Paden
An Irish surname usually taken as a variant of Padden, ultimately from a Gaelic personal name.
The #7,842 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 73,110 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The surname Paden is generally treated as an Anglicized variant of Irish Padden, which itself comes from a Gaelic personal name commonly explained as a pet form related to Patrick. In older Irish surname collections, Paden appears alongside spellings such as Padin, Padden, Patten, and Patton, showing how one Gaelic name could be rendered in several English forms. The exact underlying Gaelic form is not always pinned down with certainty, so the name is best understood as a surname from a personal name rather than from a place or occupation.
History
The name appears in Irish surname material and was present in Ireland by at least the early 18th century in the records cited by Matheson. In English-language records it also turns up in several spelling variants, reflecting the normal instability of Irish surnames under anglicization. The modern surname is now found beyond Ireland, especially in English-speaking countries through migration.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Older surname writers grouped Paden with a cluster of spellings that all seem to reflect the same Irish-name family, which is why the historical forms can look surprisingly different on the page.
From the historical record
“pA5An, Fyans, Foynes. pAi-oin, Padin, Paden, Padden, Pattin, Patten, Patton, etc. pAilif, Palles, Pallas. pAinin, Panneen, Fannin, Fan-”
— Sloinnte Gaedheal is Gall: Irish names and surnames