Paul /pɔːl/ is a common masculine given name in countries and ethnicities with a Christian heritage (Eastern Orthodoxy, Catholicism, Protestantism) and, beyond Europe, in Christian religious communities throughout the world. Paul – or its variations – can be a given name or surname.
Origin and diffusion
The name has existed since Roman times. It derives from the Roman family name Paulus or Paullus, from the Latin adjective meaning "small" or "humble" and is cognate to the modern English word few. During the Classical Age it was used to distinguish the minor of two people of the same family bearing the same name. The Roman patrician family of the Gens Aemilia included such prominent persons as Lucius Aemilius Paullus, Lucius Aemilius Paullus Macedonicus, Lucius Aemilius Lepidus Paullus, Tertia Aemilia Paulla (the wife of Scipio Africanus), and Sergius Paulus.
Its prevalence in nations with a Christian heritage is primarily due to its attachment to Saint Paul the Apostle, whose Greek name was Παῦλος, Paûlos, a transliteration from the Latin, also carrying the "modest" meaning of this name. The name Paul is common, with variations, in all European languages (e.g. English, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, German, Dutch, Scandinavian, Greek, Russian, Georgian).
Paul's popularity has varied. In the United States, the 1990 census shows it ranked the 13th most common (male) name; however, Social Security Administration data shows popularity in the top 20 until 1968, with steadily declining use until its 2015 rank of 200th.
The feminine versions are Paula, Pauline, Paulina, and Paulette.
Albanian: Pali, Pavli, Pal
Amharic: ጳውሎስ (Paulos)
Ancient Roman: Paulus, Paulinus
Arabic: بولس (Bulus, in the Bible), بول (Bol, English name Paul), Boulos
occasionally used as a slang term, used to indicate the equivalent of the English slang term "boss"
Aragonese: Pavlo
Armenian Western: Պօղոս (Bōłos)
Armenian Eastern: Պողոս (Połos)
Asturian: Pablu
Basque: Paulo
Belarusian: Павeл (Paweł), Паўлюк (Paŭluk), Паўлюсь (Paŭluś), Пол (Pol)
Bengali: পল (Pɑl)
Biblical Greek: Paulos
Biblical Latin: Paulus
Bosnian: Pavao, Pavle
Breton: Paol
Bulgarian: Павел (Pavel)
Catalan: Pau, Pol
Chinese: 保羅, 保罗 (Bǎoluó)
Cornish: Pawl
Corsican: Paulu
Croatian: Pavao, Pavle, Pavo
Czech: Pavel
Danish: Poul, Povl, Palle
Dutch: Paul, Paulus, Pauwel
Esperanto: Paŭlo, Paĉjo
Estonian: Paul, Paavel, Paavo
Faroese: Páll, Pál, Palli, Pól, Pauli
Finnish: Paavali, Paavo, Pauli
French: Paul, Pol
Frisian: Pouw, Powles, Paulus
Galician: Paulo
Georgian: პავლე (Pavle)
German: Paul
Greek: Παύλος (Pávlos, Páv̱los)
Gujarati: પોલ (Pōl)
Haitian Creole: Pòl
Hakka: Pó-lò
Hausa: Bulus
Hawaiian: Paulo
Hebrew: פול (Pol)
Hindi: पौलुस (pəulus – only used in Biblical context), पौल (pɔl)
Hungarian: Pál (Nicknames: Pali, Palika, Paja, Pajus, Pajó, Palcsi, Palcsika, Pálka, Palkó, Pálocska)
Icelandic: Páll
Indonesian: Paulus
Irish: Pól, Pódhl
Italian: Paolo, Paolino
Japanese: ポール (Pōru), and in Biblical context, パウルス (Paurusu)
Kannada: ಪಾಲ್ (Pāl)
Korean: 폴 (Pol) / 바울 (Baul – archaic translation; only used in Biblical context)
Latin: Paulus
Latvian: Pauls, Pāvils
Lithuanian: Paulas, Paulius, Povilas
Luganda: Paolo
Malayalam: പൗലോസ് (Paulose)
Macedonian: Павле (Pavle, Pavel)
Maltese: Pawl, Pawlu
Manx: Payl
Maori: Paora
Marathi: पौलुस (pəulus – only used in Biblical context), पॉल (pɔl), पाव्लो (paʋlo), पाब्लो (pablo)
Mongolian: Павел (Pavel), Паул
Na'vi: Pawl
Nepali: पावलले (Pāvalalē)
Norwegian: Paul, Pål
Occitan: Pau
Old English: Paulus
Philippine languages: Pablo or Paulo
Polish: Paweł
Portuguese: Paulo, Paulino, Paulinho
Punjabi: ਪੌਲੁਸਨੇ (Paulusanē)
Romanian: Paul, Pavel
Russian: Пол (Pol), Павел (Pavel), Паша (Pasha)
Sardinian: Paulu
Scottish Gaelic: Pòl, Pàl
Serbian: Павле (Pavle)
Shona: Paurosi
Sicilian: Pàulu, Paulu
Sinhala: පාවුලු (Pawulu)
Slovak: Pavol
Slovene: Pavel
Spanish: Pablo, Paulino
Swedish: Paul, Pål
Tamil: பவுல் (Pavul)
Telugu: పాల్ (Pāl)
Thai: พอล (Paul)
Ukrainian: Павло (Pavlo), Пол (Pol)
Urdu: پال
Venetian: Pagoło, Poło
Vietnamese: Phao-lô
Welsh: Pawl
Below are Pauls who are notable in their fields. This is not a comprehensive list of articles on people named Paul; see instead All pages beginning with "Paul".
