LaPointe
A French surname meaning “the point,” usually referring to someone who lived by a pointed hill, promontory, or other prominent place.
The #3,995 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 34,714 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Lapointe is a French surname built from the article la plus pointe, meaning “the point” or “the tip.” In surname use, this usually referred to a pointed piece of land, a promontory, or a sharp geographic feature near a person’s home. It is the kind of topographic name that began as a place description and later became hereditary.
History
The name is especially associated with French-speaking regions and with French-Canadian families, where the article was often retained as part of the surname. In North America it commonly appears as LaPointe, Lapointe, or sometimes De la Pointe in older records. As with many French surnames, spelling has varied according to parish, census, and immigration records.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
In French surnames, the prefix La- often preserved a little topographic phrase that originally described a family’s home place.