The Hand surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 22,006 people carried this name — #1,639 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 13,400 people counted. About the same as in 2000 (22,034).

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What the name means

The meaning of the Hand surname

As a Dutch, German, and English surname, from the noun hand, or used to translate surname for hand in other languages.

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Hand» (English), by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · excerpt, lightly adapted.

As an English and Welsh surname

Bardsley classes it as a baptismal name, from a given name: ‘the son of John’.

An early record he cites: Matilda Han-wyfe, 1379 — Poll Tax, West Riding of Yorkshire.

His entry covers Hand, Hands and Hance.

From Charles W. Bardsley, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with Special American Instances (London: Henry Frowde, 1901), p. 354 · public domain.

In Ireland’s birth registers, 1890

Ireland registered 28 births for the Hand name in 1890.

Most were registered in Leinster. By the Registrar-General’s own method — births multiplied by 44.38 — that is about 1,200 people bearing the name in Ireland at the time. The Registrar-General’s note on the name: “Dublin.”

Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.

Where they were born, 1890

Leinster 18
Ulster 6
Munster 4

Registrar-General for Ireland, «Special Report on Surnames in Ireland» (R. E. Matheson, 1894), births index of 1890 — public domain.

In France’s civil register

France’s register of deaths holds 40 people named Hand.

11 of them were born outside France. Those born in France came from 4 départements, most often Moselle.

Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.

Where they were born

Born outside France 11
Moselle 25
Meurthe-et-Moselle 2
Paris 1
Val-de-Marne 1

Fichier des personnes décédées, INSEE — Licence Ouverte 2.0 · deaths recorded in France since 1970, by place of birth.

In the Nordic population registers

33 people named Hand is counted in Finland.

Finland counts its citizens, at home or abroad.

Counted, by country

Finland (2026) 33

Digital and Population Data Services Agency (DVV), Finland, surname statistics, August 2026 — CC BY 4.0.

Among the farmers of England and Wales, 1880s

Hand was found among the farmers of 3 counties.

It was most frequent in Staffordshire: 10 in every 10,000 farmers there — about 1 in 1,000. Guppy counted the farmers listed in each county’s directory and recorded a name only where it reached about 7 in every 10,000; where it does not appear, it was rarer than that, not absent.

Where it concentrates, on the map

Per 10,000 farmers, by county

Staffordshire 10
Derbyshire 9
Lincolnshire 9

H. B. Guppy, «Homes of Family Names in Great Britain» (London, 1890), alphabetical list of English and Welsh names — public domain · farmers in Kelly’s Post Office Directories of the 1880s, per 10,000 farmers in each county.

In Scotland’s registers today

Hand was recorded 11 times in Scotland’s registers of births, marriages and deaths in 2025.

That made it the 1788th most common name in those registers, shared with others on the same count. In 1975, the first year of the series, the count was 14. Each birth counts the child’s surname, each marriage both partners’ and each death the surname of the person who died — a yearly count of registrations, not of the people who live in Scotland.

National Records of Scotland, «Most Common Surnames, 2025» (published 26 May 2026): every surname recorded 10 or more times in the 2025 registers, and the series from 1975 · different spellings are counted separately — © Crown copyright 2026. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

In the first U.S. census, 1790

73 families named Hand, or a close spelling, were counted in 1790.

Each family is counted by its head. About 397 people lived in those households, 5.4 to a family on average. The table counts it together with one other spelling. The table lists white heads of families only, in the twelve states whose 1790 records survive; Virginia’s figures come from state lists of 1782–1785.

Families, by state

New York 26
Connecticut 11
Pennsylvania 9
Maryland 8
Virginia 6
South Carolina 4
Massachusetts 3
North Carolina 3
New Hampshire 2
Vermont 1

U.S. Census Bureau, «A Century of Population Growth from the First Census of the United States to the Twelfth, 1790–1900» (Washington, 1909), table 111, p. 243 — public domain · names carried by at least 100 white persons in 1790.

In print

Hand in American newspapers,
1913.

Newspaper page from The Rice Belt Journal carrying the name Hand
The Rice Belt Journal 1913-08-15
Newspaper page from Macon Beacon carrying the name Hand
Macon Beacon 1913-08-01
Newspaper page from Macon Beacon carrying the name Hand
Macon Beacon 1913-06-20

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 10,872 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Hand in Australian newspapers,
1810s–2010s.

