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Hard Family History

Hard Name Meaning

English: variant of Heard . Compare Hardman . English German Dutch and Swedish (Hård): nickname for a stern or severe man from Middle English Middle Low German hard Middle Dutch hart hert Swedish hård ‘hard inflexible’. The Swedish name was probably originally a soldier's name. English: topographic name denoting a dweller on hard firm ground from a transferred use of the adjective in 2 above or perhaps sometimes from a landing-place as in the modern Hampshire use of the term hard. Compare Hardacre . English: perhaps from a Middle English survival of an unrecorded Old English personal name Heard or else a borrowing of the ancient Germanic cognate Hardo. Both are from the adjective meaning ‘hard’ which was the basis of a number of Old English and ancient Germanic personal names like Harding and H(e)ardwin.

Source: Dictionary of American Family Names 2nd edition, 2022


Similar surnames: Hart, Hardt, Hare, Bard, Hand, Harp, Hardy, Yard, Herd, Hain

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Where is the Hard family from?

You can see how Hard families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Hard family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1840 and 1920. The most Hard families were found in USA in 1920. In 1840 there were 52 Hard families living in New York. This was about 32% of all the recorded Hard's in USA. New York had the highest population of Hard families in 1840.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Hard surname lived. Within census records, you can often find information like name of household members, ages, birthplaces, residences, and occupations.

What did your Hard ancestors do for a living?

In 1940, Farmer and Housewife were the top reported jobs for men and women in the USA named Hard. 19% of Hard men worked as a Farmer and 11% of Hard women worked as a Housewife. Some less common occupations for Americans named Hard were Clerk and Stenographer. .

View Census Data for Hard | Data not to scale

*We display top occupations by gender to maintain their historical accuracy during times when men and women often performed different jobs.

Top Male Occupations In 1940

  • Farmer
    19%
  • Laborer
    17%
  • Salesman
    6%
  • Clerk
    4%

Top Female Occupations In 1940

  • Housewife
    11%
  • Housekeeper
    10%
  • Teacher
    10%
  • Stenographer
    6%
Black & white image of two construction labourers

What Hard family records will you find?

Census Records

There are 59,000 census records available for the last name Hard. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Hard census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

Search US census records for Hard

Passenger Lists

There are 6,000 immigration records available for the last name Hard. Passenger lists are your ticket to knowing when your ancestors arrived in the USA, and how they made the journey - from the ship name to ports of arrival and departure.

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Draft Cards

There are 21,000 military records available for the last name Hard. For the veterans among your Hard ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

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What is the average Hard lifespan?

Between 1948 and 2004, in the United States, Hard life expectancy was at its lowest point in 1957, and highest in 2002. The average life expectancy for Hard in 1948 was 51, and 75 in 2004.

View Social Security Death Index (SSDI) for Hard

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