2000
#147,095
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 103
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Hoeben
A Dutch surname derived from a place name meaning "highest elevation".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 120 Americans carry the last name Hoeben. That puts it at #152,989 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,856,286 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Hoeben surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
Bearers in the US
120
1 in 2,856,286
Census rank
#152,989
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
105
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 105 bearers of the surname Hoeben in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 152989th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Hoeben, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Hoeben
The surname Hoeben is of Dutch origin, with its roots tracing back to the 16th century in the Netherlands. It is believed to have derived from a combination of the Dutch words "hoe" meaning "how" and "been" meaning "leg," potentially referring to a physical characteristic or occupation.
One of the earliest records of the name can be found in the Leiden Gemeente Archief, a collection of historical documents from the city of Leiden, dating back to 1576. This record mentions a certain Jan Hoeben, a resident of the city at that time.
In the 17th century, the name appeared in various Dutch records, including the baptismal registers of the Dutch Reformed Church in Amsterdam. Notable individuals with this surname during this period include Willem Hoeben (1628-1701), a Dutch painter known for his landscapes and genre scenes.
As the Dutch established colonies in the Americas, the name Hoeben made its way across the Atlantic. One of the earliest recorded instances of this surname in the New World can be found in the records of the Dutch West India Company, which mention a Jan Hoeben who arrived in New Netherland (present-day New York) in 1649.
During the 18th and 19th centuries, the Hoeben surname continued to spread throughout the Netherlands and its colonies. Notable individuals from this period include Adriaan Hoeben (1762-1833), a Dutch politician and lawyer who served as the mayor of Rotterdam, and Johannes Hoeben (1826-1897), a Dutch painter known for his landscapes and marine scenes.
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the name Hoeben gained prominence in the fields of literature and academia. Pieter Hoeben (1870-1942) was a Dutch writer and journalist who published several novels and short stories, while Nicolaas Hoeben (1884-1965) was a renowned Dutch linguist and professor at the University of Amsterdam.
Other notable individuals with the surname Hoeben include Jacobus Hoeben (1888-1962), a Dutch architect who designed several notable buildings in Rotterdam, and Theo Hoeben (1922-2014), a Dutch artist known for his abstract expressionist paintings and sculptures.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hoeben
Among Census respondents with the surname Hoeben, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Hoeben bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Hoeben surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White87.6% · 92
- Hispanic or Latino4.8% · 5
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.9% · 3
- Black or African American1.9% · 2
- Two or more races1.9% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Hoeben
Hoeben appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#157,234
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 103
+0 bearers (+0.0%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 10,139 places
2020
#152,989
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 105
+2 bearers (+1.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 4,245 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #147,095 | 103 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #157,234 | 103 | 0.03 | +0 bearers (+0.0%) | Down 10,139 places |
| 2020 | #152,989 | 105 | 0.04 | +2 bearers (+1.9%) | Up 4,245 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Hoeben surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #157,234 | #152,989 | 2.7% |
| Count | 103 | 105 | 1.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.04 | 17.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Hoeben bearers went from 103 to 105 (+1.9% change). The surname moved up 4,245 positions in the national ranking, going from #157,234 to #152,989.
FAQ
Hoeben surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Hoeben?
Name Census estimates that about 120 living Americans carry the surname Hoeben. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,856,286 residents.
How common is Hoeben?
Hoeben ranks #152,989 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 105 people with the surname Hoeben. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (120), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Hoeben.
Has Hoeben become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Hoeben went from 103 recorded bearers to 105. That is an increase of 2 (+1.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #157,234 to #152,989.
What does the Census say about the background of Hoeben?
Among Census respondents with the surname Hoeben, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.9%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Hoeben in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.6% (92 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Hoeben appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (87.6%), Hispanic (4.8%), Asian/Pacific Islander (2.9%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Hoeben (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Hoeben mean?
A Dutch surname derived from a place name meaning "highest elevation". The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Hoeben (0.04 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people are called Hoeben?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans have the surname Hoeben at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.