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The name Höffer is a proud symbol of ancient Jewish culture. Before the late Middle Ages, people were known only by a single name. However, as the population increased and travelers set out on their journeys, it became necessary for people to adopt a second name to identify themselves. Jewish hereditary surnames were adopted from a variety of different sources. The surname Höffer is of two possible derivations. In the first case, it is an occupational surname, which derives from the German word hof, which means settlement, or farm. Many Jews in the Russian Empire held such managerial positions on non-Jewish estates. The other meaning of the surname comes from the Yiddish word hofn, which means hope. As such, it was taken as a symbol, and was given to someone who had hope for the future.
In the United States, the name Höffer is the 6,752nd most popular surname with an estimated 4,974 people with that name. 1