan Valleys of Italy, Southern France, Monaco, and the Aran Valley of Spain.
Charlize’s patrilineal line can be traced to Jacques Therond, who was born, c. 1668, in Nîmes, Languedoc, France, and emigrated to South Africa in 1688, and to his wife Marie-Jeanne des Prez/du Preez, who was born in Béthune, Artois, France.
Charlize’s paternal grandfather was Danie/Daniel Theron (the son of Charles Jacobus Theron and Wilhelmina Maria Stofberg). Charlize’s grandfather Danie was born in Pofadder, Kenhardt, Cape Province. Charlie’s great-grandfather Charles was born in Tulbagh, Cape Province, the son of Willem Wouter Theron and Anna Helena Margaretha Krige. Wilhelmina was born in Calvinia, Cape Province, the daughter of Andries Benjamin Stofberg and Mary Louisa Buck.
Charlize’s paternal grandmother was Elizabeth Johanna “Betty”/Bettie Beets (the daughter of Hendrik Lucas/Lukas Beets and Wilhelmina Johanna Aletta/Christina Joone/Jooni Jones). Elizabeth was born in Vioolsdrif, Northern Cape. Hendrik was the son of Daniël Godlieb Beets and Hendrina Johanna Janse Van Vuuren. Wilhelmina was the daughter of Jan/John Joone/Jooni and Magrieta/Margriet Aletta Mostert/Mosterd.
Charlize’s maternal grandfather was Jacob Johannes Maritz (the son of Phillipus/Philippus Rudolf Maritz and Gerda/Gerta Jacoba Aletta Kruger). Jacob was born in Prieska, Cape Province. His family also lived in Tsumeb, Oshikoto, Namibia. Phillipus was the son of Jacob Johannes Maritz and Huibrecht/Huilbrecht Johanna Holtzhausen. Gerta was the daughter of Gerrit Diederik Kruger and Susanna Christina Botes.
Charlize’s maternal grandmother was Johanna Maria Barindina/Barendina Stofberg (the daughter of Dirk Johannes/Jacobus van Dyk Stofberg/Stoffberg and Johanna Susanna Elizabeth/Elisabeth Kruger). Charlize’s grandmother Johanna was born in Memel, Vrede, Orange Free State, South Africa. Dirk was born in Middelburg, Cape Province, the son of Dirk Frederik Stoffberg and Stoffelina Jacoba Botha. Charlize’s great-grandmother Johanna was born in Bloemfontein, Bloemfontein, Orange Free State, the daughter of Barend Johannes Marthinus Kruger and Frederika Elizabeth Bezuidenhout.
Charlize is a fourth cousin, once removed, of actress Alice Krige. Charlize’s paternal fourth great-grandparents, Willem Adolph Krige and Elisabeth/Elizabeth Petronella de Villiers, were also Alice’s third great-grandparents.
Sources: Genealogy of Charlize Theron – http://www.geni.com
Death record of Charlize’s father – https://www.findagrave.com
I remember Chris Rock calling her “African-American” at SNL
Haha it was so funny seeing the movie snow white and the huntsman because since I look a lot like Charlize Theron, all my friends were telling me that I would look like her in the scenes when she looked like an old hag! Haha anyway, I think she did a great job in that movie and I recomend seeing it!
STFU no one cares
you wish
She was put on the wrong thread!
i’m (distantly) related to her :3 and my grandma was south african
Well in fact Jane is quite right. An Afrikaans professor named J A Hesse authored a book on the roots of the White Afrikaans speaking population in 1971 and his study had concluded that they were 7 % of non-white origin. Recent studies have found that they are up to 10 % non-white in origin. This is because the first settlers were often men who married Indian, Malay, and Khoi individuals as there was a lack of White females and the earliest settlers were mainly Dutch / Danish and German men. When the French Huguenots were sent out almost 35 years later the gender balance became more equal [ as they often came out with their wives and children ] within the emerging White population.
Therefore since Charlize Theron goes back to Jacques Therond who arrived in that wave of the late 17th century and probably earlier via other ancestral links – Charlize will no doubt be of partial non-white origin. That is the ironic heritage of the local White Afrikaans speaking population.
Just Google for pictures of Charlize’s late father Charles Theron to see evidence of this for yourselves. The late Eugene TerreBlanche also had noticeable Khoisan features. I say this is “ironic” because the local White Afrikaans speakers had acquired an unjust international reputation as being racists [ over their blanket political association with Apartheid ] when in reality they came about as a people due to the absorption of the non-white element as Afrikaans researcher André van Rensburg noted.
Just Google for My Genetic Enrichment authored by the aforementioned André van Rensburg to learn more about this particular topic.
Westerners will have their paradigms shifted and altered.
However,version about some black Theron’s ancestors in17 century is just insinuation which not based on facts.
Secondly,even Charlize has some black gret-great-great-great-grand mother it’s not make her non-white or biracial
@Charlize will no doubt be of partial non-white origin@
You’re wrong Paul,it’s very,very doubtful
last time i checked the sons and daughters of the interracial couple in SA were excluded from the white society, thus forming the cape coloureds, but come to think of it if white south africans are mixed then the americans are much more mixed than the south africans since the slave owners in the USA also raped and had children with native americans and some black slaves, the processing of “whitening” only started when the European immigrants arrived in the USA, many white americans claim native american ancestry (usually cherokee) specially the celebrities, there is an estimate that 30% of white americans have non-white ancestry, although i strongly doubt that americans and afrikaners are mixed
Until you do some sort of research and genetic testing you cannot really conclude this. My favorite quote is “race is a fluid notion” meaning that someone may appear a certain way but they are in fact something else. I have “White” friends who are completely blonde and blue eyes who appear Nordic but they are actually of 1/4 African decent or something that is considered non-white. By the way, the “whitening” of peoples begin when Europe in general went abroad to various nations and tried to make it appear as if people with Anglo-Saxon, Germanic or Spanish features were better. It did not first start in America.
How extremely interesting Paul. I am quite interested in this topic, I have read a little bit about this before but have not found a good book on the topic. Thanks for sharing- People need to educate themselves…
“Westerners will have their paradigms shifted and altered”
Have you ever herd of aparteid? I think what you are referring to is the population that is now known as “coloreds” or mixed race people. Charlize theron is NOT one of them. She is of white heritage only, the reason I say this is because the class system was very seperate up until just recently as 1991.