Noel
A surname from the French word for Christmas, originally given to people born at that season.
The #1,103 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 9,719 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Noel comes from Old French noel, meaning “Christmas,” a word ultimately related to Latin natalis, “birth” or “birthday.” In medieval naming, it was first used as a baptismal or given name for a child born at Christmas, and only later became a hereditary surname. The related English form Nowell reflects the same origin.
History
The name is well attested in medieval England and France, and early English bearers are recorded from at least the 12th and 13th centuries. Sources such as Lower note that the English Noels were established by the reign of Henry I, while other 19th-century writers point to French use of Noel first as a Christian name and then as a family name. It remains especially common in French-speaking regions and in the Anglophone world through later migration.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
In older naming traditions, seasonal feast days often became personal names, so Noel sits alongside surnames like Christmas, Pentecost, and Easter.
From the historical record
“or Nockholt, a i^arish in Kent. NOEL. Fr. Christmas. Originally a baptismal name, from the person's having been born on the day of that festival. William, the ancestor of all the English Noels, was living in tlie reign of Henry I., and was at that period lord of Ellenhall, co. Stafford. Shirley's Noble and Gentle…”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United KingdomNotable people named Noel
- Philip Noel-Baker (1889–1982)
Sourced from Wikidata; linked to their Wikipedia page.