diff --git a/Documentation/config/hook.adoc b/Documentation/config/hook.adoc
index b7847f9338..21800db648 100644
--- a/Documentation/config/hook.adoc
+++ b/Documentation/config/hook.adoc
@@ -23,6 +23,19 @@ hook.<friendly-name>.enabled::
 	in a system or global config file and needs to be disabled for a
 	specific repository. See linkgit:git-hook[1].
 
+hook.<friendly-name>.parallel::
+	Whether the hook `hook.<friendly-name>` may run in parallel with other hooks
+	for the same event. Defaults to `false`. Set to `true` only when the
+	hook script is safe to run concurrently with other hooks for the same
+	event. If any hook for an event does not have this set to `true`,
+	all hooks for that event run sequentially regardless of `hook.jobs`.
+	Only configured (named) hooks need to declare this. Traditional hooks
+	found in the hooks directory do not need to, and run in parallel when
+	the effective job count is greater than 1. See linkgit:git-hook[1].
+
 hook.jobs::
 	Specifies how many hooks can be run simultaneously during parallelized
 	hook execution. If unspecified, defaults to 1 (serial execution).
++
+This setting has no effect unless all configured hooks for the event have
+`hook.<friendly-name>.parallel` set to `true`.
diff --git a/hook.c b/hook.c
index b8cce00e57..85c0de5e47 100644
--- a/hook.c
+++ b/hook.c
@@ -116,6 +116,7 @@ struct hook_config_cache_entry {
 	char *command;
 	enum config_scope scope;
 	bool disabled;
+	bool parallel;
 };
 
 /*
@@ -123,12 +124,14 @@ struct hook_config_cache_entry {
  * commands: friendly-name to command map.
  * event_hooks: event-name to list of friendly-names map.
  * disabled_hooks: set of friendly-names with hook.<friendly-name>.enabled = false.
+ * parallel_hooks: friendly-name to parallel flag.
  * jobs: value of the global hook.jobs key. Defaults to 0 if unset (stored in r->hook_jobs).
  */
 struct hook_all_config_cb {
 	struct strmap commands;
 	struct strmap event_hooks;
 	struct string_list disabled_hooks;
+	struct strmap parallel_hooks;
 	unsigned int jobs;
 };
 
@@ -219,6 +222,15 @@ static int hook_config_lookup_all(const char *key, const char *value,
 		default:
 			break; /* ignore unrecognised values */
 		}
+	} else if (!strcmp(subkey, "parallel")) {
+		int v = git_parse_maybe_bool(value);
+		if (v >= 0)
+			strmap_put(&data->parallel_hooks, hook_name,
+				   (void *)(uintptr_t)v);
+		else
+			warning(_("hook.%s.parallel must be a boolean,"
+				  " ignoring: '%s'"),
+				hook_name, value);
 	}
 
 	free(hook_name);
@@ -263,6 +275,7 @@ static void build_hook_config_map(struct repository *r, struct strmap *cache)
 	strmap_init(&cb_data.commands);
 	strmap_init(&cb_data.event_hooks);
 	string_list_init_dup(&cb_data.disabled_hooks);
+	strmap_init(&cb_data.parallel_hooks);
 
 	/* Parse all configs in one run, capturing hook.* including hook.jobs. */
 	repo_config(r, hook_config_lookup_all, &cb_data);
@@ -282,6 +295,7 @@ static void build_hook_config_map(struct repository *r, struct strmap *cache)
 			struct hook_config_cache_entry *entry;
 			char *command;
 
+			bool is_par = !!strmap_get(&cb_data.parallel_hooks, hname);
 			bool is_disabled =
 				!!unsorted_string_list_lookup(
 					&cb_data.disabled_hooks, hname);
@@ -302,6 +316,7 @@ static void build_hook_config_map(struct repository *r, struct strmap *cache)
 			entry->command = xstrdup_or_null(command);
 			entry->scope = scope;
 			entry->disabled = is_disabled;
+			entry->parallel = is_par;
 			string_list_append(hooks, hname)->util = entry;
 		}
 
