Houf History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland
Scotland

The ancestors of the name Houf date back to the Anglo-Saxon tribes of Britain. The name is derived from when the Houf family lived near a hill or steep ridge of land. The surname Houf is usually derived from the Old English word hoh, which means heel or projecting ridge of land. However, it is sometimes derived from the Old Norse word haugr, which means mound or hill. Furthermore, the name Houf may be derived from residence in one of a variety of similarly named places: Hoe is in Norfolk, Hoo is in Kent, places called Hooe are in Devon and Sussex, Hose is in Leicestershire, places named Heugh are in Durham and Northumberland, and settlements called Hough are found in both Cheshire and Derby.

Early Origins of the Houf family

The surname Houf was first found in Cheshire at Hough, a village and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East which dates back to the 13th century when it was first listed as Hohc. 1 2 3

Dusting off some centuries-old records we found, Wilielmus de Huff, registered in the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379. 4

The name is "especially common in Bedfordshire and Northants, fairly so in Suffolk, Essex, Herts and Bucks, and very common in Northumberland and Durham. The nominative singular gives Hough, in Scotland and Northern England Heugh." 5

Early History of the Houf family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Houf research. Another 110 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1564, 1618, 1651, 1660, 1681, 1687, 1699, 1717 and 1743 are included under the topic Early Houf History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Houf Spelling Variations

It is only in the last few hundred years that the English language has been standardized. For that reason, early Anglo-Saxon surnames like Houf are characterized by many spelling variations. As the English language changed and incorporated elements of other European languages, even literate people changed the spelling of their names. The variations of the name Houf include: Hough, Huff, Houfe, Hoff, Hoffe and others.

Early Notables of the Houf family

Notables of this surname at this time include: John Hough (1651-1743), Bishop of Oxford (1699), and later Bishop of Worcester (1717), best known for the confrontation over his election as President at Magdalen College, Oxford (1681-1687.) He was "the son of John Hough...
Another 43 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Houf Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Houf family to Ireland

Some of the Houf family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt. More information about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Houf family

Many English families tired of political and religious strife left Britain for the new colonies in North America. Although the trip itself offered no relief - conditions on the ships were extremely cramped, and many travelers arrived diseased, starving, and destitute - these immigrants believed the opportunities that awaited them were worth the risks. Once in the colonies, many of the families did indeed prosper and, in turn, made significant contributions to the culture and economies of the growing colonies. An inquiry into the early roots of North American families has revealed a number of immigrants bearing the name Houf or a variant listed above: Atherton Hough settled in Boston in 1633; John Hough arrived in Philadelphia in 1683 with his wife and child; Richard Hough settled in Pennsylvania in 1683 with his wife and children.

Contemporary Notables of the name Houf (post 1700) +

H. T. Houf, American politician, Dry Candidate for Delegate to Ohio convention to ratify 21st amendment, 1933 6

Citations +

Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
Smith, Eldson Coles, New Dictionary of American Family Names New York: Harper & Row, 1956. Print
Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, February 19) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html