Hua
A surname with several possible origins, but in Irish genealogical writing it can reflect the old Gaelic prefix hua/hy meaning “grandson” or descendant.
The #5,052 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 44,494 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The surname Hua is ambiguous because the same spelling can arise in different ways. In Irish contexts, 19th-century writers note hua or hy as an old hereditary prefix meaning “grandson” or, more broadly, descendant, later often anglicized as O'. In French, Hua is also found as a surname and may be connected with older words based on the verb huer, “to shout,” though that explanation belongs to the French line rather than the Irish one.
History
Baring-Gould describes hua/hy as an old Irish ancestral marker and uses it to explain anglicized forms such as O'Neal and O'Connor. The spelling Hua itself is relatively uncommon in English-language records, which suggests that modern bearers may come from more than one surname tradition, especially Irish and French. Because the excerpted sources are historical and sometimes broad-brush, the exact origin for any one family named Hua should be checked case by case.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
One historical explanation treats hua as the ancestor-marker that eventually helped produce many surnames beginning with O' in English spelling.
From the historical record
“DoffuA. — Ci) Local, ■ of Duffus,' a parish in Morayshire, Scotland. (3) Local, 'at the duff-hua,' i.e. dove-house, where pigeons were bred. The same individual is thus RobeTtdFlD}'flehBa,«i.SafF.,i373. A. Robert del Dntnnu, co. Saff., Ibid:”
— A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with special American instances