@@ -312,6 +327,7 @@ static void build_hook_config_map(struct repository *r, struct strmap *cache)
 		r->hook_jobs = cb_data.jobs;
 
 	strmap_clear(&cb_data.commands, 1);
+	strmap_clear(&cb_data.parallel_hooks, 0); /* values are uintptr_t, not heap ptrs */
 	string_list_clear(&cb_data.disabled_hooks, 0);
 	strmap_for_each_entry(&cb_data.event_hooks, &iter, e) {
 		string_list_clear(e->value, 0);
@@ -389,6 +405,7 @@ static void list_hooks_add_configured(struct repository *r,
 			entry->command ? xstrdup(entry->command) : NULL;
 		hook->u.configured.scope = entry->scope;
 		hook->u.configured.disabled = entry->disabled;
+		hook->parallel = entry->parallel;
 
 		string_list_append(list, friendly_name)->util = hook;
 	}
@@ -538,21 +555,75 @@ static void run_hooks_opt_clear(struct run_hooks_opt *options)
 	strvec_clear(&options->args);
 }
 
+/* Determine how many jobs to use for hook execution. */
+static unsigned int get_hook_jobs(struct repository *r,
+				  struct run_hooks_opt *options,
+				  struct string_list *hook_list)
+{
+	/*
+	 * Hooks needing separate output streams must run sequentially.
+	 * Next commit will allow parallelizing these as well.
+	 */
+	if (!options->stdout_to_stderr)
+		return 1;
+
+	/*
+	 * An explicit job count overrides everything else: this covers both
+	 * FORCE_SERIAL callers (for hooks that must never run in parallel)
+	 * and the -j flag from the CLI. The CLI override is intentional: users
+	 * may want to serialize hooks declared parallel or to parallelize more
+	 * aggressively than the default.
+	 */
+	if (options->jobs)
+		return options->jobs;
+
+	/*
+	 * Use hook.jobs from the already-parsed config cache (in-repo), or
+	 * fallback to a direct config lookup (out-of-repo).
+	 * Default to 1 (serial execution) on failure.
+	 */
+	options->jobs = 1;
+	if (r) {
+		if (r->gitdir && r->hook_config_cache && r->hook_jobs)
+			options->jobs = r->hook_jobs;
+		else
+			repo_config_get_uint(r, "hook.jobs", &options->jobs);
+	}
+
+	/*
+	 * Cap to serial any configured hook not marked as parallel = true.
+	 * This enforces the parallel = false default, even for "traditional"
+	 * hooks from the hookdir which cannot be marked parallel = true.
+	 */
+	for (size_t i = 0; i < hook_list->nr; i++) {
+		struct hook *h = hook_list->items[i].util;
+		if (h->kind == HOOK_CONFIGURED && !h->parallel) {
+			options->jobs = 1;
+			break;
+		}
+	}
+
+	return options->jobs;
+}
+
 int run_hooks_opt(struct repository *r, const char *hook_name,
 		  struct run_hooks_opt *options)
 {
+	struct string_list *hook_list = list_hooks(r, hook_name, options);
 	struct hook_cb_data cb_data = {
 		.rc = 0,
 		.hook_name = hook_name,
+		.hook_command_list = hook_list,
 		.options = options,
 	};
 	int ret = 0;
+	unsigned int jobs = get_hook_jobs(r, options, hook_list);
 	const struct run_process_parallel_opts opts = {
 		.tr2_category = "hook",
 		.tr2_label = hook_name,
 
-		.processes = options->jobs,
-		.ungroup = options->jobs == 1,
+		.processes = jobs,
+		.ungroup = jobs == 1,
 
 		.get_next_task = pick_next_hook,
 		.start_failure = notify_start_failure,
@@ -568,9 +639,6 @@ int run_hooks_opt(struct repository *r, const char *hook_name,
 	if (options->path_to_stdin && options->feed_pipe)
 		BUG("options path_to_stdin and feed_pipe are mutually exclusive");
 
-	if (!options->jobs)
-		BUG("run_hooks_opt must be called with options.jobs >= 1");
-
 	/*
 	 * Ensure cb_data copy and free functions are either provided together,
 	 * or neither one is provided.
@@ -581,7 +649,6 @@ int run_hooks_opt(struct repository *r, const char *hook_name,
 	if (options->invoked_hook)
 		*options->invoked_hook = 0;
 
