The first name Paul

Discover the meaning and origin of the first name Paul, its history and its evolution in baptism records preserved in Genealogy Quebec’s collections.

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About the first name Paul

Meaning

The name Paul traditionally means “small” or “humble”.

Historical origin

The name Paul comes from Latin Paulus, an ancient Roman name made famous by the apostle Paul.

Did you know?

Paul also appears in several compound names, for example Henri-Paul, Jean-Paul and Léo-Paul. This productivity helps explain the many related forms found in historical records.

Pronunciation:polp.ɔl

Frequency of the first name Paul by baptism year

The chart below shows the frequency of the first name Paul by the year of baptisms listed in Genealogy Quebec’s data. It highlights the periods when this first name appears most often and its evolution across generations.

6,134total mentions

Annual evolution of the first name PaulLine chart showing the frequency of the first name Paul in baptisms by year.50037525012501610168717641841191819951610–1614 4 baptisms1615–1619 4 baptisms1625–1629 2 baptisms1630–1634 6 baptisms1635–1639 2 baptisms1640–1644 2 baptisms1645–1649 6 baptisms1650–1654 8 baptisms1655–1659 14 baptisms1660–1664 14 baptisms1665–1669 4 baptisms1670–1674 14 baptisms1675–1679 36 baptisms1680–1684 20 baptisms1685–1689 8 baptisms1690–1694 24 baptisms1695–1699 20 baptisms1700–1704 36 baptisms1705–1709 26 baptisms1710–1714 16 baptisms1715–1719 20 baptisms1720–1724 10 baptisms1725–1729 18 baptisms1730–1734 20 baptisms1735–1739 44 baptisms1740–1744 44 baptisms1745–1749 44 baptisms1750–1754 32 baptisms1755–1759 56 baptisms1760–1764 56 baptisms1765–1769 48 baptisms1770–1774 128 baptisms1775–1779 54 baptisms1780–1784 84 baptisms1785–1789 108 baptisms1790–1794 120 baptisms1795–1799 154 baptisms1800–1804 168 baptisms1805–1809 146 baptisms1810–1814 182 baptisms1815–1819 164 baptisms1820–1824 222 baptisms1825–1829 230 baptisms1830–1834 284 baptisms1835–1839 300 baptisms1840–1844 328 baptisms1845–1849 306 baptisms1850–1854 334 baptisms1855–1859 374 baptisms1860–1864 238 baptisms1865–1869 230 baptisms1870–1874 170 baptisms1875–1879 136 baptisms1880–1884 150 baptisms1885–1889 114 baptisms1890–1894 88 baptisms1895–1899 76 baptisms1900–1904 50 baptisms1905–1909 58 baptisms1910–1914 30 baptisms1915–1919 38 baptisms1920–1924 54 baptisms1925–1929 46 baptisms1930–1934 34 baptisms1935–1939 24 baptisms1940–1944 36 baptisms1945–1949 40 baptisms1950–1954 62 baptisms1955–1959 38 baptisms1960–1964 30 baptisms1965–1969 14 baptisms1970–1974 12 baptisms1975–1979 4 baptisms1980–1984 8 baptisms1985–1989 4 baptisms1990–1994 2 baptisms1995–1999 4 baptisms

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