66,720 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Hand. The most, 10,317, date from the 1900s. New South Wales has the most articles, but weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, the name stands out most in South Australia, at 1.3 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

New South Wales 21,053
Victoria 14,635
South Australia 10,480
Queensland 8,496
Western Australia 5,448
Tasmania 5,349
ACT (Canberra) 1,022
Northern Territory 44

Trove, National Library of Australia (trove.nla.gov.au) · articles in its digitised newspapers that name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Hand.

Who carried it

People named Hand,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Edward Hand
    Edward Hand 1744–1802 · politician
  • Johan Hand d. 1620 · military personnel
  • George Hand d. 1945 · Anglican priest
  • Eleanor Hand d. 1855
  • Ignatius James Peter Hand d. 1944
  • Hakon Knutsson Hand d. 1633

Wikidata (CC0) · portraits via Wikimedia Commons, shown cropped, in the public domain or CC0 · 10 lives in all are documented under this name.

In the public record

People named Hand,
in the records of 8 countries.

Soldiers, farmers, migrants and neighbours who carried the name and left a trace in public archives. Everyone shown here died long ago or was born more than a century ago.

United States3,486 records

3,486 records of the Hand name in the United States
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 1,075
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 820
  • Other U.S. records 1,591
  1. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Frank Edward Hand

    Born 1942; from Ft Worth, Texas. U.S. Navy, pilot; killed in action 1968 in Offshore, South Vietnam. Buried at Barrancas National Cemetery, Florida.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  2. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Jettie L. Hand

    Born 1922 in Alabama. Enlisted 1942 at Fort McClellan; farmer from Elmore County. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1984, buried at Chattanooga National Cemetery, Tennessee.

    U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  3. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Elizabeth Hand

    Arrived at New York in 1892 aboard the City of Rome from Glasgow and Moville, aged 25; servant. From Newry, Ireland; bound for Boston.

    U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted)

Showing 3 of 3,486 records for Hand in the United States.

Counts: NYC Department of Records & Information Services, Historical Vital Records (NYC Open Data) · U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted) · U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) · U.S. National Archives, Famine Irish Passenger Records (public domain) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · Sacramento County, Historic Burials (CC BY 4.0) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Vietnam Veterans Memorial, photo by U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Carden, 2009 (public domain); U.S. Selective Service registration card, 1942 (public domain); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain).

Australia709 records

709 records of the Hand name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 313
  • Victoria wills and probate, deaths to 2001 141
  • Other Australian records 255
  1. An 1829 etching of convicts being rowed out to the prison ship York in Portsmouth Harbour
    Pictured: convicts going on board a prison ship, 1829
    Transportation record James Hand

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Lady Harewood, sailing from London in 1829. Native of Wolverhampton, Staffordshire. Applied for permission to marry in Van Diemen's Land in 1842.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  2. An 1829 etching of convicts being rowed out to the prison ship York in Portsmouth Harbour
    Pictured: convicts going on board a prison ship, 1829
    Transportation record Patrick Hand

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Richard Webb, sailing from Kingston in 1841. Native of Louth. Applied for permission to marry in Van Diemen's Land in 1847. Married 1847 in Hobart, Tasmania.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Thomas Ebenezer Hand

    Died 1880 in Launceston, Tasmania, aged 61. Will registered in Tasmania in 1880.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 709 records for Hand in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0) · Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY) · Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0) · State Library of Western Australia (CC BY 4.0) · City of Ballarat, Avenue of Honour Plaques (CC BY 3.0 AU) · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Prison-ship in Portsmouth Harbour, with the convicts going on board, etching by Edward William Cooke, 1829, Royal Museums Greenwich (public domain); Petition to the probate court, St. Louis, 1848, Missouri Historical Society (public domain).

Netherlands318 records

318 records of the Hand name in the Netherlands
  • Dutch civil registers (births, marriages, deaths) 148
  • Dutch population registers 117
  • Dutch church registers before 1811 53
  1. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Johannes Hand

    Married in 1880 in Nibbixwoud; labourer. Died 1891 in Wognum, aged 39.

    Open Archives, Noord-Hollands Archief (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Joannes Nicolaas Hand

    Born 1913 in Blokker. Married in 1941 in Wognum; bookbinder.

    Open Archives, Westfries Archief (CC BY 4.0); Open Archives, Noord-Hollands Archief (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Johannes Hand

    Married in 1839 in Alkmaar; farmhand. Died 1849 in Alkmaar, aged 38.

