2000
#564
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 53,892
First available Census row
Per 100,000 19.98
Uncommon Last name
Huff
A surname of German origin, derived from a nickname for a person with puffed-out cheeks or who was quick-tempered.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 61,164 Americans carry the last name Huff. That puts it at #620 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 17.84 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 5,604 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Huff 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Huff with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
61K
1 in 5,604
Census rank
#620
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
17.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
53K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 53,338 bearers of the surname Huff in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 17.84 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 620th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Huff, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.2%. The next largest groups are Black (13.0%) and Two or More Races (4.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of 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.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Huff
Among Census respondents with the surname Huff, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.2%. The next largest groups are Black (13.0%) and Two or More Races (4.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Huff 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 Huff surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White78.2% · 41,714
- Black or African American13.0% · 6,949
- Two or more races4.3% · 2,297
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 1,665
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 366
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 347
Timeline
Historical Census data for Huff
Huff 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
#612
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 55,484
+1,592 bearers (+3.0%)
Per 100,000 18.81
Rank movement Down 48 places
2020
#620
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 53,338
-2,146 bearers (-3.9%)
Per 100,000 17.84
Rank movement Down 8 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #564 | 53,892 | 19.98 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #612 | 55,484 | 18.81 | +1,592 bearers (+3.0%) | Down 48 places |
| 2020 | #620 | 53,338 | 17.84 | -2,146 bearers (-3.9%) | Down 8 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 Huff 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 | #612 | #620 | -1.3% |
| Count | 55,484 | 53,338 | -3.9% |
| Per 100K | 18.81 | 17.84 | -5.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Huff bearers went from 55,484 to 53,338 (-3.9% change). The surname moved down 8 positions in the national ranking, going from #612 to #620.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Huff
FAQ
Huff surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Huff?
Name Census estimates that about 61,164 living Americans carry the surname Huff. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 5,604 residents.
How common is Huff?
Huff ranks #620 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 17.84 per 100,000 residents, which is about 18 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 53,338 people with the surname Huff. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (61,164), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 17.84 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 17.84 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 18 of them to have the surname Huff.
Has Huff become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Huff went from 55,484 recorded bearers to 53,338. That is a decrease of 2,146 (-3.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #612 to #620.
What does the Census say about the background of Huff?
Among Census respondents with the surname Huff, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.2%. The next largest groups are Black (13.0%) and Two or More Races (4.3%). 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 Huff in the 2020 Census, accounting for 78.2% (41,714 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Huff appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (78.2%), Black (13.0%), Two or More Races (4.3%). 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 Huff (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 Huff mean?
A surname of German origin, derived from a nickname for a person with puffed-out cheeks or who was quick-tempered. 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 Huff (17.84 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 Huff?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people are called Huff at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.