PARIS

Paris is a surname of French origin that has its earliest roots in the Celtic tribe known as the Parisii, who inhabited the region that is now Paris during the Roman era. The name was adopted as a locational identifier for individuals who came from or were otherwise associated with the city of Paris.

In medieval England, the surname appears in forms such as Parish, Parrish and the original Paris. It is often recorded as a reference to the English villages named Paris, for example a settlement near Huddersfield in West Yorkshire, or to a person who had visited or lived in the French capital. The earliest known usage in England is that of Lotyn de Paris, mentioned in the Hundred Rolls of 1273 as belonging to Lincolnshire.

Alternative derivations have been proposed. One suggests a connection to a rare medieval given name Paris, itself possibly derived from the Greek mythological prince of the same name, a root that could mean “hawk” in an ancient Ulyrian sense. Another theory links the name to the pre‑medieval word parysche, the modern parish, indicating a religious division. Early entries include Willemus de Parysch in Yorkshire’s Poll Tax rolls of 1379 and the christening of Winnifride Parrish in 1602.

The surname has also spread beyond Europe. In the early seventeenth century it appears in the New England colonies, most notably Thomas Parrish of Elizabeth Cittie, Virginia, recorded in 1623. In more recent centuries, families with the name have settled in Switzerland, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Portugal, Italy and the United States, often retaining the French spelling but occasionally adopting Anglicised variants such as Parris or Parry.

Today, Paris remains most common in France, particularly in the northern regions surrounding the capital. It is also found throughout the British Isles, where the spellings Parish and Parrish are more prevalent. The surname conveys a strong sense of geographical heritage, linking bearers to the historic city of Paris and, more broadly, to the Celtic legacy of the Parisii tribe.

Typical given names associated with the Paris surname

Male

• Alan
• Christopher
• David
• George
• James
• John
• Lee
• Mark
• Michael
• Richard
• Stephen
• William

Female

• Brenda
• Carol
• Deborah
• Elizabeth
• Emma
• Jean
• Margaret
• Michelle
• Nicola
• Rebecca
• Sarah
• Shirley
• Susan
• Victoria

Similar and related surnames

Related and similar names are generated algorithmically based on the spelling, and may not necessarily share an etymology.

How to communicate the surname Paris in...

Braille

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Morse

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Semaphore

Surname type: Location or geographical feature

Origin: English

Region of origin: British Isles

Country of origin: England

Religion of origin: Christian

Language of origin: English

Famous people named Paris

• Mica Paris - Soul/jazz singer
• Jeff Paris - Mathematician
• Alan Paris - Football player
• Cecil Paris - Cricketer (1911 to 1998)

Names and descriptions courtesy of Wikipedia, and may contain errors. This is not intended to be an exhaustive list of every famous person with this name.

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