Ho
A surname found in several cultures, especially Chinese, where it can represent different characters and meanings depending on the family line.
The #691 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 6,198 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Ho is a short surname with more than one possible origin. In Chinese usage, it can be a romanization of several different surnames, each with its own written character and meaning, so the name is not a single etymology. In European contexts, Ho can also arise as a short form or spelling variant related to older surnames or place-based names, but those cases are much less common in modern English-speaking populations.
History
In the United States, Ho is most often associated with Chinese immigration and later romanization practices, which help explain its relatively high census count. Because the same spelling can come from different Chinese characters, bearers of the surname may not share a single ancestral origin. The name also appears independently in some European records as a short surname or variant spelling.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
A single spelling like Ho can hide several unrelated family names in Chinese, because different characters may be romanized the same way.