Dupuis is a French topographic surname derived from du puits — 'from the well' or 'of the well.' In medieval villages, the well was the communal heart of daily life, and families who lived near the village well were identified by this landmark. The name is widespread in northern France — particularly Normandy and Picardy — and was carried to New France by some of Quebec's earliest settlers.
Where the Dupuis Name Is Found
NormandyPicardyÎle-de-FranceQuebecAcadia
History and Origins
The Dupuis surname developed from the Old French puits (well, shaft) with the contracted preposition du (of the). Families identified as living near the village well — ceux du puits, the people of the well — gradually took Dupuis as a hereditary surname. The name is most concentrated in northern France, particularly in Normandy, Picardy, and Champagne, where the dense rural settlement pattern meant village wells were central to community organisation.
Dupuis in New France
The Dupuis name arrived in Quebec with Norman settlers during the seventeenth century. Nicolas Dupuis (fl. 1660s) is among the founding Dupuis lines documented in the PRDH at the Université de Montréal. The name spread through the St Lawrence valley and appears in the dit tradition — Dupuis dit [secondary name] — which helped distinguish the many Dupuis families of New France.
Acadian Dupuis Families
Dupuis is also an Acadian surname — carried by families who settled in Acadia (Nova Scotia and New Brunswick) during the seventeenth century. After the Deportation of 1755, Acadian Dupuis families scattered through the Maritime provinces, Quebec, and Louisiana, where Dupuis remains a Cajun surname in the parishes along the Gulf Coast.
The French Diaspora
Dupuis is well-established in Quebec from the founding generation of New France. The PRDH at Université de Montréal and the Drouin Collection are primary resources. The Fichier Origine traces Quebec Dupuis families primarily to Normandy and Picardy. From Quebec, Dupuis families spread through the nineteenth-century French-Canadian emigration to New England and Ontario.
Acadian Dupuis families spread through Louisiana (Cajun country), the Maritime provinces, and Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon after the 1755 Deportation. In Louisiana, Dupuis is found in the Cajun parishes alongside Blanchard, Hébert, and the other core Acadian surnames. In metropolitan France, the name remains concentrated in northern France. Watch for variant spellings: Dupuy (southern French form), Dupuys, and Du Puy.
How to Research Dupuis Ancestry
Dupuis research in Quebec should use the PRDH at Université de Montréal and watch for dit names. The Fichier Origine traces most Quebec Dupuis families to Norman and Picard origins. For Acadian Dupuis families, use the Centre d'études acadiennes at Université de Moncton and the Drouin Collection. Louisiana Cajun Dupuis research requires the Louisiana State Archives and Catholic diocesan records. In France, focus on Normandy (Seine-Maritime, Calvados) and Picardy (Somme, Aisne). Watch for variant spellings: Dupuy is the southern French form of the same name.
Notable Dupuis Families
- Nicolas Dupuis (fl. 1660s) — Norman settler and one of the founding Dupuis lines in Quebec, documented in the PRDH's founding generation records. His descendants became part of the foundational fabric of French Canada.
- Constant-Benoît Dupuis (1763–1835) — French general in the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, one of the 660 generals created by Napoleon. His career represented the Dupuis name at the highest levels of the French military.
- Roy Dupuis (born 1963) — Quebec actor, star of the television series La Femme Nikita (1997–2001) and one of the most recognized Quebec performers in international television. His work has brought the Dupuis name to audiences across North America and Europe.
- Paul Dupuis (1916–1976) — French-Canadian actor who achieved significant success in British cinema in the 1940s and 1950s, appearing in films including Johnny Frenchman (1945) and Sleeping Car to Trieste (1948).
Related French Surnames
Often found in the same regions and emigration records: