The Hope surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 17,562 people carried this name — #2,052 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 16,800 people counted. That is up 5% from 16,710 in 2000.

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What the name means

The meaning of the Hope surname

An English and Scottish topographic surname from Middle English for someone who lived in a hope, a small enclosed valley.

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Hope» (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 local name, from where the family lived: ‘at the hope’.

An early record he cites: Roger de la Hope, Herefordshire, 1273 — Hundred Rolls.

His entry covers Hope and Hopes.

From Charles W. Bardsley, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with Special American Instances (London: Henry Frowde, 1901), p. 396 · public domain.

In Ireland’s birth registers, 1890

Ireland registered 6 births for the Hope name in 1890.

Most were registered in Munster. By the Registrar-General’s own method — births multiplied by 44.38 — that is about 300 people bearing the name in Ireland at the time.

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

Where they were born, 1890

Munster 3
Leinster 2
Connacht 1

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

In Poland’s population register

256 people named Hope have a registered home in Poland.

Of the 313 in Poland’s national register, these are the ones with a permanent address on file. They live in 8 of Poland’s 16 voivodeships, most of all in Pomeranian.

Where it concentrates, on the map

Where they live today

Pomeranian 103
West Pomeranian 48
Greater Poland 34
Kuyavian-Pomeranian 31
Silesian 18
Lower Silesian 9
Masovian 7
Opole 6

PESEL register, Ministry of Digital Affairs of Poland (dane.gov.pl) — CC0 · living people by voivodeship of permanent residence, 20 January 2026.

In Switzerland’s population statistics

38 people named Hope live in Switzerland.

They live in 6 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in Zurich.

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

Where they live today

Zurich 12
Bern 6
Schwyz 6
Vaud 6
Zug 5
Obwalden 3

Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO), «Surnames of the permanent resident population by canton», 2025, opendata.swiss/en/dataset/nachnamen-der-standigen-wohnbevolkerung-nach-kanton3 · names with fewer than 3 bearers in a canton are not published.

In Argentina’s national register

At least 34 people named Hope live in Argentina.

RENAPER only publishes a name in a province when more than ten people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in Buenos Aires Province.

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

Where they live today

Buenos Aires Province 18
City of Buenos Aires 16

RENAPER (National Registry of Persons, Argentina), surnames of residents by province, December 2021 — CC BY 4.0.

In France’s civil register

France’s register of deaths holds 31 people named Hope.

Most of them — 19 — were born outside France. Those born in France came from 6 départements, most often Paris.

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

Where they were born

Born outside France 19
Paris 4
Côte-d’Or 3
Loiret 2
Alpes-Maritimes 1
Yvelines 1
Somme 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

1,416 people named Hope are counted in Norway and Sweden.

Sweden’s figure is from 31 December 2022, the last count Statistics Sweden published. Norway publishes only surnames with 200 or more bearers.

Counted, by country

Norway (2025) 1,369
Sweden (2022) 47

Own calculations based on data from Statistics Sweden (SCB), surnames with at least two bearers, 31 December 2022 — CC BY 4.0 (names with 20 or more bearers shown) · Statistics Norway (SSB, ssb.no), table 12891, 2025 — CC BY 4.0.

Among the farmers of England and Wales, 1880s

Hope was found among the farmers of 4 counties.

It was most frequent in Kent: 21 in every 10,000 farmers there — about 1 in 476. 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

Kent 21
Herefordshire 14
Cheshire 11
Staffordshire 10

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, 1880s

Hope was 15 in every 10,000 names in Scotland.

That is about 1 in 667. Its home there, in Guppy’s words: “South of the Forth and the Clyde, especially in Dumfriesshire.” He counted the more than 20,000 names in Halliburton’s County Directory of Scotland, taking Scotland as a whole, and listed only the names that reached 10 in every 10,000.

H. B. Guppy, «Homes of Family Names in Great Britain» (London, 1890), appendix: alphabetical list of the most frequent Scottish names, p. 590 — public domain · names in Halliburton’s County Directory of Scotland, per 10,000 for the whole country.

In Scotland’s registers today

Hope was recorded 65 times in Scotland’s registers of births, marriages and deaths in 2025.

