PICKLES
Pickles is an English surname that originated in the British Isles. Its earliest documented usage is found in the county of Yorkshire, where it was recorded as part of civil and ecclesiastical records in the late Middle Ages.
The name is of topographical origin. In Middle English it derives from the word pykyl, meaning a small or pointed hill, and from the term pightel, meaning a small enclosure or paddock. Other early forms, such as piccel, describe a sharp point or peak, and may refer to a conspicuous hill or a narrow rise in the landscape that would have been a convenient landmark for people living in the area. Consequently, the surname Pickles was originally applied to someone who lived near or on such a hill or enclosure.
During the early medieval period, surnames began to be adopted in England to distinguish individuals within small communities. Descriptive names based on natural or man‑made features were especially common, as they provided an easy way to identify a person’s place of residence. The Pickles surname follows this pattern, with its boreers being identified by the terrain that surrounded them.
Historical documentation records the surname in several notable contexts. The earliest known spelling appears in the 1379 Poll Tax Returns of Yorkshire, under the name Richard de Righkeleys, during the reign of King Richard the Eleventh of England. A later example is the marriage of Thomas Pickles and Sarah Tennard in Bingley, Yorkshire, on 28 January 1649, while another is the departure of Ronald Pickles aboard the ship New World from Liverpool for New York on 7 June 1847, indicating early migration of the family name beyond Britain.
Variant spellings of the surname include Pircells, Pickle, Pirkle, Picard, Pickleson, Pykel, Pikles, Pickall, Peckell, Pickalos, Pickling, Pirkel, Pykell, Picardy, Pickell, Packel, Pickwell, Piccard and Win Pickets. These variations arise from regional dialects and spelling practices that evolved over time and across different areas of England and beyond.
In contemporary times the surname remains most common in the United Kingdom, particularly within the North West, London and the South East of England. In the United States it is predominantly found in the central and eastern states, especially Pennsylvania, New York and Ohio, where populations of Eastern European, Irish and German descent are significant. Australia hosts a considerable number of bearers of the name, with Brisbane, Victoria and New South Wales featuring prominently. In Ireland the surname occurs mainly in Dublin and the North, reflecting historical migration patterns.
Typical given names associated with the Pickles surname
Male
- Alan
- Andrew
- Christopher
- David
- James
- John
- Mark
- Michael
- Robert
- Thomas
Female
- Helen
- Jane
- Jean
- Joan
- Joanne
- Julie
- Karen
- Linda
- Margaret
- Mary
- Patricia
- Sarah
- Susan
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 Pickles in...
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There are approximately 6,795 people named Pickles in the UK. That makes it roughly the 1,384th most common surname in Britain. Around 104 in a million people in Britain are named Pickles.
Origin: English
Region of origin: British Isles
Country of origin: England
Religion of origin: Christian
Language of origin: English
Famous people named Pickles
- Christina Pickles - -American actress
- Carolyn Pickles - Actress
- Eric Pickles - Politician
- Wilfred Pickles - Actor (1904 to 1978)
- Vivian Pickles - Actress
- James Pickles - Judge (1925 to 2010)
- David Pickles - County cricketer
- Christopher Pickles - County cricketer
- Lewis Pickles - Cricketer
- William Pickles - Epidemiologist (1885 to 1969)
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.