The Hornblowers were a clan of hobbits that settled in Southfarthing.They claimed to have been one of the oldest families or clans of the Shire.Though no direct lineage to the later Hornblower-family could be proved particular Hobbit personalities bearing the moniker " Hornblower" were mentioned in documents handed down from Arthadan times as early as the 18th century.The family claimed these as proof of their long lineage while critics noted that Hornblower seems to have been a common honorific title for a local Bounder, Warden or Watchman and as such originally indicated a profession, not a specific family or clan.