Recorded in at least three spellings being Hoogendorp, Hogendorp and van Hogendorp, this is a surname of The Netherlands. It is locational like many Dutch names, and describes somebody who comes from a place called Hogendorp or Hoogendorp. This oddly is a name of Norse-Viking pre 7th century origins, from the words "hagi" meaning a fenced area suitable for agriculture, and "torp", the Scandanavian word for an outlying farm or settlement, and usually found in English as Thorp, Thorpe or Throp. The use of the preposition "van" to imply "of", is similar to the French "de" or the German "von", although it is often claimed, for reasons unclear and unexplained, that it does not have quite the same implications of land ownership or status. Locational surnames were usually "from" names. That is to say surnames given to people after they left their original homes and moved somewhere else, as easy identification of a stranger. This would seem to be true with this surname as it is recorded widely in the country. Examples include Aagje Hoogendorp, the daughter of Jacob and Engeltje Hoogendorp christened at Oostzaan, Nord Holland, on May 19th 1751, and Gijsbert van Hogendorp christened at Gravenhage, Zuid Holland, somewhat earlier, on August 1st 1676.

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