Naper Surname
Approximately 393 people bear this surname
Naper Surname Definition:
This surname is derived from an official title. 'the naper,' 'napier,' or 'napper,' from Old French nape, a cloth; the Frenchnappe, a table cloth. Diminutive nap-kin. 'Napet or napekyn': Promptorium Parvulorum 'The over nape schall double be layde': The Boke of Curtasye.
Read More About This SurnameNaper Surname Distribution Map
| Place | Incidence | Frequency | Rank in Area |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States | 162 | 1:2,237,401 | 140,088 |
| Norway | 99 | 1:51,942 | 7,451 |
| Pakistan | 58 | 1:3,080,067 | 24,706 |
| Ireland | 24 | 1:196,206 | 8,013 |
| Russia | 10 | 1:14,412,306 | 394,810 |
| Brazil | 9 | 1:23,786,037 | 375,389 |
| France | 8 | 1:8,302,840 | 321,660 |
| Papua New Guinea | 5 | 1:1,630,743 | 129,019 |
| India | 4 | 1:191,766,346 | 1,073,940 |
| England | 3 | 1:18,572,686 | 338,250 |
| Panama | 1 | 1:3,912,258 | 17,195 |
| Thailand | 1 | 1:70,638,345 | 1,175,915 |
| Sweden | 1 | 1:9,846,757 | 347,448 |
| Slovenia | 1 | 1:2,487,675 | 31,128 |
| Scotland | 1 | 1:5,353,817 | 63,002 |
| Malaysia | 1 | 1:29,494,225 | 409,885 |
| Kazakhstan | 1 | 1:17,682,496 | 204,010 |
| Indonesia | 1 | 1:132,249,194 | 811,426 |
| Cyprus | 1 | 1:884,876 | 13,055 |
| Canada | 1 | 1:36,845,591 | 464,108 |
| Afghanistan | 1 | 1:32,153,183 | 60,828 |
| Place | Incidence | Frequency | Rank in Area |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ireland | 3 | 1:1,476,622 | 29,385 |
| Place | Incidence | Frequency | Rank in Area |
|---|---|---|---|
| England | 19 | 1:1,282,914 | 46,315 |
| Scotland | 5 | 1:748,643 | 18,576 |
| Wales | 4 | 1:392,104 | 12,338 |
| Place | Incidence | Frequency | Rank in Area |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States | 149 | 1:337,038 | 26,036 |
Naper (81) may also be a first name.
Naper Surname Meaning
From Where Does The Surname Originate? meaning and history
This surname is derived from an official title. 'the naper,' 'napier,' or 'napper,' from Old French nape, a cloth; the Frenchnappe, a table cloth. Diminutive nap-kin. 'Napet or napekyn': Promptorium Parvulorum 'The over nape schall double be layde': The Boke of Curtasye. Thus the naper or napier had charge of the table-linen; whence also the form 'de la naperye,' corresponding to 'de la paneterie,' 'de le eurerie,' 'de le butterye,' &c. With the intrusive 'i' in Napier, compare the 'y' in Sawyer (Sawer), Bowyer (Bower), or lawyer for lawer.
John le Naper, Close Roll, 43 Henry III.
Jordan le Nappere, Oxfordshire, 1273. Hundred Rolls.
Thomas le Nappere, Oxfordshire, ibid.
John le Naper. Close Rolls
Robert Napparius. Rotuli Litterarum Clausarum in Turri Londinesi.
Walter de la Naperye. Calendarium Genealogicum.
Robert le Nappere, Somerset, 1 Edward III: Kirby's Quest.
1546-7. Edward Napper and Anne Peytoo: Marriage Lic. (London).
1784. Married — The Right Hon. Francis, Lord Napier, and Maria Margaret Clavering: St. George, Hanover Square.
1794. — Henry Rycroft and Jane Naper: ibid.
This surname comes from an office attached to the royal court. In England, in the reign of Henry I, William de Hastings held the manor of Ashele in Norfolk by the service of taking charge of the napery, i.e. tablecloths and linen at the coronation of the English kings. The first record of the name in Scoi id is c. 1290 when John Naper obtained from Malcolm, earl of Lennox, a charter of the quarter-land called Kylmethew (Irving, History of Dumbartonshire, p. 328). This John Naper is included in the inhibition by the bishop of Glasgow directed against Malcolm, earl of Lennoy and his adherents in 1294 (RMP., p. 203) and is doubtless the John le Naper of the county of Dunbretan who rendered homage in 1296 (Bain, II, p. 202). Matheu le Naper of Agheleke (i.e. Affleck in Angus) took the oath of fealty at the same time (ibid., p. 200). Alexander Naper was one of the commissioners for concluding a peace between Scotland and England in 1451 (Bain, IV, 1239), and John Napier (1550-1617), the famous mathematician, was the inventor of logarithms. There have been also several other distinguished bearers of the name within the last two hundred years. For the intrusion of i in the modern form of the name compare Sawyer (Sawer), Bowyer (Bower), etc. Innes (p. 45) says: "There are Napiers in the North vulgarly called Lepers-euphoniae causa." Naiper 1679, Napare 1455, Neaper 1625, Neper 1651, and Napar, Nepare.
( Anglo-French-Latin ) Napery – Keeper [Middle English nap(p)er(e, keeper of the napery or table-linen; Old French naperie, Low Latin naparia, mapparia, napery-department of a household; Latin mappa, a table- napkin: cp. French nappe, a table-cloth] John le Napere.—Hundred Rolls Jordan le Nappere.— do.
Napery is table linen, including the ' nappe ' or napkin used in washing the hands, cither before or after meals. In groat establishments the Napier or Naper handed these napkins to the guests. One part of his duty, in the royal household, was, to hand over to the king's almoner the outworn linen of the sovereign's table for distribution to the poor. Ducange. Edinb. Rev. April, 1855.
An officer in the king's household-the same as Naper. A Scottish legend, however, assigns a widely different origin. In a great battle between the Scots and some enemy, whose nation is not specified, the former were on the point of losing the day, when one Donald, son of the then Earl of Lennox, seized a standard, and rallied the retreating soldiers. This act of prowess changed the positions of the combatants, and resulted in the complete triumph of the Scots. The king on hearing of Donald's bravery, declared that he had NA PIER-no equal; commanded him to assume those words as a surname; and gave him lands in Fife, and the lands of Goffurdor Goosford. This 'mighty pretty story,' though evidently invented to explain the name, was certified to the heralds under the hand and seal of Sir Archibald Napier of Merchistoun, in 1625. It is proper, however, to remark, that the Napiers sprang from the house of Lennox, and that their early members wrote themselves Lenox alias Napier; and it is no derogation of the dignity of this illustrious family to suppose that an earl's son, their ancestor, should have held the office of Napier in the royal household.
King David II, in his wars with the English, about the year 1344, convocating his subjects to battle, the Earl of Lennox sent his second son, Donald, with such forces as his duty obliged him; and coming to an engagement where the Scots gave way, this Donald taking his father's standard from the bearer, and valiantly charging the enemy with the Lennox men, the fortune of the battle changed, and the Scots obtained the victory. After the battle, the king declared that they had all done valiantly, but that there was one among them who had na pier, no equal; he then granted to Douald the lands of Gosfield in Fifeshire, and bade him assume the name of Napier.
It is said that Donald, a son of the Earl of Lennox, for his bravery in battle, had his name changed by the king to Napier. After the battle, as the manner is, every one advancing and setting forth his own acts, the king said unto them, "Ye have all done valiantly, but there is one among you who hath 'Na Pier, '" and the king gave him lands in Fife and Goffurd. The name came, however, from taking charge of the king's napery or linen at the coronation of English kings, an office held by William De Hastings, in the time of Henry I.
Naper Demographics
Naper Political Affiliation
in United States
United States
Average
Naper Last Name Facts
Where Does The Last Name Naper Come From? nationality or country of origin
The last name Naper (Russian: Напьер) is found in The United States more than any other country/territory. It can occur in the variant forms:. Click here for further possible spellings of this surname.
How Common Is The Last Name Naper? popularity and diffusion
The last name Naper is the 735,823rd most frequently held family name world-wide, borne by approximately 1 in 18,543,374 people. This last name is primarily found in The Americas, where 41 percent of Naper are found; 38 percent are found in North America and 38 percent are found in Anglo-North America. It is also the 1,068,082nd most commonly used first name in the world, held by 81 people.
The last name Naper is most numerous in The United States, where it is held by 162 people, or 1 in 2,237,401. In The United States Naper is primarily concentrated in: Massachusetts, where 20 percent are found, Pennsylvania, where 14 percent are found and Michigan, where 14 percent are found. Barring The United States this surname occurs in 20 countries. It is also common in Norway, where 25 percent are found and Pakistan, where 15 percent are found.
Naper Family Population Trend historical fluctuation
The frequency of Naper has changed over time. In The United States the share of the population with the last name increased 109 percent between 1880 and 2014; in Ireland it increased 800 percent between 1901 and 2014; in England it contracted 84 percent between 1881 and 2014 and in Scotland it contracted 80 percent between 1881 and 2014.
Naper Last Name Statistics demography
The religious devotion of those carrying the Naper surname is predominantly Anglican (100%) in Ireland.
In The United States those bearing the Naper surname are 0.29% more likely to be registered Democrats than The US average, with 52.94% being registered with the political party.
The amount Naper earn in different countries varies marginally. In Norway they earn 12.72% more than the national average, earning 390,105 kr per year and in United States they earn 17.6% more than the national average, earning $50,745 USD per year.
Phonetically Similar Names
Naper Name Transliterations
| Transliteration | ICU Latin | Percentage of Incidence |
|---|---|---|
| Naper in the Russian language | ||
| Напьер | naper | - |
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Footnotes
- Surnames are taken as the first part of an person's inherited family name, caste, clan name or in some cases patronymic
- Descriptions may contain details on the name's etymology, origin, ethnicity and history. They are largely reproduced from 3rd party sources; diligence is advised on accepting their validity - more information
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- Heatmap: Dark red means there is a higher occurrence of the name, transitioning to light yellow signifies a progressively lower occurrence. Clicking on selected countries will show mapping at a regional level
- Rank: Name are ranked by incidence using the ordinal ranking method; the name that occurs the most is assigned a rank of 1; name that occur less frequently receive an incremented rank; if two or more name occur the same number of times they are assigned the same rank and successive rank is incremented by the total preceeding names
- Ethnic group cannot necessarily be determined by geographic occurrence
- Similar: Names listed in the "Similar" section are phonetically similar and may not have any relation to Naper
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