Hocker
A surname of likely German origin, probably from a nickname or descriptive word rather than an occupation.
The #9,989 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 95,616 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The name is probably German in origin. The historical sources point to it as a related form in a family of German surnames, but they do not give a fully secure explanation. It may come from a descriptive nickname, possibly connected with a word for a hill or hump, or with an old personal-name element; the exact root is uncertain.
History
The surname appears in German-language surname traditions and later turns up in Anglicized spelling. In the 19th-century references supplied here, it is treated as part of a cluster of similar German names rather than as a clearly analyzed single form. Modern bearers in the United States likely descend from German-speaking immigrant lines.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
A 19th-century surname dictionary grouped Hocker with other short German names that were often explained by nickname-like roots, showing how fluid surname etymologies could be in early scholarship.
From the historical record
“Hucger: Hugger; Hucker — Hüger — Hocker — Höcker — Hoyer. Hugihart: Hugart — Hauhardt; Hau>ert; Hauer. Hugiher: Ht/ger — Höger — Hauer (Hugilant): Huiand.”
— Die deutschen Familiennamen