-	cb_data.hook_command_list = list_hooks(r, hook_name, options);
 	if (!cb_data.hook_command_list->nr) {
 		if (options->error_if_missing)
 			ret = error("cannot find a hook named %s", hook_name);
diff --git a/hook.h b/hook.h
index 5c5628dd1f..ba7056f872 100644
--- a/hook.h
+++ b/hook.h
@@ -35,6 +35,13 @@ struct hook {
 		} configured;
 	} u;
 
+	/**
+	 * Whether this hook may run in parallel with other hooks for the same
+	 * event. Only useful for configured (named) hooks. Traditional hooks
+	 * always default to 0 (serial). Set via `hook.<name>.parallel = true`.
+	 */
+	bool parallel;
+
 	/**
 	 * Opaque data pointer used to keep internal state across callback calls.
 	 *
@@ -72,6 +79,8 @@ struct run_hooks_opt {
 	 *
 	 * If > 1, output will be buffered and de-interleaved (ungroup=0).
 	 * If == 1, output will be real-time (ungroup=1).
+	 * If == 0, the 'hook.jobs' config is used or, if the config is unset,
+	 * defaults to 1 (serial execution).
 	 */
 	unsigned int jobs;
 
@@ -152,7 +161,23 @@ struct run_hooks_opt {
 	hook_data_free_fn feed_pipe_cb_data_free;
 };
 
+/**
+ * Default initializer for hooks. Parallelism is opt-in: .jobs = 0 defers to
+ * the 'hook.jobs' config, falling back to serial (1) if unset.
+ */
 #define RUN_HOOKS_OPT_INIT { \
+	.env = STRVEC_INIT, \
+	.args = STRVEC_INIT, \
+	.stdout_to_stderr = 1, \
+	.jobs = 0, \
+}
+
+/**
+ * Initializer for hooks that must always run sequentially regardless of
+ * 'hook.jobs'. Use this when git knows the hook cannot safely be parallelized
+ * .jobs = 1 is non-overridable.
+ */
+#define RUN_HOOKS_OPT_INIT_FORCE_SERIAL { \
 	.env = STRVEC_INIT, \
 	.args = STRVEC_INIT, \
 	.stdout_to_stderr = 1, \
diff --git a/t/t1800-hook.sh b/t/t1800-hook.sh
index 33decc66c0..a3011a01ca 100755
--- a/t/t1800-hook.sh
+++ b/t/t1800-hook.sh
@@ -21,6 +21,57 @@ setup_hookdir () {
 	test_when_finished rm -rf .git/hooks
 }
 
+# write_sentinel_hook <path> [sentinel]
+#
+# Writes a hook that marks itself as started, sleeps for a few seconds, then
+# marks itself done. The sleep must be long enough that sentinel_detector can
+# observe <sentinel>.started before <sentinel>.done appears when both hooks
+# run concurrently in parallel mode.
+write_sentinel_hook () {
+	sentinel="${2:-sentinel}"
+	write_script "$1" <<-EOF
+	touch ${sentinel}.started &&
+	sleep 2 &&
+	touch ${sentinel}.done
+	EOF
+}
+
+# sentinel_detector <sentinel> <output>
+#
+# Returns a shell command string suitable for use as hook.<name>.command.
+# The detector must be registered after the sentinel:
+# 1. In serial mode, the sentinel has completed (and <sentinel>.done exists)
+#    before the detector starts.
+# 2. In parallel mode, both run concurrently so <sentinel>.done has not appeared
+#    yet and the detector just sees <sentinel>.started.
+#
+# At start, poll until <sentinel>.started exists to absorb startup jitter, then
+# write to <output>:
+# 1. 'serial'   if <sentinel>.done exists (sentinel finished before we started),
+# 2. 'parallel' if only <sentinel>.started exists (sentinel still running),
+# 3. 'timeout'  if <sentinel>.started never appeared.
+#
+# The command ends with ':' so when git appends "$@" for hooks that receive
+# positional arguments (e.g. pre-push), the result ': "$@"' is valid shell
+# rather than a syntax error 'fi "$@"'.
+sentinel_detector () {
+	cat <<-EOF
+	i=0
+	while ! test -f ${1}.started && test \$i -lt 10; do
+	    sleep 1
+	    i=\$((i+1))
+	done
+	if test -f ${1}.done; then
+	    echo serial >${2}
+	elif test -f ${1}.started; then
+	    echo parallel >${2}
+	else
+	    echo timeout >${2}
+	fi
+	:
+	EOF
+}
+
 test_expect_success 'git hook usage' '
 	test_expect_code 129 git hook &&
 	test_expect_code 129 git hook run &&
@@ -658,4 +709,95 @@ test_expect_success 'server push-to-checkout hook expects stdout redirected to s
 	check_stdout_merged_to_stderr push-to-checkout
 '
 
