Huss
A surname with several possible roots, but most often linked to a German nickname meaning “goose.”
The #5,481 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 48,652 Americans shares it.
Etymology
This surname is usually explained from a German word for “goose,” the same source as the name of the Czech reformer Jan Hus (often written John Huss in older English). Some 19th-century writers also treated it as a short nickname-form in Germanic languages, though the exact pathway is not always clear. Because the form is very short, later spellings can also reflect local pronunciation or simplification from longer names.
History
The name is best known historically through Jan Hus, the Bohemian reformer whose surname was rendered as Huss in older English books. In German-speaking areas, short surnames of this type often began as nicknames or descriptive labels and then became inherited family names. In modern use, Huss is found in several Germanic and Central European family lines, with some American bearers descending from immigrant families.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Older writers loved the famous “goose” pun: Jan Hus was said to have predicted that after the goose was burned, a swan would rise from the ashes.
From the historical record
“CLUM. Local. A place in Germany, the ancient residence of the Knight of Clum, the friend of John Huss. CLUTE. Kluitj Dutch, a lamp; " hij heeft kluiten," he has got the chink, he is rich. COATES. Local The side, the shore, coast, border.”
— An Etymological Dictionary of Family and Christian Names