Surname Pople - Meaning and Origin
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Pople: What does the surname Pople mean?
The last name Pople is of English origin and is a form of the surname people, believed to have originated as a nickname. The actual meaning of this surname is uncertain, though some suggest it may refer to those who were naturally of a friendly disposition or who often enjoyed the company of others.
Many sources cite that the original form of 'Pople' was 'Popley' and is an Anglo-Saxon name that evolved from 'Popa' or 'Pope', which is believed to be a pet form of popular names such as 'Robert', 'Roger' and others. It is also thought to have a connection with the Latin word papa, which means 'father'.
This explanation of Pople gives a likely explanation of a surname that likely originates from a nickname or pet form of a popular name. While the exact meaning of the last name Pople is uncertain, it likely indicates a connection to the family of someone who greater value to his family and society.
Order DNA origin analysisPople: Where does the name Pople come from?
The last name Pople is most commonly found in England and Wales today. It is one of the hundred most common surnames in both countries, with a total of 15,278 people having the surname in England and 26,299 in Wales according to the UK census of 2011.
The earliest records of the Pople surname date back to the 13th century in England, when records show Robert Pople living in Suffolk around 1265. Since then it has spread around the country, mostly concentrated in the East Midlands and South West of England today.
Welsh records start with a Johannes Pople living in Monmouthshire in 1666. It is likely that many of the Welsh Pople came to the country with the industrial revolution in the 1700s and 1800s. The last name is considerably more common in Wales than England today, possibly due to a higher emigration rate to other English speaking countries.
Poples from Wales are also found in New Zealand, Canada, Australia, and the United States. Scottish records also exist from the 19th century and onwards, mostly linked to emigration, although the surname appears to be much rarer in Scotland today than in England and Wales.
Variations of the surname Pople
The surname Pople has several variants, spellings and derived surnames. Common variants of Pople include Popwell, Poplaw, Pokle, Poplow, Popely, Popple and Popel.
Popwell is a variation of the name, and can be traced to origins in the Middle English word 'popwell', which refers to a 'spring of water'.
Poplaw is derived from the Middle English words 'pop' and 'law', meaning 'small hill'. This surname would have been used to refer to someone living near such a hill and could be found in Scotland and in northern regions of England.
Pokle is derived from the Middle English words 'poke' and 'hole', meaning 'a hollow in the ground'. This surname was likely bestowed upon someone who lived near or worked with an area of land featuring such a depression.
Poplow is another derived surname, emerging from the Middle English words 'pop' and 'hlow' and coming to mean 'little hill' in modern English.
Popely is derived from the Middle English words 'pop' and 'ley', meaning 'enclosed meadow'. This surname would have been used to mark someone who lived near a related area of land, and is believed to have originally come from Lancashire.
Popple is a variation of the surname, derived from the Middle English words 'papp' and 'hul', meaning 'small pond'. This surname likely stands to indicate someone of a water-related profession and is noted to have primarily been used in the Eastern parts of England.
Finally, Popel is a derived form of the surname, emerging from the Middle English words 'pop', 'pap' and 'el' and standing to mean 'small creek'. This variant was likely used to mark someone who earned a living through fishing, or was otherwise involved in a water-related profession.
The many variations of this surname indicate a number of different professions and places of origin, as well as noting small geographical features. The common roots of the variants also suggest a certain level of mutual connectedness between individuals bearing the names and the originators of the surname.
Famous people with the name Pople
- John Pople: Nobel prize winning British theoretical chemist
- Augustus Pople: disbanded jazz-funk band from Manchester, England
- William Pople: English organist and composer of the late romantic era
- Bart Pople: American lawyer and founder of The Pople Group
- David Pople: Grammy Award winning record producer
- Richard Pople: English writer and journalist
- Rani Pople: Indian American Doctor
- Matt Pople: British film score composer
- William A. Pople: American United States Army amber/cation scientist
- John Pople, Sr.: British American painter