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![Show Contents]() Shapple History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
- Origins Available:
 England
The illustrious surname Shapple finds its origin in the rocky, sea swept coastal area of southwestern England known as Cornwall. Although surnames were fairly widespread in medieval England, people were originally known only by a single name. The process by which hereditary surnames were adopted is extremely interesting. As populations grew, people began to assume an extra name to avoid confusion and to further identify themselves. Under the Feudal System of government, surnames evolved and they often reflected life on the manor and in the field. Lords and their tenants often became known by the name of the feudal territory they owned or lived on. Unlike most Celtic peoples, who favored patronymic names, the Cornish predominantly used local surnames. This was due to the heavy political and cultural influence of the English upon the Cornish People at the time that surnames first came into use. Local surnames were derived from where a person lived, held land, or was born. While many Cornish surnames of this sort appear to be topographic surnames, which were given to people who resided near physical features such as hills, streams, churches, or types of trees, many are actually habitation surnames derived from lost or unrecorded place names. The name Shapple is a local type of surname and the Shapple family lived in Yorkshire, at Shipley. Early Origins of the Shapple familyThe surname Shapple was first found in the county of Cornwall where they held a family seat from very ancient times. Early History of the Shapple familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our Shapple research. Another 87 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1200, 1607, 1608 and 1613 are included under the topic Early Shapple History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Shapple Spelling VariationsCornish surnames are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. The frequent changes in surnames are due to the fact that the Old and Middle English languages lacked definite spelling rules. The official court languages, which were Latin and French, were also influential on the spelling of a surname. Since the spelling of surnames was rarely consistent in medieval times, and scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded rather than adhering to any specific spelling rules, it was common to find the same individual referred to with different spellings of their surname in the ancient chronicles. Moreover, a large number of foreign names were brought into England, which accelerated and accentuated the alterations to the spelling of various surnames. Lastly, spelling variations often resulted from the linguistic differences between the people of Cornwall and the rest of England. The Cornish spoke a unique Brythonic Celtic language which was first recorded in written documents during the 10th century. However, they became increasingly Anglicized, and Cornish became extinct as a spoken language in 1777, although it has been revived by Cornish patriots in the modern era. The name has been spelled Sharpley, Shapley, Shapleigh, Sharply, Shapell, Shaple, Sharple and many more. Early Notables of the Shapple familyAnother 45 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Shapple Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Migration of the Shapple familyAn examination into the immigration and passenger lists has discovered a number of people bearing the name Shapple: Nicholas Shapliegh of Devonshire settled in Boston in 1635. James Shapley arrived in Pennsylvania in 1878; Charles Sharpley settled in Boston in 1765.
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