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Harder Family History

Harder Surname Meaning

English: occupational name from an agent noun derived from Middle English hardenen ‘to make hard’ (Old English heardian) denoting a hardener of metals (used by Chaucer) and elsewhere a baker who hardened dough with heat.

North German and Danish: from the ancient Germanic personal name Harther composed of the elements hard ‘strong hard’ + heri ‘army’.

South German: topographic name from Middle High German hart ‘woodland used as pasture’ or a habitational name for someone from any of the places called with this word.

Dutch: vowel variant of Herder an occupational name for a shepherd.

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


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Where is the Harder family from?

You can see how Harder families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Harder family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1840 and 1920. The most Harder families were found in USA in 1880. In 1911 there were 181 Harder families living in Manitoba. This was about 49% of all the recorded Harder's in Canada. Manitoba had the highest population of Harder families in 1911.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Harder surname lived. Within census records, you can often find information like name of household members, ages, birthplaces, residences, and occupations.
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What did your Harder ancestors do for a living?

In 1921, Farmer and Farmer were the top reported jobs for men and women in the Canada named Harder. 55% of Harder men worked as a Farmer and 56% of Harder women worked as a Farmer. Some less common occupations for Americans named Harder were Student and Servant.

View Census Data for Harder | 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 1921

  • Farmer
    55%
  • Labourer
    8%
  • Farmers Son
    8%
  • Student
    4%

Top Female Occupations In 1921

  • Farmer
    56%
  • Servant
    45%

What Harder family records will you find?

Census Records

There are 72,000 census records available for the last name Harder. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Harder census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

Search Canadian census records for Harder

Passenger Lists

There are 11,000 immigration records available for the last name Harder. Passenger lists are your ticket to knowing when your ancestors arrived in Canada, and how they made the journey - from the ship name to ports of arrival and departure.

View all Harder immigration records

Draft Cards

There are 12,000 military records available for the last name Harder. For the veterans among your Harder ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

View all Harder military records

You've only scratched the surface of Harder family history

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What is the average Harder lifespan?

Between 1944 and 2004, in the United States, Harder life expectancy was at its lowest point in 1958, and highest in 2004. The average life expectancy for Harder in 1944 was 39, and 80 in 2004.

View Social Security Death Index (SSDI) for Harder

An unusually short lifespan might indicate that your Harder ancestors lived in harsh conditions. A short lifespan might also indicate health problems that were once prevalent in your family. The SSDI is a searchable database of more than 70 million names. You can find birthdates, death dates, addresses and more.

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