Goff is a surname with several distinct origins, mainly Germanic,

Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language * Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Fo ...

, Jewish, and

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

. It is the 946th most common

family name In some cultures, a surname, family name, or last name is the portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family, tribe or community. Practices vary by culture. The family name may be placed at either the start of a person's full name ...

in the United States. When the surname originates from England it is derived from an occupational name from German, Welsh, Cornish and

Breton Breton most often refers to: *anything associated with Brittany, and generally ** Breton people ** Breton language, a Southwestern Brittonic Celtic language of the Indo-European language family, spoken in Brittany ** Breton (horse), a breed **Ga ...

. The German ''Goff'' means a godly person, a strong warrior, or a priest. The Welsh ''gof'' and the Breton ''goff'' means "smith" (

cognate In historical linguistics, cognates or lexical cognates are sets of words in different languages that have been inherited in direct descent from an etymology, etymological ancestor in a proto-language, common parent language. Because language c ...

with Irish ''gobha''). The English-originating surname is common in

East Anglia East Anglia is an area in the East of England, often defined as including the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire. The name derives from the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of the East Angles, a people whose name originated in Anglia, in ...

, where it is of Breton origin. The Welsh name is a variant of the surname

Gough Gough ( ) is a surname. The surname probably derives from the Welsh (English: "red"), given as a nickname to someone with red hair or a red complexion or as a reduced form of the Irish McGough which itself is an Anglicized form of Gaelic , a patro ...

, and is derived from a nickname for someone with

red hair Red hair (also known as orange hair and ginger hair) is a hair color found in one to two percent of the human population, appearing with greater frequency (two to six percent) among people of Northern or Northwestern European ancestry and ...

. The native Irish name is derived from a patronymic form of the Gaelic personal name Eochaidh/Eachaidh, which means "horseman".

Notable people

* Barbara Goff, classics professor * Bruce Goff, architect * Darius Goff (1809–1891), industrialist and businessman *

Frederick R. Goff Frederick Richmond Goff (April 23, 1916 – September 26, 1982) was an American rare book librarian and specialist in incunabula. Early life and education Goff was born in Newport, Rhode Island, on April 23, 1916. He earned bachelor's and mast ...

(1916–1982), librarian * Greg Goff, American college baseball coach *

Guy D. Goff Guy Despard Goff (September 13, 1866January 7, 1933) was an American lawyer and politician - who served as a United States senator from West Virginia. Earlier in his career, he was United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Wisconsin and ...

(1866–1933), US Senator from West Virginia * H. N. Goff, American politician and businessman * Harper Goff, American artist, musician, and actor * Harriet Newell Kneeland Goff (1828–1901), American author, temperance reformer * Helen Lyndon Goff author, better known as P. L. Travers the creator of Mary Poppins * Jared Goff, American football quarterback * Jacques Le Goff, French historian * Jerry Goff, American baseball player * John William Goff (1848–1924), American lawyer and politician from New York * John William Goff (baseball) (1925–2009), American baseball player * Jonathan Goff, American football player * Keli Goff, American journalist, playwright and screenwriter * Kellen Goff, American voice actor *

Kenneth Goff Kenneth Goff (September 19, 1914 - April 11, 1972) was an Water fluoridation controversy, anti-fluoride, Christian Identity, anti-Communist minister. He was the 1944 national chairman of Gerald L. K. Smith's Christian Youth for America. Biograp ...

, American anti-communist *

Martyn Goff Martyn may refer to: *Martyn (surname), one of the Tribes of Galway and others *Martyn (given name) See also *Martin (disambiguation) *Marten (disambiguation) A marten is a mammal in the family ''Mustelidae''. Marten, Mårten, or Martén may also ...

(1923–2015), British author, bookseller and literary administrator *

Mike Goff (baseball) Michael Roger Goff (born September 30, 1962) is an American baseball coach and former infielder, who is a current assistant baseball coach for the Arizona State Sun Devils. Goff was a coach for the Seattle Mariners from August through , servin ...

, professional baseball player/manager *

Mike Goff (American football) Michael Jason Goff (born January 6, 1976) is a former American football Guard (American football), guard and coach. He currently serves as an Offensive Line coach at San Diego State. He was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals in the third round of ...

, American football player *

Nathan Goff Jr. Nathan Goff Jr. (February 9, 1843 – April 23, 1920) was a United States representative from West Virginia, a Union Army officer, the 28th United States Secretary of the Navy during President Rutherford B. Hayes administration, a United States ...

, member of the United States Congress * Phil Goff, former leader of the Labour Party of New Zealand * Philip Goff (philosopher), British philosopher * Ray Goff, American football player and coach * Reginald Goff (1907–1980), English judge *

Robert Goff (football player) Robert Lamar Goff (born October 2, 1965) is a former professional American football player for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League. The defensive lineman was a fourth-round draft pick in the 1988 NFL Draft by the Tampa Bay Bucc ...

, American football player * Robert Goff, Baron Goff of Chieveley (1926–2016), British judge and law lord * Sir Park Goff, 1st Baronet, British Conservative party politician, MP * Sidney Clayton Goff (1861–1935), American dentist and politician *

Stan Goff Stan Goff (born November 12, 1951, in San Diego, California) is an American anti-war activist, writer, and blogger. Prior to his activism Goff had a long career in the U.S. armed forces, serving in the United States Army from 1970 to 1996 with two ...

(born 1951), author * Thomas Goff (1867–1949), Irish/English landowner and politician * Thomas William Goff (1829–1876), Irish Conservative party politician, MP * Trish Goff (born 1976), fashion model

References

External links

Goff/Gough Surname DNA Study

The Goff Surname, Ancestry.com

The Gough Surname, Ancestry.com

The McGough Surname, Ancestry.com

The Goff-Gough Family Association