2000
#532
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 56,068
First available Census row
Per 100,000 20.78
Uncommon Last name
Hoover
Derived from German Huber, referring to a landowner or one who owned a large plot of land.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 65,363 Americans carry the last name Hoover. That puts it at #580 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 19.07 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 5,244 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Hoover 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.
Bearers in the US
65K
1 in 5,244
Census rank
#580
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
19.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
57K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 57,000 bearers of the surname Hoover in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 19.07 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 580th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Hoover, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.4%. The next largest groups are Black (3.4%) and Two or More Races (3.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Hoover
The surname Hoover originated in Germany and is derived from the German word "Huber," which means "farmer" or "landowner." It is believed that the name first appeared in the late 12th century or early 13th century in the region now known as Bavaria.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name appears in a document from the year 1285, where a man named Heinrich Huber is mentioned as a resident of the town of Augsburg. In the 15th century, the name was also found in various records from the city of Nuremberg.
As the name spread across Europe, it underwent various spelling variations, including Huber, Hueber, Hüber, and eventually Hoover. It is likely that the spelling "Hoover" emerged as a result of anglicization when German immigrants brought the name to English-speaking countries.
One of the earliest known individuals with the surname Hoover was Hans Hoover, who was born in 1495 in the town of Rothenburg ob der Tauber, located in modern-day Bavaria, Germany. He was a successful merchant and landowner.
Another notable figure with the surname Hoover was Johann Hoover, who was born in 1632 in the town of Strasbourg, which was then part of the Holy Roman Empire (now in modern-day France). He was a respected theologian and author of several religious texts.
In the United States, one of the most famous individuals with the surname Hoover was Herbert Hoover, who was born in 1874 in West Branch, Iowa, and served as the 31st President of the United States from 1929 to 1933. He was a prominent figure during the Great Depression and is remembered for his efforts to address the economic crisis.
Another notable American with the surname Hoover was J. Edgar Hoover, who was born in 1895 in Washington, D.C. He served as the first Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) from 1935 until his death in 1972, making him one of the longest-serving government officials in U.S. history.
In the field of science, Katharine Blodgett Hoover (1898-1979) was a pioneering American scientist and the first woman to be employed as a researcher at the General Electric Company. She made significant contributions to the study of thin films and is credited with developing a method for creating non-reflective glass, which found applications in various industries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hoover
Among Census respondents with the surname Hoover, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.4%. The next largest groups are Black (3.4%) and Two or More Races (3.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Hoover 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 Hoover surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.4% · 50,961
- Black or African American3.4% · 1,926
- Two or more races3.3% · 1,901
- Hispanic or Latino2.7% · 1,520
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 394
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 298
Timeline
Historical Census data for Hoover
Hoover 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
#580
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 57,497
+1,429 bearers (+2.5%)
Per 100,000 19.49
Rank movement Down 48 places
2020
#580
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 57,000
-497 bearers (-0.9%)
Per 100,000 19.07
Rank movement No rank change
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #532 | 56,068 | 20.78 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #580 | 57,497 | 19.49 | +1,429 bearers (+2.5%) | Down 48 places |
| 2020 | #580 | 57,000 | 19.07 | -497 bearers (-0.9%) | No rank change |
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 Hoover 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 | #580 | #580 | 0.0% |
| Count | 57,497 | 57,000 | -0.9% |
| Per 100K | 19.49 | 19.07 | -2.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Hoover bearers went from 57,497 to 57,000 (-0.9% change). The surname held its position in the national ranking, remaining at #580.
FAQ
Hoover surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Hoover?
Name Census estimates that about 65,363 living Americans carry the surname Hoover. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 5,244 residents.
How common is Hoover?
Hoover ranks #580 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 19.07 per 100,000 residents, which is about 19 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 57,000 people with the surname Hoover. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (65,363), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 19.07 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 19.07 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 19 of them to have the surname Hoover.
Has Hoover become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Hoover went from 57,497 recorded bearers to 57,000. That is a decrease of 497 (-0.9%). In the national ranking it stayed at #580.
What does the Census say about the background of Hoover?
Among Census respondents with the surname Hoover, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.4%. The next largest groups are Black (3.4%) and Two or More Races (3.3%). 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 Hoover in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.4% (50,961 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Hoover appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.4%), Black (3.4%), Two or More Races (3.3%). 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 Hoover (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 Hoover mean?
Derived from German Huber, referring to a landowner or one who owned a large plot of land. 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 Hoover (19.07 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 have the last name Hoover?
You can see how many people are called Hoover on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.