Shoaf
A surname of likely Germanic origin, probably an Americanized spelling of a German or Swiss-German family name.
The #9,994 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 95,676 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Shoaf is most likely an Americanized spelling of a German-language surname brought to North America by immigrant families. The form may reflect the spelling of a German or Swiss-German name that was reshaped in English-speaking records, rather than a surname with a single fixed original meaning in English. In many such cases, the modern spelling preserves pronunciation more clearly than the older written form.
History
The surname is found mainly in the United States, which fits a history of German-speaking immigration and later spelling variation in census and church records. Because Shoaf can reflect more than one underlying immigrant spelling, its exact origin may differ from family to family. The name is comparatively uncommon, but established enough to appear in modern U.S. census data.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Many U.S. surnames that look short and English are actually reduced or Anglicized forms of longer German names, especially in records from the 18th and 19th centuries.