+test_expect_success 'hook.jobs=1 config runs hooks in series' '
+	test_when_finished "rm -f sentinel.started sentinel.done hook.order" &&
+
+	# Use two configured hooks so the execution order is deterministic:
+	# hook-1 (sentinel) is listed before hook-2 (detector), so hook-1
+	# always runs first even in serial mode.
+	test_config hook.hook-1.event test-hook &&
+	test_config hook.hook-1.command \
+	    "touch sentinel.started; sleep 2; touch sentinel.done" &&
+	test_config hook.hook-2.event test-hook &&
+	test_config hook.hook-2.command \
+	    "$(sentinel_detector sentinel hook.order)" &&
+
+	test_config hook.jobs 1 &&
+
+	git hook run --allow-unknown-hook-name test-hook >out 2>err &&
+	echo serial >expect &&
+	test_cmp expect hook.order
+'
+
+test_expect_success 'hook.jobs=2 config runs hooks in parallel' '
+	test_when_finished "rm -f sentinel.started sentinel.done hook.order" &&
+	test_when_finished "rm -rf .git/hooks" &&
+
+	mkdir -p .git/hooks &&
+	write_sentinel_hook .git/hooks/test-hook &&
+
+	test_config hook.hook-2.event test-hook &&
+	test_config hook.hook-2.command \
+	    "$(sentinel_detector sentinel hook.order)" &&
+	test_config hook.hook-2.parallel true &&
+
+	test_config hook.jobs 2 &&
+
+	git hook run --allow-unknown-hook-name test-hook >out 2>err &&
+	echo parallel >expect &&
+	test_cmp expect hook.order
+'
+
+test_expect_success 'hook.<name>.parallel=true enables parallel execution' '
+	test_when_finished "rm -f sentinel.started sentinel.done hook.order" &&
+	test_config hook.hook-1.event test-hook &&
+	test_config hook.hook-1.command \
+	    "touch sentinel.started; sleep 2; touch sentinel.done" &&
+	test_config hook.hook-1.parallel true &&
+	test_config hook.hook-2.event test-hook &&
+	test_config hook.hook-2.command \
+	    "$(sentinel_detector sentinel hook.order)" &&
+	test_config hook.hook-2.parallel true &&
+
+	test_config hook.jobs 2 &&
+
+	git hook run --allow-unknown-hook-name test-hook >out 2>err &&
+	echo parallel >expect &&
+	test_cmp expect hook.order
+'
+
+test_expect_success 'hook.<name>.parallel=false (default) forces serial execution' '
+	test_when_finished "rm -f sentinel.started sentinel.done hook.order" &&
+	test_config hook.hook-1.event test-hook &&
+	test_config hook.hook-1.command \
+	    "touch sentinel.started; sleep 2; touch sentinel.done" &&
+	test_config hook.hook-2.event test-hook &&
+	test_config hook.hook-2.command \
+	    "$(sentinel_detector sentinel hook.order)" &&
+
+	test_config hook.jobs 2 &&
+
+	git hook run --allow-unknown-hook-name test-hook >out 2>err &&
+	echo serial >expect &&
+	test_cmp expect hook.order
+'
+
+test_expect_success 'one non-parallel hook forces the whole event to run serially' '
+	test_when_finished "rm -f sentinel.started sentinel.done hook.order" &&
+	test_config hook.hook-1.event test-hook &&
+	test_config hook.hook-1.command \
+	    "touch sentinel.started; sleep 2; touch sentinel.done" &&
+	test_config hook.hook-1.parallel true &&
+	test_config hook.hook-2.event test-hook &&
+	test_config hook.hook-2.command \
+	    "$(sentinel_detector sentinel hook.order)" &&
+	# hook-2 has no parallel=true: should force serial for all
+
+	test_config hook.jobs 2 &&
+
+	git hook run --allow-unknown-hook-name test-hook >out 2>err &&
+	echo serial >expect &&
+	test_cmp expect hook.order
+'
+
 test_done