A shocking new survey indicates that many Americans don't know much about their personal history, and most cannot even name all four of their grandparents. Imagine not knowing your grandparents' names?

Study Finds.org says, "There is a massive knowledge gap when it comes to recent family history." The site reports on a survey conducted by OnePoll on behalf of Ancestry that says, "Just 47 percent of respondents could correctly name all four grandparents." The survey also reveals that "only four percent could name all eight great-grandparents."

Barry Richard/Townsquare Media
Barry Richard/Townsquare Media
loading...

Study Finds.org says the survey found "66 percent of Boston residents could name all of their grandparents compared to only 26 percent of those in Philadelphia." Boston and most of Massachusetts are very family-centric, so that doesn't surprise me.

Barry Richard/Townsquare Media
Barry Richard/Townsquare Media
loading...

The survey indicates that only 34 percent of San Fransisco residents can name all four grandparents, while in Chicago and Dallas, only 36 percent can.

WFHN-FM/FUN 107 logo
Get our free mobile app

Most respondents said they learned the most about their family history from their parents (43 percent) and grandparents (40 percent), but 66 percent said they want to learn more. Study Finds.org says, "51 percent say they want to hear more stories about when their ancestors were young and what they were like at that time."

Contributed Photos
Contributed Photos
loading...

My paternal grandparents were Adellard and Mary. His people came from Quebec, Canada, while hers came from Poland. My maternal grandparents were Howard and Freida. His people came from Ireland and England while she was born on a boat leaving Nova Scotia for Ellis Island.

Barry Richard/Townsquare Media
Barry Richard/Townsquare Media
loading...

I confess that I cannot name any of my great-grandparents, but I know a bit about their history. I wish I knew more. Family histories are important and should be passed down from generation to generation. My regret is that I have too few pictures of my now-deceased family members.

Do you know your grandparents' names? What about your great-grandparents' names?

KEEP READING: What were the most popular baby names from the past 100 years?

KEEP READING: Here are the most popular baby names in every state

Using March 2019 data from the Social Security Administration, Stacker compiled a list of the most popular names in each of the 50 states and Washington D.C., according to their 2018 SSA rankings. The top five boy names and top five girl names are listed for each state, as well as the number of babies born in 2018 with that name. Historically common names like Michael only made the top five in three states, while the less common name Harper ranks in the top five for 22 states.

Curious what names are trending in your home state? Keep reading to see if your name made the top five -- or to find inspiration for naming your baby.

LOOK: The most popular biblical baby names

To determine the most popular biblical baby names, Stacker consulted the name origin site Behind the Name and the Social Security Administration's baby names database then ranked the top 50 names from Behind the Name's Biblical Names origins list of 564 names, based on how many babies had been given these names in 2019. Click through to find out which biblical names have stood the test of time.

More From WFHN-FM/FUN 107