Padilla
A Spanish surname from a place name, best known through the powerful medieval Castilian house of Padilla.
The #293 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 2,930 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Padilla is a Spanish habitational surname, originally meaning someone from a place called Padilla. The historical sources here explain the name as coming from a locality rather than from the word itself, though one older English etymologist fancifully glossed it as “frying-pan.” In modern onomastics it is treated chiefly as a place-based surname, not as a straightforward occupational or descriptive name.
History
The surname became especially famous in medieval Castile through figures such as María de Padilla and her relatives, members of a prominent noble family. Spanish genealogical writers note that the earliest known bearer was Juan Fernández de Padilla, father of María. The name spread widely in Spain and later throughout the Spanish-speaking world, where it remains common.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
An older English surname dictionary playfully translated Padilla as “frying-pan,” but Spanish historical sources point instead to a place-name origin.
From the historical record
“PACKARD (QE.), Picard, Native of Picardy. PADILLA (5p.)' Frying-pan ; and they carry three m their Arms. PAINE or Payne (©.)' PO'ynim or Infidel; Field, Plain. PALLAVICINI (Jt.), Near the pales ; and they cari-y a palisade in their Arms. PALUE, de la {£.), of the Marsh, {v. van der Poll.) PANNEKOEK (SD.), Pancake…”
— Surnames