Meaning of the nameNapoleão

Male
Italian origin
Na-po-le-ão

Napoleão is the Portuguese form of Napoleon, from Italian Napoleone; the origin of the name is uncertain, and the explanation 'Naples + lion' is folk etymology.

IBGE's 2022 Census recorded 2,527 people named Napoleão, the 4,391st most common name in Brazil. Their median age is 60, and the largest group was born in the 1950s. Proportionally, it is most common in Paraíba.

Meaning

The meaning of Napoleão is not known for certain. The sources consulted give no settled meaning for it, so we give none; below are the origin of the spelling and the official figures.

People (2022): 2,527
Rank in Brazil: #4,391
Median age: 60 years
2010 Census: 3,547; people

Napoleão in the 2022 Census

People with the first name Napoleão, by the decade they were born. In the chart, 70 = the 1970s and 20+ = 2020 to 2022. The largest group was born in the 1950s (545 people).

0 women 2,521 men

Source: IBGE, 2022 Demographic Census, Nomes no Brasil. The census counts the first name of people alive in 2022; small counts are not published, and the first group covers everyone born before 1940. How to read these data.

Where the name Napoleão is most common

States with the highest share of people named Napoleão in the population, in the 2022 Census.

Paraíba 0.004%
Ceará 0.002%
Pernambuco 0.002%
Bahia 0.001%
Minas Gerais 0.001%

All states

State	People	% of population
São Paulo	355	0.001%
Minas Gerais	228	0.001%
Ceará	203	0.002%
Bahia	188	0.001%
Pernambuco	181	0.002%
Rio de Janeiro	168	0.001%
Paraíba	151	0.004%
Paraná	108	0.001%
Rio Grande do Sul	97	0.001%
Maranhão	95	0.001%
Pará	92	0.001%
Piauí	87	0.003%
Goiás	76	0.001%
Amazonas	62	0.002%
Alagoas	57	0.002%
Mato Grosso	51	0.001%
Santa Catarina	49	0.001%
Rio Grande do Norte	46	0.001%
Distrito Federal	45	0.002%
Mato Grosso do Sul	39	0.001%
Espírito Santo	35	0.001%
Tocantins	35	0.002%
Sergipe	23	0.001%
Rondônia	16	0.001%

States with fewer than 15 people with the name are not shown: IBGE does not publish those counts.

About the name Napoleão

Wiktionary records Napoleão as a Portuguese proper name equivalent to Napoleon, which comes from French Napoléon and Italian Napoleone, the name of an ancient saint and of uncertain origin. A link to the Germanic name Nibelung is cautiously suggested; the reading 'Naples + lion' is treated as folk etymology. Behind the Name also considers the etymology uncertain and cites the Germanic hypothesis Nibelungen ('sons of the mist') and the possible link to the city of Naples. In the 2022 Census, IBGE recorded 2,527 people named Napoleão, with a median age of 60; proportionally, it is most common in Paraíba.

Sources

Wiktionary: Napoleão · en.wiktionary.org · origin
Wiktionary: Napoleon · en.wiktionary.org · origin
Behind the Name: Napoleon · behindthename.com · origin

Questions about the name Napoleão

What does the name Napoleão mean?

The meaning of Napoleão is not known for certain: the sources consulted give no settled meaning for it. So we give none; the page shows the origin of the spelling and the official figures.

How many people are named Napoleão in Brazil?

IBGE's 2022 Census recorded 2,527 people with the first name Napoleão, which ranks it number 4,391 among the country's names. The largest group was born in the 1950s.

Is Napoleão a boy's or a girl's name?

Napoleão is a male name: in the 2022 Census, 0 women and 2,521 men had this name (IBGE does not publish very small counts).

What is the origin of the name Napoleão?

Napoleão is a name of Italian origin. The sources are listed at the end of the page.

In which Brazilian state is Napoleão most common?

Proportionally, in Paraíba: 0.004% of the state's population is named Napoleão (151 people), according to the 2022 Census.

More names of Italian origin

See all

Spotted a mistake? Report a correction for Napoleão with a source. See the methodology.