Hoover: Surname Meaning and Origin

The Hoover surname is an Anglicized form of the German and Dutch name Huber, meaning "a large measure of land" or "a man who owns a hube (a 30-60 acre parcel of land)," from the Middle High German huober and Middle Dutch huve. Hoover was typically a status name for a prosperous landowner or farmer whose land holdings were appreciably larger than that of the average peasant. However, it is also possible the name was used by individuals who only worked on a large property in return for a wage.

• Surname origin: Dutch
• Alternate surname spellings: Hover, Huber, Hober, Houver, Houwer, Hubar, Hubauer, Hubber, Hueber, Hufer, Huver, Obar, Ober, Uber, Aubert

Where This Surname Is Found

According to WorldNames public profiler, the Hoover surname is found in the greatest numbers in the United States, with the largest population percentage coming from Pennsylvania, Indiana, West Virginia, Kansas, and Ohio. It is the next most commonly found in Canada. Very few individuals named Hoover live in countries outside of North America, although there are scattered individuals with that surname found in New Zealand and a number of European countries.

Famous People With the Surname Hoover

• Herbert Hoover: 31st president of the United States
• Erna Schneider Hoover: Inventor of the computerized telephone switching system
• J. Edgar Hoover: First Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) of the United States

​Genealogy Resources

• The Hoover Family Genetic Genealogy Research Project: The Hoover Family Project at Family Tree DNA "welcomes all Hoover and Huber descendants who are interested in working together to discover their heritage through sharing of information and DNA testing."
• The Huber-Hoover Family History: This 1928 book by Harry M. Hoover traces the descendants of Hans Huber from the time of his arrival in Pennsylvania down to the eleventh generation. View the book for free on FamilySearch.
• Hoover Family Genealogy Forum: Search this popular genealogy forum for the Hoover surname to find others who might be researching your ancestors, or post your own Hoover surname query.
• FamilySearch: Explore over 760,000 results, including digitized records, database entries, and online family trees for the Hoover surname and its variations on the FREE FamilySearch website, courtesy of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
• DistantCousin.com: Explore free databases and genealogy links for the last name Hoover.
• The Hoover Genealogy and Family Tree Page: Browse genealogy records and links to genealogical and historical records for individuals with the Hoover surname from the website of Genealogy Today.

Sources

• Cottle, Basil. Penguin Dictionary of Surnames. Baltimore: Penguin Books, 1967.
• Hanks, Patrick and Flavia Hodges. A Dictionary of Surnames. New York: Oxford University Press, 1989.
• Hanks, Patrick. Dictionary of American Family Names. New York: Oxford University Press, 2003.
• MacLysaght, Edward. Surnames of Ireland. Dublin: Irish Academic Press, 1989.
• Smith, Elsdon C. American Surnames. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1997.