Show ContentsPapes History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The clans of the Pictish people in ancient Scotland were the ancestors of the first people to use the name Papes. It was a name for a confident or haughty person. Papes is a nickname surname, which belongs to the category of hereditary surnames. Nicknames form a broad and miscellaneous class of surnames, and can refer directly or indirectly to one's personality, physical attributes, mannerisms, or even their habits of dress. The surname Papes comes from the Old English word pope, which referred to the Bishop of Rome, and the head of the Roman Catholic Church. Although this is also a title of office, as a surname, it was most often applied as a nickname. [1]

Early Origins of the Papes family

The surname Papes was first found in Elgin where "a family of Paips or Papes appear to have belonged originally, and some of them were in the legs profession before the Reformation. In Caithness, Sutherland, and Orkney, the surname is still pronounced Paip. In 1363 William Pop, son and heir of William Pop, burgess of Elgin, made a gift to the altar of the Virgin in the church of S. Giles in Elgin, and in 1375 there is mention of Robert Pop of Elgin. Adam Popp and Robertus Popp were jurors on an assize regarding the mill lands of Quarelwode in 1389." [2]

Early History of the Papes family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Papes research. Another 171 words (12 lines of text) covering the years 1137, 1393, 1397, 1400, 1507, 1516, 1540, 1559, 1573, 1580, 1585, 1596, 1598, 1599, 1602, 1603, 1606, 1611, 1622, 1624, 1627, 1631, 1653, 1660, 1688, 1714, 1744 and 1782 are included under the topic Early Papes History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Papes Spelling Variations

In the Middle ages, spelling and translation were not yet regulated by any general rules. spelling variations in names were common even among members of one family unit. Papes has appeared Pope, Paip, Pape, Paipe, Popp and others.

Early Notables of the Papes family

Notable amongst the Clan at this time was Thomas Pope (died 1400), from Gloucester, was an English politician, Member of the Parliament for Gloucester in 1393 and 1397; Sir Thomas Pope (1507-1559), English founder of Trinity College, Oxford, elder son of William Pope, a small landowner at Deddington, near Banbury; and Walter Pope (c. 1627-1714), an English astronomer and poet from Northamptonshire.Sir William Pope (1573-1631) of Wroxton Abbey, near Banbury, was...
Another 71 words (5 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Papes Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


United States Papes migration to the United States +

Faced by this persecution and the generally unstable political climate of those days, many Scots chose to leave their homeland for Ireland, Australia, and North America in search of greater opportunity and freedom. The colonies across the Atlantic were the most popular choice, but a passage there was neither cheap nor easily suffered. Passengers arrived sick and poor, but those who made it intact often found land and more tolerant societies in which to live. These brave settlers formed the backbone of the burgeoning nations of Canada and the United States. It is only this century that the ancestors of these families have begun to recover their collective identity through the patriotic highland games and Clan societies that have sprung up throughout North America. Research into early immigration and passenger lists revealed many immigrants bearing the name Papes:

Papes Settlers in United States in the 20th Century
  • John Papes, who arrived in Texas in 1907 [3]
  • Janos Papes, aged 50, who immigrated to the United States, in 1909
  • Maria Papes, aged 42, who landed in America from Bochum, Germany, in 1911
  • Andrew Papes, aged 23, who landed in America, in 1922


  1. Harrison, Henry, Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary Baltimore: Geneological Publishing Company, 2013. Print
  2. Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)
  3. Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)


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