Shope
Likely a variant spelling of Shoppe or a name tied to the word “shop,” though the exact origin is not certain.
The #7,810 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 72,835 Americans shares it.
Etymology
This surname is probably connected with the Middle English word for a shop or shopkeeper, and may have started as an occupational or nickname-style name. The historical spelling is not secure, though, because the source material only mentions Shope in passing and seems to treat it as related to "shop." It may also simply be a later spelling variant of Shop, Shopp, or Shoppe.
History
The name appears in U.S. records and survives as a relatively uncommon American surname. Historical surname lists show several closely related forms, suggesting a cluster of spellings rather than a single fixed original form. Because the evidence here is incidental rather than a full dictionary entry, the derivation should be treated as tentative.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The name is rare enough that 19th-century surname scholars listed it alongside a small family of similar spellings rather than as a fully settled entry.
From the historical record
“We have Lodge, Booth, Shed, Shedd, Shedden, Sheddon, Sheddy, Shope (" shop " '?), Stowers, Stoe- HER, Block, Cot (i.e., " cottage "), Alcott, Allcott, Atticott, Colcott (i.e., " cold cottage"), Darracott, Ellicott, Endicott (" cottage at the end "), Linds- cot and Linscott, Middlecott, Trescott, Wallcot, Walcot…”
— Suffolk Surnames (3rd ed.)