As described in historical dictionaries

Patronymica Britannica (1860)

APPLEMAN. A grower of, or dealer in apples. The trade of a costermonger derives its name from costard, a large kind of apple, the commodity in which he principally dealt. The original ilr. Appleman must then have been a medieval costermonger.

Lower, Mark A (1860) Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom. London: J.R. Smith. Public Domain.


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