Paiden
A diminutive form of the name Payton, of uncertain meaning.
Name Census estimates that about 262 living Americans carry the first name Paiden. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 51.9% of registrations being male. The average person named Paiden today is around 13 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Paiden births was 2015 (29 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Paiden. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
People living today
262
~ 1 in 1,308,223 Americans
Peak year
2015
29 babies that year
Average age
13
years old
2023 SSA rank
#13,115
Tracked since 1993
Census
Paiden in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 246 people with the first name Paiden, which placed it at #33,566 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#33,566
National first-name rank
People counted
246
246 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
49.2% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Paiden
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Paiden is White at 49.2%. The next largest groups are Black (36.2%) and Two or More Races (6.9%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Paiden described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Paiden at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White49.2% · 121
- Black or African American36.2% · 89
- Two or more races6.9% · 17
- Hispanic or Latino5.3% · 13
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.6% · 4
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 2
Gender
Gender distribution for Paiden
Paiden is one of the more evenly split names in the SSA data. Of the 264 total registrations, 137 (51.9%) were male and 127 (48.1%) were female.
Paiden as a male name
- Ranked #13,638 in 2023
- 5 male births in 2023
- Peak: 2015 (17 births)
Paiden as a female name
- Ranked #13,115 in 2020
- 7 female births in 2020
- Peak: 2012 (13 births)
2020 Census snapshot
The 2020 Census sex table shows Paiden on both sides of the split. Of the 243 people counted with this name, 108 were male (44.4%) and 135 were female (55.6%).
Popularity
Paiden: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Paiden from the 1990s through to the 2020s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 176 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2010s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Paiden by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Paiden during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Paiden
The name Paiden is a relatively modern English name that emerged in the late 20th century. Its origins are somewhat uncertain, but it is believed to be a variation or combination of the names Payton and Aiden. The name Payton is derived from the Old English name Pæga, meaning "dweller at the pea patch or fertile spot." Aiden, on the other hand, is an Irish name derived from the Gaelic word "aídh," meaning "fire."
While Paiden itself does not have a long historical lineage, its components have roots that can be traced back centuries. The name Payton, for instance, can be found in records as early as the 16th century, with notable bearers including Sir John Payton, an English politician born in 1510. Aiden, too, has a rich heritage, particularly in Irish folklore and literature, where it was borne by several saints and notable figures.
The earliest recorded use of the name Paiden is difficult to pinpoint, as it is a relatively modern coinage. However, some of the earliest examples of individuals bearing the name can be found in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. One such individual is Paiden Caruthers, an American actor born in 1995, known for his roles in television shows like "The Middle" and "Shameless."
Another notable bearer of the name is Paiden Smith, an American football player born in 1997, who played as a defensive end for the University of Michigan. In the world of music, there is Paiden Leigh Curry, an American singer-songwriter born in 1989, who has released several albums and toured extensively.
While the name Paiden may not have a long historical lineage, it has gained popularity in recent decades, particularly in the United States and Canada. Some other notable individuals who have borne the name include Paiden Skiba, an American YouTuber and social media personality, and Paiden Hicks, an American actress known for her role in the film "Yellowbrickroad."
Overall, the name Paiden is a unique and modern moniker that blends elements of both English and Irish naming traditions, reflecting the cultural diversity and creativity of contemporary naming practices.
People
Paiden + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Paiden as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with P
Other first names starting with P with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Paiden: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Paiden?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 262 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Paiden going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 1,308,223 US residents.
Is Paiden a common name?
We classify Paiden as "Very Rare". It ranks above 77.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 264 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Paiden most popular?
The single biggest year for Paiden was 2015, when 29 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Paiden is about 13 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Paiden in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 246 people with the name Paiden, or 0.08 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #33,566 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Paiden in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Paiden?
The 2020 Census sex table shows Paiden on both sides of the split. Of the 243 people counted with this name, 108 were male (44.4%) and 135 were female (55.6%). The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Paiden?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Paiden is White at 49.2%. The next largest groups are Black (36.2%) and Two or More Races (6.9%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Paiden most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Paiden in the 2020 Census, accounting for 49.2% (121 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Paiden in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Paiden a male name?
Yes, 51.9% of people registered as Paiden in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Paiden still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Paiden in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Paiden can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
How many people are named Paiden?
Want to know how many Americans are named Paiden? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.