Was hoping some of the German researchers out there might help me with a general question: Was "Paul" a common given name in the Palatine area of Germany back in the late 1600's/early1700's? This doesn't sound "German" to me.but what do I know. Any insight on the name "Paul" will be helpful! I have recently come across information that the church records at Nordhofen, Germany, show a "Paul" BELLESFELT was baptized there in 1695. Nordhofen is northeast of Koblenz, and not far from Maxsain, Germany, where Johannes Paul KUHL was born. The KUHLs and BELLESFELTs knew each other back in Germany, appearing in the same church records there, and they were close here in Hunterdon Co NJ after they immigrated. The question then arises whether Paul KUHL and Paul BELLESFELT shared the same baptismal sponsor. Thanks, Roz BELLIS Alexandria VA