Jada Pinkett Smith
Pinkett Smith in 2003, photo by DFree/Bigstock
Birth Name: Jada Koren Pinkett
Place of Birth: Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.
Date of Birth: September 18, 1971
Ethnicity:
*father – African-American
*mother – African-/Creole-Barbadian, African-/Creole-Jamaican, one eighth Sephardi Jewish
Jada Pinkett Smith, also credited as Jada Pinkett, is an American actress, dancer, singer, songwriter, and businessperson. She has starred in Woo, Scream 2, The Nutty Professor, and The Matrix films.
Jada is the daughter of Adrienne Banfield-Jones and Robsol Grant Pinkett. Her father was of African-American descent. Jada’s maternal grandfather was an emigrant from Barbados, of African-Barbadian descent, while Jada’s maternal grandmother was the daughter of emigrants from Jamaica, who were of African- or Creole-Caribbean descent. Her brother is actor/writer Caleeb Pinkett.
Jada is married to actor, rapper, and musician Will Smith, with whom she has two children, actors and musicians Jaden Smith and Willow Smith.
Jada’s paternal grandfather was Robsol Grant Pinkett (the son of Maslin Frysinger Pinkett and Martha Josephine Dyer). Robsol was born in Maryland. Maslin was the son of Daniel James Pinkett and Sarah E. Peaker. Martha was the daughter of Eli Dyer and Alverta Hackett.
Jada’s paternal grandmother was Shirley Nancy Crystal Holland (the daughter of James P. Holland and Alice Whitehead). Alice was the daughter of Joe Whitehead and Sallie Watkins.
Jada’s maternal grandfather was Gilbert Leslie Banfield (the son of Gilbert Banfield and Ella E. R. Parris/Paris). Jada’s grandfather Gilbert and his parents, who were black, were from Saint Michael, Barbados, in the West Indies/Caribbean.
Jada’s maternal grandmother was Marion Eliza Martin (the daughter of Ralph Nunis Martin and Daisy Maude Costa/Coster). Marion was born in Boston, Massachusetts, to emigrants from Jamaica (Saint Ann and Kingston, respectively). Marion, along with her parents, are listed as “Mulatto” on the 1920 U.S. Census. Marion is listed as “Black” on the 1930 U.S. Census. Ralph was the son of James Wisdom Martin and Louisa Ann McCormick. In her autobiography, Worthy, 2023, Jada writes that her grandmother Marion’s grandfather was of Portuguese Jewish background.
Pinkett Smith in 2010, cinemafJoe Seer / Shutterstock.com
Sources: http://readingeagle.com
Genealogy of Jada Pinkett Smith – http://www.geni.com
Genealogy of Jada Pinkett Smith (focusing on her father’s side) – https://www.wikitree.com
Jada’s maternal grandfather, Gilbert Leslie Banfield, on the 1930 U.S. Census – https://www.familysearch.org
Birth record of Jada’s maternal grandmother, Marion Eliza Martin – https://familysearch.org
Jada’s maternal grandmother, Marion Eliza Martin, on the 1920 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org
Marion Eliza Martin on the 1930 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org
This site chooses some of the worst pictures for celebrities. It’s hilarious.
On what basis are her ancestors Creole? Why not just African-Barbadian and African-Jamaican?
Maybe coz they were of mixed-race, or more mixed than average (same for Eric Holder)
Is there evidence for that?
This 2009 newspaper article is where it came from originally.
http://www2.readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=142873
Okay. It also says Portuguese-Jewish, so why isn’t that added? We can’t only write down exactly what they say, we have to make reasonable assessments too, especially when we have the actual genealogy. And should her ancestors be considered Creole anyway? Every other celebrity with Jamaican or Bahamian roots mixed with something else has them written out. If they aren’t known, as in this case, we could add “possibly other”.
https://www.wikitree.com/genealogy/Pinkett-Family-Tree-90
The Portuguese Jewish ancestry clearly comes from her maternal grandmother. “Nunis” (from “Nunes”), “Martin” and “Costa” can be Portuguese Jewish names.
Could be. Then again, the name is also spelled “Coster”. Or they could be “slave names” rather than actual ancestry.
That’s a bad picture of her. She’s cute otherwise.