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The German surname Apel emerged in the lands that formed the modern state of Lower Saxony, which is presently bordered by the North Sea, the Hartz mountains and the Elbe and Ems rivers. German surnames developed at a time when Lower Saxony, and most of the German provinces, were states of the Holy Roman Empire. At first people used only a single name, but as the population grew and people began to travel, they began to find it necessary to take on an additional name to differentiate themselves. Fairly general principles guided the development of hereditary surnames in Lower Saxony. Two of the common types of family names found in the Prussia are patronymic surnames, which are derived from the father's given name, and metronymic surnames, which are derived from the mother's given name. The surname Apel derived from the German personal name Adalbert, which is itself is linked to the German name Adelad, which means noble and resolute.
The surname Apel was first found in East Friesland and the Lueneburg region, where the name emerged in mediaeval times as one of the notable families of the region. From the 13th century the surname was identified with the great social and economic evolution which made this territory a landmark contributor to the development of the nation. From early on, the family owned the estates Masendorf, Midelum, and Albrumswehe in East Friesland. There were three Abbots of this line, of the cloister Ebstorff, who lived between 1574 and 1703. Also, in 1554 Anton von Appel was an Abbot of the cloister St. Michaelis in Lueneburg.
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Apel research. Another 150 words (11 lines of text) covering the years 1628, 1686, 1724, 1790 and 1792 are included under the topic Early Apel History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Spelling variations of this family name include: Appell, Apel, Apell, Appel, Apele, Appelle, Appelman and many more.
Notables of the time included Moritz Wilhelm von Appel, of the ancient East Friesland branch of the family, who was a Privy Councillor before becoming the President of...
Another 27 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Apel Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
In the United States, the name Apel is the 15,000th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 1
Some of the first settlers of this family name were: