Huffe History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland
Scotland

The ancestors of the Huffe surname lived among the ancient Anglo-Saxon culture. The name comes from when they lived near a hill or steep ridge of land. The surname Huffe 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 Huffe 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 Huffe family

The surname Huffe 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 Huffe family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Huffe 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 Huffe History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Huffe Spelling Variations

Before English spelling was standardized a few hundred years ago, spelling variations of names were a common occurrence. Elements of Latin, French and other languages became incorporated into English through the Middle Ages, and name spellings changed even among the literate. The variations of the surname Huffe include Hough, Huff, Houfe, Hoff, Hoffe and others.

Early Notables of the Huffe 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 Huffe Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Huffe family to Ireland

Some of the Huffe 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.

Huffe migration to the United States +

A great wave of immigration to the New World was the result of the enormous political and religious disarray that struck England at that time. Families left for the New World in extremely large numbers. The long journey was the end of many immigrants and many more arrived sick and starving. Still, those who made it were rewarded with an opportunity far greater than they had known at home in England. These emigrant families went on to make significant contributions to these emerging colonies in which they settled. Some of the first North American settlers carried this name or one of its variants:

Huffe Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Abr Huffe, who arrived in Virginia in 1653 6
Ro Huffe, who arrived in Virginia in 1658 6
Mary Huffe, who landed in New England in 1662 6

Huffe migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Huffe Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Nelly Huffe, aged 20, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick in 1833 aboard the brig "Charity" from Kinsale, Ireland

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)
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)