Plourde
A French-Canadian surname likely tied to an older place-name or regional nickname, especially associated with Quebec and francophone North America.
The #7,866 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 73,371 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Plourde is a French surname most likely formed from a place-name, probably referring to someone who came from a locality bearing a similar name. In French-Canadian naming, many surnames of this type were carried from France to New France and then preserved in Quebec and neighboring francophone communities. The exact source word is not certain from general evidence alone, so the name is best treated as a traditional French locational surname rather than a transparently literal modern French word.
History
The surname is especially familiar in Quebec and in French-Canadian diaspora communities in the United States, where many families kept older inherited spellings. Like many francophone surnames in North America, it became more visible through migration from Canada into New England and other industrial regions. The name is relatively uncommon overall, but well established in French-speaking genealogical records.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
French-Canadian surnames often preserve spellings that are much older than the modern everyday French a speaker would expect, which is one reason names like Plourde can look distinctive today.