Explore the Family Name Padmanabhan

The meaning of Padmanabhan

Indian (Kerala, Tamil Nadu): from a personal name composed of the Sanskrit elements padma ‘lotus’ + nābha ‘navel’ + the Tamil-Malayalam third-person masculine singular suffix -n. Padmanabha is an epithet of the Hindu god Vishnu. — Note: Since South Indians traditionally do not have hereditary surnames, this name was in most cases registered as such only after immigration of its bearers to the US. Some characteristic forenames: Indian Geetha, Srinivasan, Anand, Arun, Bala, Gopal, Kumar, Lakshmanan, Mahesh, Pradeep, Prakash, Ram.

Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.

How common is the last name Padmanabhan in the United States?

Based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the surname Padmanabhan has seen a considerable rise in popularity over the decade from 2000 to 2010. In 2000, Padmanabhan was ranked 46,944 in terms of popularity and had a count of 426. By 2010, the rank improved significantly to 29,502, marking a change rate of 37.15%. The count also nearly doubled to 800, showing an increase of 87.79%. As for the proportion per 100k, it rose from 0.16 in 2000 to 0.27 in 2010, registering a growth of 68.75%.

20002010Change
Rank#46,944#29,50237.15%
Count42680087.79%
Proportion per 100k0.160.2768.75%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Padmanabhan

Regarding ethnicity, the Decennial U.S. Census data shows that the majority of individuals with the surname Padmanabhan identify as Asian/Pacific Islander. In 2000, this ethnic identity made up 95.07% of all Padmanabhans, and in 2010, it was around the same at 95.00%, experiencing a slight decrease of 0.07%. The percentage of individuals identifying as having two or more ethnicities fell by 46.56% during this period. The portion of people identifying as White showed an increase, moving from 1.41% in 2000 to 2.25% in 2010. The Hispanic representation among Padmanabhans emerged in 2010, while there were no recorded instances of people identifying as Black or American Indian and Alaskan Native in either census year.

20002010Change
Asian/Pacific Islander95.07%95%-0.07%
White1.41%2.25%59.57%
Two or More Races3.05%1.63%-46.56%
Hispanic0%1%0%
Black0%0%0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native0%0%0%