Piper (surname)

Last updated July 25, 2025

Piper is a surname of German, English and Scandinavian origin, derived from the Old English "pipere" and the Old Norse "pipari", meaning "flute" or "fluteplayer", originating from long pepper in Indo-Aryan languages.^[1]^[2]

Academia

Charles Piper (1867–1926), American botanist and agriculturalist
Franciszek Piper (born 1941), Polish historian
James A. Piper (1947–2023), New Zealand/Australian physicist
Martha Piper, President of the University of British Columbia
Otto Piper (1841–1921), German architectural historian
Ross Piper (fl. 1998–present) British zoologist

Art and design

Adrian Piper (born 1948), American conceptual artist and philosopher
Christian Piper (1941–2019), German artist
Edward Piper (1938–1990), English painter
John Piper (artist) (1903–1992), English artist
Keith Piper (artist) (born 1960), British artist
Lloyd Piper (1923–1983), Australian cartoonist
Luke Piper (born 1966), English painter, son of Edward Piper
Rose Piper (1917–2005), American artist
Tom Piper (born 1964), British theatre designer

Business

Christina Piper (1673–1752), Swedish countess, landowner and entrepreneur, wife of the politician Carl Piper (see below)
Odessa Piper (born 1953), American restaurateur
William T. Piper (1881–1970), American airplane manufacturer, founder of Piper Aircraft

Music

Billie Piper (born 1982), English singer, dancer and actress
Myfanwy Piper (1911–1997), English art critic and librettist
Randy Piper (born 1953), American rock guitarist and songwriter

Performing arts

Ailsa Piper (born 1959), Australian actress, playwright, and director
Aron Piper (born 1997), Spanish-German actor
Billie Piper (born 1982), English singer, dancer, and actress
Frederick Piper (1902–1979), English actor
Gordon Piper (1932–2004), Australian actor, theatre director, and scriptwriter
Jacki Piper (born 1946), British actor
Jason Piper, English voice actor and ballet dancer
"Rowdy" Roddy Piper (1954–2015), Canadian professional wrestler and actor
Sally Gifford Piper, Canadian actress, usually credited as Sally Gifford
Tim Piper, Australian filmmaker

Politics

August J. Piper (1864–1945), American politician
Carl Piper (1657–1716), Swedish politician
Greg Piper (born 1957), Australian politician
Pat Piper (politician) (1934–2016), American politician
Sue Piper (born 1951), retired New Zealand unionist and local politician
William Piper (1774–1852) American politician
William Adam Piper (1826–1899), American politician
William G. Piper (1906–1976), American politician

Sport

Carly Piper (born 1983), American former swimmer
Cherie Piper (born 1981), Canadian retired ice hockey player
David Piper (racing driver) (born 1930), British former racing driver
Donald Piper (basketball) (1911–1963) American basketball player
Jim Piper (born 1981), Australian swimmer
Jim Piper (footballer) (1884–1949), Australian rules footballer
Keith Piper (cricketer) (born 1969), former Warwickshire wicketkeeper
Keith W. Piper (1921–1997), American football coach
Matt Piper (born 1981), English footballer
Nesta Piper (born 1982), Montserratian cricketer
Nicky Piper (born 1966), Welsh retired boxer
Norman Piper (born 1948), English former footballer
Oliver Piper (1884–1933), Welsh-born Irish rugby union player
Pat Pieper (1886–1974), American sports announcer

Writing

Ailsa Piper (born 1959), Australian actress, playwright, and director
David Piper (curator) (1918–1990), British museum curator and author
Evelyn Piper, pen name of Merriam Modell (1908–1994), American author of short stories, suspense and pulp fiction
H. Beam Piper (1904–1964), American science fiction author
John Piper (theologian) (born 1946), American Calvinist Baptist preacher and author
Michael Collins Piper (born 1960), American political writer, conspiracy theorist, and talk radio host

Other people

Arthur William Piper (1865–1936), judge of the Supreme Court of South Australia
Carl Edward Vilhelm Piper (1820–1891), Swedish nobleman and diplomat
Earl S. Piper (1905–1979), U.S. Marine Corps Brigadier general
Hedda Piper (1746–1812), Swedish courtier
John Piper (broadcaster), BBC radio host
(John) Piper (c.1810–?), Indigenous Australian explorer
John Piper (military officer) (1773–1851), Scottish-born officer, lieutenant-governor of Norfolk Island
Katie Piper (born 1983), English former model and TV presenter who suffered an acid attack to the face
Leonora Piper (1857–1950), American trance medium
Peter Piper (Royal Navy officer) (1913–1995), Second World War officer
Reg Piper (born 1942), Australian former Anglican bishop
Robert Piper, Australian United Nations official
Sophie Piper (1757–1816), Swedish countess
Stina Piper (1734–1800), Swedish countess

References

↑ Harrison, Henry: Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary.
↑ "pipar - Wiktionary". en.wiktionary.org. Retrieved 2019-08-29.

This page lists people with the surname Piper.
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[surnames-1] Harrison, Henry: Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary.

[2] "pipar - Wiktionary". en.wiktionary.org. Retrieved 2019-08-29.

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