Hogan
An Irish surname from Ó hÓgáin, meaning “descendant of Ógán,” ultimately tied to the Gaelic root for “young.”
The #536 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 4,894 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Hogan is generally explained as an Anglicized form of Irish Ó hÓgáin. The name is usually connected with the Gaelic personal name Ógán, a diminutive of óg, meaning “young,” so the sense is something like “descendant of the young one” or “descendant of Ógán.” Older reference works also linked it broadly with Gaelic og, “young,” and treated it as a native Irish personal-name surname rather than an occupational one.
History
The surname is strongly associated with Ireland, especially Munster and other Irish-speaking areas, and later spread widely through emigration. Historical spelling forms varied a lot, with variants such as Hagan, Heggan, and O’Hogan appearing in English records. In older Anglo-American surname books, it was sometimes given speculative or simplified explanations, but the Irish patronymic origin is the standard one today.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Woulfe’s work links Hogan with a broader cluster of related Anglicized Irish surnames built on the same Ó hÓgáin form, showing how many English spellings could spring from one Gaelic original.
From the historical record
“of the court. HOGAN". In the Cornish, mortal, in the Gaelic, a young man, from " Og" young. Hogyn, Welsh, a stripling. HOGARTH. (Dutch.) From hoogh, high, and a&rd, nature or disDOsition. HOGG. Same as Hoag (which see). HOGGEL. From the Norman, Hugel, a hill. HOLBECH. Local. A place in the county of Lincoln, Eng-…”
— An Etymological Dictionary of Family and Christian NamesNotable people named Hogan
- Paul Hogan (b. 1939)
Sourced from Wikidata; linked to their Wikipedia page.