Given name & surname · also Old English
Chapman
“a merchant; a peddler”
Chapman is used as a given name and a surname. One English interpretation is “a merchant; a peddler.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
One English interpretation is “a merchant; a peddler.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is Old English.
How it developed
It entered given-name use through an existing surname.
The story
Its naming history includes the use of a family name as a given name.
Chapman through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 1,007
- 1,007 boys · 0 girls
- Most popular year
- 2014
- 32 babies
- 2025
- 29
- #3,773 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +8%
- Steady
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 29 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 3,773 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 7.6% higher in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 32 in 2014. In 2025, Georgia had the largest reported state-level birth count for boys with this name (6). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 815 as a first name in 2020; 122,597 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Chapman’s family of names
In English usage, Chapman as a surname shares an earlier linguistic root with Kaufman. Chapman has a related form in Chap. Chapman has a related form in Chapmann.
Inner ring: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 7
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Across languages 3
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
People named Chapman
- Chapman GrantAmerican zoologist, historian and publisher (1887-1983)
- Chapman L. AndersonAmerican politician (1845-1924)
- Chapman FreemanAmerican politician (1832-1904)
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
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