Find out how popular the last name Huff is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Huff.

Huff, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Huff surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Huff in America

Huff is the 612th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Huff surname appeared 55,484 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 19 people would have the surname Huff.

We can also compare 2010 data for Huff to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Huff

The surname HUFF is of English origin, derived from the Old English word "hoff" or "hof," which referred to a small hill or promontory. It likely emerged as a toponymic surname, given to individuals who lived near or on such a geographic feature.

The earliest recorded instances of the name date back to the 13th century in various regions of England, including Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, and Norfolk. It was often spelled as "Hoff" or "Hoffe" in its early forms.

One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Roger Huff, mentioned in the Hundred Rolls of Huntingdonshire in 1273. The Hundred Rolls were a census-like record kept by the English government during the reign of King Edward I.

In the 14th century, the surname appeared in various legal documents and records, such as the Subsidy Rolls of Nottinghamshire and the Court Rolls of Sussex, where individuals like John Hoff and William Huff were mentioned.

The name HUFF can also be found in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive land survey commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. This suggests that the name's origins may predate the Norman Conquest of England in 1066.

Notable individuals bearing the HUFF surname throughout history include:

1. William Huff (c. 1630-1706), an English settler in colonial Virginia and a member of the House of Burgesses.
2. Balthasar Huff (1658-1729), a German Pietist theologian and author who served as a pastor in Frankfurt.
3. Joshua Huff (1754-1832), an American Revolutionary War soldier and early settler in Kentucky.
4. John Huff (1801-1856), an English architect known for his work on the Anglican Cathedral in Cape Town, South Africa.
5. Anna Huff (1905-1995), an American artist and painter known for her landscape and still life works.

The name HUFF has also been associated with various place names, such as Huff's Church in Virginia, named after the early settler William Huff, and Huff's Hill in Kentucky, named after Joshua Huff.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Huff

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Huff.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Huff was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Huff has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Huff was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Huff, please contact us.

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