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

Padmanabhan, 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 Padmanabhan surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Padmanabhan in America

Padmanabhan is the 29502nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Padmanabhan surname appeared 800 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 Padmanabhan.

We can also compare 2010 data for Padmanabhan 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 Padmanabhan

The surname Padmanabhan has its origins in the Indian subcontinent, more specifically in the southern Indian states of Tamil Nadu and Kerala. It is derived from the Sanskrit words "padma" meaning lotus and "nabha" meaning navel, and is a compound name referring to the Hindu god Vishnu, who is often depicted as reclining on a serpent with a lotus emerging from his navel.

The earliest recorded instances of the surname Padmanabhan can be traced back to the medieval period, with references found in various Hindu religious texts and inscriptions from the 9th to 12th centuries. These early mentions often referred to individuals associated with temples dedicated to Lord Vishnu or those who held positions within the temple administration.

One notable historical figure bearing the name Padmanabhan was Padmanabha Dasa, a 16th-century Sanskrit scholar and poet from Kerala, known for his works on Hindu philosophy and devotional literature. Another prominent individual was Padmanabhan Thampi (1778-1839), a prominent figure in the Kingdom of Travancore (present-day Kerala), who served as the Dewan (prime minister) and played a crucial role in the administrative reforms of the kingdom.

During the medieval and early modern periods, variations in the spelling of the surname Padmanabhan were common, including Padmanabhacharya, Padmanabhayya, and Padmanabhaiyar, reflecting regional linguistic differences and scribal practices of the time.

In the realm of literature, one of the earliest known works associated with the name Padmanabhan is the 14th-century Sanskrit text "Padmanabha Charitam," a poetic work that narrates the life and exploits of Lord Vishnu in his incarnation as Padmanabha.

Another notable figure was Padmanabhan Pillai (1857-1930), a prominent Indian freedom fighter and social reformer from Tamil Nadu, who played a significant role in the Indian independence movement and worked towards the upliftment of marginalized communities.

It is also worth mentioning that the name Padmanabhan has been associated with various place names in South India, particularly in the states of Tamil Nadu and Kerala, where temples dedicated to Lord Vishnu have existed for centuries. Examples include Padmanabhapuram, a former capital of the Kingdom of Travancore, and Sripadmanabhaswamy Temple, a famous Hindu temple in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Padmanabhan

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

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 Padmanabhan 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 Padmanabhan 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 Padmanabhan was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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