La Porte
A French surname meaning “the gate” or “the door,” usually a locational name for someone who lived by a town gate or entrance.
The #4,711 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 41,013 Americans shares it.
Etymology
La Porte is a French surname built from Old French porte, meaning “gate” or “door,” with the definite article la. In surname use, it often pointed to someone who lived near a gate, city entrance, or a place known as “the gate.” The same element also appears in related forms such as Delaporte, literally “of the gate.”
History
The name is well attested in French surname traditions and is noted by older lexicographers as a common family name in Normandy and elsewhere. It also spread into other French-speaking regions and into countries where French surnames were carried by migration. In English-language records, the solidly French form Laporte is often written as one word, while La Porte and Delaporte may appear as variants.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The surname is one of several French names formed from everyday topographic words, much like names meaning “door,” “gate,” or “bridge.”
From the historical record
“sens naturel dans ingres, lieu par où l'on entre. Nom semblable à nos Porte, Laporte, Delaporte. Jac”
— Dictionnaire des noms (French surnames)