That made it the 407th most common name in those registers, shared with others on the same count. In 1975, the first year of the series, the count was 69. 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

30 families named Hope, or a close spelling, were counted in 1790.

Each family is counted by its head. About 139 people lived in those households, 4.6 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

South Carolina 7
Pennsylvania 6
Maryland 5
Virginia 4
North Carolina 4
New York 2
Vermont 1
Massachusetts 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. 246 — public domain · names carried by at least 100 white persons in 1790.

In print

Hope in American newspapers,
1879–1905.

Newspaper page from The Somerset Reporter carrying the name Hope
The Somerset Reporter 1905-07-27
Newspaper page from The Banner-democrat carrying the name Hope
The Banner-democrat 1902-04-12
Newspaper page from St. Tammany Farmer carrying the name Hope
St. Tammany Farmer 1879-05-03

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 7,854 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Hope in Australian newspapers,
1820s–2010s.

154,126 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Hope. The most, 24,097, 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 Tasmania, at 2.0 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

New South Wales 40,686
Victoria 32,501
Queensland 21,888
South Australia 19,972
Tasmania 19,638
Western Australia 17,930
ACT (Canberra) 1,047
Northern Territory 112

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

Who carried it

People named Hope,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Maidie Florence Kate Constance Hope
    Maidie Florence Kate Constance Hope d. 1945
  • Wilhelmine Mary Margaret Hope d. 1988 · nun
  • Judith Lawson d. 1991 · aristocrat
  • Alexander W. Hope d. 1856 · politician
  • Esmée Laura Diamond Hope d. 1905
  • Lady Sophia Hope d. 1813

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 Hope,
in the records of 9 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 States2,339 records

2,339 records of the Hope name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 569
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 553
  • Other U.S. records 1,217
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Fred Hope

    Born 1918 in South Carolina. Enlisted 1942 at Fort Bragg, North Carolina; construction laborer. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1997, buried at Salisbury National Cemetery, North Carolina.

    U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (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 John F. Hope

    Born 1921 in Missouri. Enlisted 1942 at Kansas City, Kansas; machinist from Jackson County. U.S. Army Air Forces veteran of World War II; died 2000, buried at Leavenworth National Cemetery, Kansas.

    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 William Thomas Hope

    Arrived at New York in 1892 aboard the Aurania from Liverpool and Queenstown, aged 41; stationer. From Chester, England; bound for Pennsylvania.

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

Showing 3 of 2,339 records for Hope in the United States.

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

Australia2,492 records

2,492 records of the Hope name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 1,117
  • Tasmanian Names Index 607
  • Other Australian records 768
  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 Jonathan Hope

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Surrey, sailing from Downs in 1832. Applied for permission to marry in Van Diemen's Land in 1838.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Elizabeth Patience Hope

    Died 1897 in Sheffield, Tasmania, aged 52. Will registered in Tasmania in 1897.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record James Hope

    Arrived in Victoria in 1853 aboard the Concordia, aged 30; American.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 2,492 records for Hope in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0) · Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0) · Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY) · State Library of Western Australia (CC BY 4.0) · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · ACT Government, Transport Canberra and City Services (CC BY 4.0). 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); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain).

Norway261 records

261 records of the Hope name in Norway Norway's 1910 census
  1. A page of the 1910 United States census, Milwaukee
    Example: U.S. census, 1910
    Census record Anton Hope

    Census of 1910: Von der Ohes Vei, Bergen; sailor, born 1891 in Bergen.

    Arkivverket, Digitalarkivet, 1910 census (CC BY 3.0 NO)
  2. A page of the 1910 United States census, Milwaukee
    Example: U.S. census, 1910
    Census record Helene Hope

    Census of 1910: Henrik Wergelandsgate, Kristiansand; deaconess, born 1864 in Sønhorland.

    Arkivverket, Digitalarkivet, 1910 census (CC BY 3.0 NO)
  3. A page of the 1910 United States census, Milwaukee
    Example: U.S. census, 1910
    Census record John Hope

    Census of 1910: Nes (plads), Tysnes; crofter and fisherman, born 1846 in Tysnes.

