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Surname Etymology and Meaning of CAPE

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Name meanings and etymologies are often disputed. The information here is compiled from freely available sources, and no claims whatsoever are made for accuracy, either historical or etymological.

French and English: metonymic occupational name for a maker of capes and cloaks, or perhaps a nickname for someone who habitually wore a cloak or cape, from Middle English and Old Norman French cape ‘cape’, ‘cloak’, ‘hooded cloak’ (in French also ‘hood’ or ‘hat’), from Late Latin cappa, capa, probably a derivative of caput ‘head’ (see Capp). There is also an Old English word cape ‘cape’, ‘cloak’, from the same Late Latin word, but the normal development of this in southern England was Middle English cope (see Cope).

Source: Dictionary of American Family Names (2003)