Schapiro Surname History

Origins Available:
Germany
Israel

Etymology of Schapiro

What does the name Schapiro mean?

During the times when people began to adopt second names to better identify themselves, one of the most common traditions for adopting surnames in Jewish culture was to assume a surname ornamentally, that is, choosing a name that is unrelated to the occupation or an ancestors' name. The surname Schapiro was likely an ornamental name derived from the Hebrew word "shapir," which means 'lovely'. It is also thought that some bearers of Schapiro derived their name from the German town Speyer, which had a large Jewish population in the Middle Ages.

Schapiro Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Shapiro, Schapiro, Shapero, Shapira, Chapiro, Szapiro, Szapira and many more.

Schapiro migration to the United States +

Schapiro Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Eli Schapiro, who settled in Kansas sometime between 1917 and 1922

Contemporary Notables of the name Schapiro (post 1700) +

Steve Schapiro (1934-2022), American photographer, best known for his photographs of key moments of the civil rights movement such as the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom or the Selma to Montgomery marches and for hid portraits of celebrities and movie stills, most importantly from The Godfather (1972) and Taxi Driver (1976)
Miriam Schapiro (1923-2015), Canadian-born, American painter, sculptor and printmaker
Joseph Schapiro, American Democratic Party politician, Candidate for New York State Assembly from Madison County, 1937 1
Bernard Schapiro, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from California, 1916 2

Sources +

The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 12) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html