Caplan
A surname most often linked to a Jewish occupational title, originally referring to a chaplain or cleric.
The #8,263 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 76,975 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Caplan is usually explained as a Jewish surname connected with the word for a chaplain or cleric. The ultimate root is Latin capellanus, meaning a chapel priest or chaplain, which passed into Germanic and Yiddish forms. In surname use, it was often adopted as an occupational or status-based name and later became fixed as a hereditary family name.
History
The surname is found especially among Ashkenazi Jewish families, where it may have been adopted in Central or Eastern Europe during the period when hereditary surnames became more common. In some cases it may also reflect a spelling influenced by local languages or by immigration records in English-speaking countries. Modern bearers are found mainly in the United States, Israel, and other diaspora communities.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Caplan and Kaplan are often related spellings, and in many cases the initial C or K reflects local spelling conventions rather than a different origin.
Notable people named Caplan
- Lizzy Caplan (b. 1982)
Sourced from Wikidata; linked to their Wikipedia page.