Find out how popular the last name Padda is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Padda.

Padda, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Padda surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Padda in America

Padda is the 65066th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Padda surname appeared 305 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Padda.

We can also compare 2010 data for Padda to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Padda

The surname PADDA is of Indian origin, specifically from the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent. It is believed to have originated during the medieval period, around the 10th to 12th centuries CE.

The name PADDA is derived from the Sanskrit word "pada," which means "foot" or "footstep." It is thought to have been initially used as a nickname or a descriptive name for someone who had a distinctive way of walking or a physical characteristic related to their feet.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name PADDA can be found in the Panjabi Khushwant Singh's novel "Train to Pakistan," published in 1956, where a character named Lala Padda is mentioned. The novel is set during the time of the Partition of India in 1947.

In the 14th century, a notable figure named Bhai Padda is mentioned in Sikh historical records as a devoted follower of Guru Nanak Dev, the founder of the Sikh faith. Bhai Padda is said to have played a significant role in the early Sikh community.

During the Mughal Empire period in the 16th and 17th centuries, the name PADDA appears in several administrative records and land ownership documents from the Punjab region, indicating that families with this surname held influential positions and owned property.

Another notable individual with the surname PADDA was Jaswant Singh Padda (1923-2014), an Indian politician and freedom fighter who participated in the Indian independence movement against British colonial rule. He served as a member of the Indian Parliament and held various ministerial positions.

In the literary world, Sukhpal Singh Padda (1941-2017) was a renowned Punjabi poet and writer who received the prestigious Sahitya Akademi Award in 1995 for his contribution to Punjabi literature.

The name PADDA has also been associated with several Sikh military leaders and warriors from the 18th and 19th centuries, such as Sardar Budh Singh Padda and Sardar Ranjit Singh Padda, who played important roles in the Sikh Empire and the battles against the Afghan and Mughal rulers.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Padda

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Padda.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Padda was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Padda has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Padda was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Padda, please contact us.

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