His father, Christoph Ludwig Hoffmann (1736–97), was a barrister in Königsberg, Prussia (now Kaliningrad, Russia), as well as a poet and amateur musician who played the viola da gamba.
Babai i tij, Christoph Ludwig Hoffmann (1736-1797), ishte një avokat në Königsberg, Prusi (sot Kaliningrad, Rusi), si dhe një poet dhe muzikant amator i cili luajti viola da gamba.