Paulus
A surname ultimately from the Roman name Paulus, meaning “small” or “little.”
The #6,551 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 59,707 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Paulus is a Latin personal name derived from paulus, meaning “small,” “little,” or “humble.” As a surname, it usually began as a patronymic or inherited family name from a bearer of the Christian given name Paul/Paulus. In some cases it may also reflect direct adoption of the classical or biblical personal name rather than a separate local surname tradition.
History
The name spread widely through Christian Europe because Saint Paul was one of the central apostolic figures of the New Testament. Medieval records show many related forms across languages, and surname spellings often varied from region to region. In English-speaking countries, Paulus is less common than Paul, Powell, or Powel, but it appears in families of German, Dutch, Scandinavian, and Central European background.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The same Latin root behind Paulus also gave English the adjective “paultry” only indirectly through later language history, but the surname itself is simply the old Roman name preserved as a family name.
From the historical record
“PAUL (A.-Lat. ; A.-Fr.-Lat; ) Little [Gr. IlaOXof, Lat. Paulus —paul-us, little] Wiclif (1380) has the spelling Poul{e.g. 1. Cor. 1. 1.:' Paul depid apostle ofihesus”
— Surnames of the United Kingdom: a concise etymological dictionary (2 vols in 1)