2000
#31,848
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 685
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.25
Very Rare Last name
Hovan
A surname of uncertain origin, possibly derived from a placename or occupation.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 839 Americans carry the last name Hovan. That puts it at #33,503 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.24 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 408,527 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Hovan 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
839
1 in 408,527
Census rank
#33,503
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
732
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 732 bearers of the surname Hovan in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.24 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 33503rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Hovan, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.8%) and Two or More Races (3.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Hovan
The surname HOVAN is believed to have originated in the Slavic regions of Eastern Europe during the late medieval period, specifically in the areas that are now modern-day Croatia and Serbia. It is thought to be derived from the Slavic root word "hov," which means "courtyard" or "farmyard," suggesting that the name may have initially referred to someone who lived near or worked in a courtyard or farmyard.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the HOVAN surname can be found in a 15th-century Croatian census record, where it appears as "Hovanović." This variant spelling provides insight into the name's evolution and suggests a connection to the Croatian town of Hova, located in the Lika region.
During the 16th century, the HOVAN name began to appear in various historical documents across the Balkans, including church records and land registries. Notable individuals bearing this surname from this period include Ivan Hovan, a Serbian landowner who lived in the early 1500s, and Pavle Hovan, a Croatian merchant who traded goods along the Adriatic coast in the late 1500s.
As the centuries progressed, the HOVAN surname spread beyond its Slavic origins, with members of the family migrating to other parts of Europe and eventually to the Americas. One notable figure was Andrej Hovan, a Slovak mathematician and astronomer born in 1701, who made significant contributions to the study of celestial mechanics.
In the 19th century, the HOVAN surname gained prominence in the literary world with the birth of Czech writer and poet Jan Hovan (1826-1894), whose works celebrated the beauty of nature and the Czech countryside. Another notable figure from this era was Marija Hovan (1854-1918), a Serbian educator and women's rights activist who played a pivotal role in establishing educational opportunities for girls in her home country.
As the 20th century dawned, the HOVAN name continued to make its mark across various fields. In the United States, Mikhail Hovan (1905-1983) was a renowned Russian-American architect who designed several iconic buildings in New York City, while in Canada, Pavle Hovan (1920-2002) was a respected professor of Slavic studies at the University of Toronto.
Throughout its long and diverse history, the HOVAN surname has maintained its connection to its Slavic roots while evolving and adapting to new cultural landscapes. From its origins in the courtyards and farmyards of medieval Eastern Europe to its modern-day representation across the globe, the name HOVAN has left an indelible mark on the tapestry of human history.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hovan
Among Census respondents with the surname Hovan, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.8%) and Two or More Races (3.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Hovan 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 Hovan surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.7% · 649
- Hispanic or Latino4.8% · 35
- Two or more races3.1% · 23
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.7% · 20
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Hovan
Hovan 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
#32,935
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 696
+11 bearers (+1.6%)
Per 100,000 0.24
Rank movement Down 1,087 places
2020
#33,503
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 732
+36 bearers (+5.2%)
Per 100,000 0.24
Rank movement Down 568 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #31,848 | 685 | 0.25 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #32,935 | 696 | 0.24 | +11 bearers (+1.6%) | Down 1,087 places |
| 2020 | #33,503 | 732 | 0.24 | +36 bearers (+5.2%) | Down 568 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 Hovan 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 | #32,935 | #33,503 | -1.7% |
| Count | 696 | 732 | 5.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.24 | 0.24 | 2.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Hovan bearers went from 696 to 732 (+5.2% change). The surname moved down 568 positions in the national ranking, going from #32,935 to #33,503.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Hovan
FAQ
Hovan surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Hovan?
Name Census estimates that about 839 living Americans carry the surname Hovan. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 408,527 residents.
How common is Hovan?
Hovan ranks #33,503 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.24 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 732 people with the surname Hovan. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (839), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.24 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.24 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 Hovan.
Has Hovan become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Hovan went from 696 recorded bearers to 732. That is an increase of 36 (+5.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #32,935 to #33,503.
What does the Census say about the background of Hovan?
Among Census respondents with the surname Hovan, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.8%) and Two or More Races (3.1%). 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 Hovan in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.7% (649 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Hovan appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.7%), Hispanic (4.8%), Two or More Races (3.1%). 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 Hovan (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 Hovan mean?
A surname of uncertain origin, possibly derived from a placename or occupation. 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 Hovan (0.24 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 have the surname Hovan?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.