Paul surname meaning

Paul is a surname formed from the Christian personal name Paul, Latin Paulus, traditionally glossed as “small” or “humble.” The name spread widely through the reputation of Saint Paul and medieval baptismal naming, allowing many unrelated families to acquire the surname. Paulus, Paule, Paull, and Paulle show Latin, French, and English record forms. Parent’s name is the high-confidence catalog type: the surname points to an ancestor called Paul, while the Latin adjective explains the given name’s older history rather than a literal trait of every Paul family.