Etymology: Apparently < classical Latin pōpulus poplar, of unknown origin. Compare Middle French pople , Middle French, French (now regional) pouple , peuple (mid 15th cent.). Compare Middle Dutch pappel , poppel (Dutch (now regional) pappel , popel , †poppel ; the usual word in modern Dutch is populier poplar n.), Middle Low German poppele , Old High German popel , papil (only in the compound popelboum , papilboum : see below; Middle High German papel , papele , (in late sources) popel , German Pappel ), Swedish poppel (1538 as †popel in the compound †popelträä poplar (now (rare) poppelträ )), Danish poppel , †popel , all ultimately < Latin (the Danish and Swedish words are via Middle Low German). Compare poplar n.Compare also the form poplom in an inventory of 1295 written in a mixture of Latin, English, and forms that cannot be safely assigned to either language:1295 Inventory Abbey of Childerditch (P.R.O.: Duchy of Lancaster Papers DL41/10/07) It. borda de poplom. With popple-tree at Compounds compare Old High German papilboum, popelboum (Middle High German papelboum, German Pappelbaum (now rare)), Swedish poppelträ (see above). Apparently also attested early as a surname: William Popel (1318).

Etymology: Origin uncertain. Perhaps < poppy n. + -le suffix 1 (see forms at that entry); compare poppy n. 3, and also sense 2 for much later application of the present word to the corn poppy. Both the corn poppy and the corncockle grow in corn fields and have striking reddish flowers.Perhaps compare post-classical Latin populia (in an undated glossary in Du Cange, glossing Hellenistic Greek λύχνις lychnis n.; corncockle was formerly placed in the genus Lychnis). Compare also earlier cockle n.¹ in the same sense, though if the two words are related the difference in the consonants would be difficult to account for. However, it is perhaps possible that the present word might show an alteration of cockle n.¹ by association with poppy n.

Etymology: < popple v.¹ With sense 2 compare earlier poppling n.² In sense 3 probably formed independently < pop v.¹; compare -le suffix 3.

Etymology: Apparently imitative. Compare pop v.¹, although this does not accord well in sense; with the ending, compare -le suffix 3. Compare also West Frisian popelje (of the heart) to throb, (of a liquid or food) to bubble up, to boil up, also to mumble, to murmur (perhaps < Dutch), Dutch popelen (of various objects) to howl, to make a blowing sound (mid 16th cent.), to murmur, to mumble (1599; earlier in spec. sense ‘to mumble prayers in a hypocritical way’ (1557); now obsolete in these senses), (of the heart) to throb, (of a person) to tremble (with various emotions) (mid 17th cent.), to break wind (1620; now obsolete), German regional (Southern) poppeln to bubble, to bubble up, to throb. Compare bubble v., and later papple v.

Etymology: < pop v.¹ + -le suffix (see sense 3 at that entry).