Paul is a masculine name of Latin origin.
From the Latin name “Paulus” which was a Roman surname of the Aemilian gens, one of the greatest patrician families of Ancient Rome.
Etymology from the Proto-Indo European word element “pau”, meaning “little”, “few”.
Saint Paul was one of the Apostles and is considered one of the most important Christian figures and saints.
His epistles are vital for Orthodox, Catholic and Protestant Christian theology and worship.
Paul was a very common name among the early Christians.
Six popes were bearers of the name.
Feminine forms of the name are Paula, Paola, Pauline, Paulinha, Paulette.
Other forms of the name are Pablo, Paolo, Paulo, Pavel, Paulie, Palle, Pavlos (Greek Παύλος), Pavo.
Paul is a popular name in Austria, Germany, Spain, and France.
Famous bearers are Paul McCartney, Paul Newman, Paul Anka, Paul Walker, Paul Simon, Paul Giamatti, Paul Cézanne, Paul Ricoeur, Paul Hogan, Paul Weller, Paul Sorvino, Paul Winfield, Paul Pogba, Paul McGann, Paul Smith, Paul Rudd, Paul Lambert, Paul Bettany.
English singer, songwriter, and composer Paul McCartney is a living legend.
Along with John Lennon, George Harrison and Ringo Starr, Paul McCartney formed the most influential band in the history of music, “The Beatles”.
Additional information about the Ancient Roman naming system:
According to the Roman naming rules, the basic elements of Roman names were three. A “praenomen”, a “nomen”, and a “cognomen”.
A “praenomen” was the first name, indicating the personal name.
A “nomen” was the second name, indicating the ‘gens’ to which the bearer of the name belonged to. Gens, meaning the group of families sharing a common “nomen”.
“Nomen” would stand as the group of loosely connected families claiming common ancestors. “Nomen” were always patrilinear, meaning from the father.
A “cognomen” was the third name and was something like the surname. Cognomina (plural of cognomen) were usually inherited. They were rarely given to the bearer by general consensus by the prominent members of the community.
There were several types of “cognomina”, such as geographical, adoptive, occupational, etc. In very rare cases the “cognomina” could be metronymic, meaning from the mother’s “nomen”.