    Open Archives, Noord-Hollands Archief (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 318 records for Hand in the Netherlands.

Counts: Open Archives (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain).

Canada62 records

62 records of the Hand name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 27
  • Canadian Virtual War Memorial 9
  • Other Canadian records 26
  1. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Civil record Oyrandy Hand

    Killed in the Halifax Explosion of 1917.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.
  2. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Eric Norman Hand

    Died 1994, aged 62; buried at Brookside Cemetery, Winnipeg, Manitoba.

    City of Winnipeg. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Winnipeg.
  3. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Pearl Etta Hand

    Buried in 1980 at Queen's Park Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta, aged 72.

    City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary.

Showing 3 of 62 records for Hand in Canada.

Counts: Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. · Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada. · City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. · Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario. · Halifax Regional Municipality. Contains information licenced under the Open Government Licence—Halifax. · City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary. · City of Winnipeg. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Winnipeg. · City of Niagara Falls. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Niagara Falls. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0); Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, photo by Edgar El (CC BY 3.0).

Germany41 records

41 records of the Hand name in Germany Germany's First World War casualty lists, 1914–1919
  1. A page of the German First World War casualty lists, 18 April 1918
    Example: German casualty list, 1918
    Casualty list Johannes Hand

    From Glasholz, Eckernförde. Reported wounded in the Prussian casualty list of 11 August 1917; then reported dead in the list of 20 February 1919 (Reserve Infantry Regiment No. 223).

    Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0)
  2. A page of the German First World War casualty lists, 18 April 1918
    Example: German casualty list, 1918
    Casualty list Ludwig Hand

    From Burgsponheim, Coblenz. Reported wounded in the Prussian casualty list of 5 August 1915 (Infantry Regiment No. 166).

    Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0)
  3. A page of the German First World War casualty lists, 18 April 1918
    Example: German casualty list, 1918
    Casualty list Josef Hand

    From Kreuznach. Reported missing in the Prussian casualty list of 23 May 1917; then reported dead in the list of 11 December 1917.

    Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0)

Showing 3 of 41 records for Hand in Germany.

Counts: Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Deutsche Verlustlisten, Prussian list 1116, 18 April 1918 (scan via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0).

United Kingdom37 records

37 records of the Hand name in the United Kingdom
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 24
  • St James's burial ground, Euston (London), 1789–1853 6
  • Other British records 7
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Catherine Hand

    Buried in 1882 at Mar Place Cemetery, Stirling, Scotland, aged 26.

    Stirling Council. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
  2. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Anne Hand

    Will proved in 1908; of Carnarvon, Carnarvon.

    National Library of Wales, Wills Index Cards (CC0)
  3. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Susanna Hand

    Buried in 1828 at St James's burial ground, Euston, London, aged 66.

    MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Showing 3 of 37 records for Hand in the United Kingdom.

Counts: National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. · National Library of Wales, Wills Index Cards (CC0) · Stirling Council. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0); Petition to the probate court, St. Louis, 1848, Missouri Historical Society (public domain).

New Zealand25 records

25 records of the Hand name in New Zealand
  • Christchurch City cemetery records 22
  • Timaru and Mackenzie District cemetery records 2
  • Thames-Coromandel District cemetery records 1
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record John Hand

    Died 1945, aged 80; buried at Ruru Lawn, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Nicholas Hand

    Buried in 1941 at Shortland Cemetery, Thames-Coromandel District, Waikato, aged 78.

    Thames-Coromandel District Council (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record William Hand

    Died 1892, aged 54; buried at Addington Cemetery, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 25 records for Hand in New Zealand.

Counts: Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0) · Canterbury Maps (Environment Canterbury), Timaru and Mackenzie District Councils (CC BY 3.0 NZ) · Thames-Coromandel District Council (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0).

France22 records

22 records of the Hand name in France France's national death register, 1970–2001
  1. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Jeanne Catherine Hand

    Born 1900 in Moyeuvre-Grande; died 1975 in Marange-Silvange (Moselle).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)
  2. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Edward Anthony Hand

    Born 1945 in Great Britain; died 1998 in Périgueux (Dordogne).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)

Showing 2 of 22 records for Hand in France.

Counts: Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Death register of Nice, 1930, Archives départementales des Alpes-Maritimes (public domain).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Hand.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Hand is.
A volume says what happened to it.

Every page in the index is free and stays free. The Heritage Volume is the long form: the full paper trail, the arms, the crossing — bound, and yours.

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