    Arkivverket, Digitalarkivet, 1910 census (CC BY 3.0 NO)

Showing 3 of 261 records for Hope in Norway.

Counts: Arkivverket, Digitalarkivet, 1910 census (CC BY 3.0 NO). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: U.S. census of 1910, Milwaukee (public domain).

Canada245 records

245 records of the Hope name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 137
  • Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver 32
  • Other Canadian records 76
  1. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Francis Hope

    Killed in the Halifax Explosion of 1917; buried at Mount Olivet Cemetery.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.
  2. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Alfred Hope

    Came to Ontario in 1870 aboard the Hibernian, landing at Portland, bound for P Credit, Ontario; English.

    Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario.
  3. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Marion Hope

    Buried in 1965 at Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, aged 75.

    Halifax Regional Municipality. Contains information licenced under the Open Government Licence—Halifax.

Showing 3 of 245 records for Hope in Canada.

Counts: Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. · City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. · Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada. · Halifax Regional Municipality. Contains information licenced under the Open Government Licence—Halifax. · City of Niagara Falls. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Niagara Falls. · City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary. · Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario. · City of Winnipeg. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Winnipeg. · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, photo by Edgar El (CC BY 3.0); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain).

United Kingdom121 records

121 records of the Hope name in the United Kingdom
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 84
  • Stirling Council burial records 17
  • Other British records 20
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Jennie Forrester Miller Hope

    Died 1945, aged 69; buried at Bannockburn Cemetery, Stirling, Scotland.

    Stirling Council. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
  2. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Sarah Hope

    Buried in 1815 at St James's burial ground, Euston, London, aged 25.

    MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
  3. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Evelyn Ellen Hope

    Will proved in 1939; of Llechryd.

    National Library of Wales, Wills Index Cards (CC0)

Showing 3 of 121 records for Hope in the United Kingdom.

Counts: National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · Stirling Council. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. · MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. · National Library of Scotland, Rolls of Honour (public domain) · National Library of Wales, Wills Index Cards (CC0). 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).

Netherlands71 records

71 records of the Hope name in the Netherlands
  • Dutch church registers before 1811 28
  • Dutch population registers 23
  • Dutch civil registers (births, marriages, deaths) 20
  1. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Earl Lester Hope

    Married in 1945 in Ede; metalworker.

    Open Archives, Gelders Archief (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Johanna Elisabeth Hope

    Married in 1850 in Amsterdam; seamstress.

    Open Archives, Noord-Hollands Archief (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Marij Hope

    Died 1819 in Deventer, aged 87.

    Open Archives, Collectie Overijssel locatie Zwolle (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 71 records for Hope 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); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

New Zealand41 records

41 records of the Hope name in New Zealand
  • Christchurch City cemetery records 19
  • Marlborough District cemetery records 18
  • Thames-Coromandel District cemetery records 4
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Gaynor Elizabeth Hope

    Died 1988, aged 45; buried at Fairhall Cemetery, Marlborough.

    Marlborough District Council (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Norman Orannore Hope

    Died 1957, aged 51; buried at Bromley Cemetery, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Kathleen Elizabeth Hope

    Buried in 1878 at Tararu Cemetery, Thames-Coromandel District, Waikato.

    Thames-Coromandel District Council (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 41 records for Hope in New Zealand.

Counts: Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0) · Marlborough District Council (CC BY 4.0) · 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).

France9 records

9 records of the Hope 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 Noel Maurice Joseph Hope

    Born 1922 in Dijon (Côte-d'Or); died 1998 in Le Kremlin-Bicêtre (Val-de-Marne).

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

    Born 1933 in Llandudno (Angleterre); died 2000 in Bron (Rhône).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)

Showing 2 of 9 records for Hope 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).

Germany8 records

8 records of the Hope 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 Arthur Höpe

    From Hollenbach, Mühlhausen. Reported wounded in the Prussian casualty list of 28 August 1916 (Reserve Infantry Regiment No. 81).

    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 Harry Hope

    From Münster. Reported wounded in the Prussian casualty list of 9 August 1916 (Landwehr Infantry Regiment No. 57).

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

Showing 2 of 8 records for Hope 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).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Hope.

When the index is not enough

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

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