Jean-Paul Belmondo (born 1933), French actor
Jean-Paul Gaultier (born 1952), French fashion designer
Jean-Paul Sartre (1905–1980), French existentialist philosopher, writer, and political activist
John Paul II, pope of the Roman Catholic Church from 1978 to 2005
Paul, Latin Patriarch of Constantinople (died 1371)
Paul Allen (born 1953), co-founder of Microsoft
Paul Thomas Anderson (born 1970), American film director and screenwriter
Paul Anka (born 1941), Canadian singer and songwriter
Paul Bernardo (born 1964), Canadian rapist and serial killer
Paul D. Boyer, American biochemist, Nobel prize winner
Paul Breitner (born 1951), German international footballer
Paul Brown (1908–1991), American football coach, team owner, and executive
Paul Cézanne (1839-1906), French artist
Paul Cornell (born 1967), British writer
Paul Daniels, British magician and television presenter
Paul Dirac, English physicist and Nobel-prize winner
Paul Galvin, founder of Motorola
Paul Gascoigne (born 1967), English international footballer
Paul Gauguin, French artist
Paul Hewson (born 1960), the birth name of Irish singer Bono of U2 fame
Paul Hill (1934–1999), American music director
Paul von Hindenburg (1847–1934), German field marshal and statesman
Paul Hogan (born 1939), Australian actor and comedian
Paul Ince (born 1967), English international footballer
Paul Keating (born 1944), former Australian Prime Minister
Paul Krugman (born 1953), Nobel Prize-winning American economist and writer
Paul Levesque (born 1969), American professional wrestler better known as Triple H
Paul McLoone (born 1967), Northern-Irish radio presenter with Today FM and frontman of the Undertones.
Sir Paul McCartney (born 1942), English singer and musician; member of The Beatles
Paul Newman (1925–2008), American actor, philanthropist, and motorsport team owner and driver
Paul Oakenfold, English electronic musician
Paul Pierce (born 1977), American basketball player
Paul Poiret (1879—1944), French fashion designer
Paul Revere (1735–1818), patriot of the American Revolution and silversmith
Paul Robeson, American actor, singer and activist
Paul Rodgers (born 1949), English musician/songwriter, singer in Free and Bad Company
Paul Ryan (born 1970), American politician and current House Speaker
Paul Samuelson, Nobel Prize-winning American economist
Paul Scholes (born 1974), England international footballer
Paul Scofield, English actor
Paul Sereno, paleontologist
Paul Simon (born 1941), American musician
Sir Paul Smith, British fashion designer
Paul Stastny, Canadian-American ice hockey player
Paul F. Tompkins, American comedian, podcaster, actor and writer
Paul Verhoeven, Dutch film director
Paul Walker (1973–2013), American actor
Paul Weller, English musician
Paul Wesley, American actor
Paul Whitehouse, Welsh comedian
Paul Wight (born 1972), American professional wrestler known as Big Show
Paul Winstanley, American painter
RuPaul, American singer, actor, and drag queen
Jean Paul (1763-1825), pen name of Johann Paul Friedrich Richter, German Romantic writer
John Paul Getty, Jr., British philanthropist
John Paul Jones (1747–1792), Scottish-American naval commander during the American Revolutionary War
John Paul Jones (1890–1970), American athlete and previous record holder in the mile run
John Paul Jones (born 1946), English musician, best known as a member of Led Zeppelin
Peter Paul Rubens, Flemish Baroque painter
Vinnie Paul, drummer for American Metal band Pantera
Aaron Paul, American actor
Adrian Paul, English actor
Alexandra Paul (born 1963), American actress
Alice Stokes Paul, American suffragist leader
Art Paul, American graphic designer
Billy Paul (1934–2016), American soul singer
Bruno Paul, German architect, interior designer, and furniture designer
Chris Paul (born 1985), American basketball player
Christi Paul, news anchor for CNN Headline News
Ellis Paul (born 1965), American singer-songwriter and folk musician
Henri Paul, driver of the car in which he, Princess Diana, and Dodi Fayed were killed
Herieth Paul, Tanzanian-Canadian fashion model
Jayson Paul (born 1984), American professional wrestler better known as JTG
Jean Paul (born 1985), West Indian cricketer
Les Paul (1915–2009), American guitarist
Rand Paul (born 1963), American ophthalmologist and politician
Ron Paul (born 1935), American physician and politician; father of Rand
Wolfgang Paul (1913–1993), German physicist and Nobel prize winner
Lynsey de Paul, English singer-songwriter
Vincent de Paul (1581–1660), French Catholic saint
