Palmer Name Origin, Meaning and Family History

Palmer Name Meaning: The surname Palmer is taken from the word palme, meaning "palm tree".

Someone who had been to the Holy Land on a pilgrimage was often nicknamed Palmer of Parmer, as they would bring back a palm leaf as proof of their journey.

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Surname Distribution

Census frequency by county

Name Concentrations Within England and Wales

Palmer Surname Statistics


Top Professions for the Palmer family

Profession Census Frequency
Scholar 5,688
Agricultural Labourer 725
General Labourer 484
Living On Own Means 352
Domestic Servant 340
Coal Miner 330
Dress Maker 314
Farmer 237
Living On Her Own Means 237
Labourer 227
General Servant Domestic 204
General Servant 200
Laundress 176
Farm Labourer 172
Carpenter 141
Gardener 141
Clerk 126
House Keeper 114
Grocer 107
Errand Boy 91
Tailor 88
Cook Domestic Servant 86
Dressmaker 85
Shoe Maker 85
Butcher 84

Palmer Surname Variants Ranking

Rank Surname Match Census Frequency
1 Palmer 100% 258,595
2 Plumer 67% 2,496
3 Palmore 71% 1,285
4 Plamer 67% 797
5 Pilmer 83% 783
6 Polmer 83% 581
7 Plomer 67% 541
8 Palmar 83% 476
9 Plimer 67% 456
10 Pulmer 83% 428
11 Polmear 71% 405
12 Palmor 83% 367
13 Pilmore 57% 349
14 Pelmear 71% 336
15 Pilmoor 57% 333
16 Palmour 71% 129
17 Pelmer 83% 107
18 Pomer 67% 102

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The surname Palmer is the most popular version of all its varients

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