How common is the surname Paterson?

7,035 people in the United States had the surname Paterson in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 43,887 Americans. It ranked 4,990th of 162,253 surnames.

Who is the most famous person named Paterson?

David Paterson, 55th Governor of New York from 2008 to 2010, followed by Katherine Paterson.

Where is the surname Paterson most common?

Wikidata records people named Paterson in the United States, Australia and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and 1 other country.

How do you pronounce Paterson?

Paterson is /ˈpætəɹ.sən/, 3 syllables.

Is the surname Paterson getting more or less common?

More common. 6,809 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 7,035 in 2010, up 3.3%.

The surname Paterson

An English patronymic surname, carried by 7,035 people in the United States.

Pronounced /ˈpætəɹ.sən/ 3 syllables Soundex P362

Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). Paterson is more common than 96.9% of them.

Origin

English origin

From a Middle English short form of Patrick + -son.

Paterson is a patronymic surname: formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name.

One of 1,446 English surnames on this site.

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 7,035 people named Paterson in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 43,887 Americans. That is up 3.3% since 2000, when the Census counted 6,809.

#4,990

rank among US surnames

7,035

people in 2010

2.4

per 100,000 Americans

+3.3%

change since 2000 (was #4,760)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#4,981	Spurgeon	7,047	43,812
#4,983	Brumley	7,046	43,819
#4,984	Brownell	7,045	43,825
#4,985	McKelvey	7,043	43,837
#4,986	Palm	7,041	43,850
#4,987	Roderick	7,039	43,862
#4,989	Hargrave	7,037	43,875

Who is named Paterson

Race and Hispanic origin as people reported it in the 2010 Census

84% of people named Paterson identified as white (not Hispanic), 10% as Black (not Hispanic) and 2.5% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).

White (not Hispanic) 84%
Black (not Hispanic) 10%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 2.5%
Two or more races 1.8%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.8%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.4%

Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

Famous Patersons

9 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first

David Paterson
55th Governor of New York from 2008 to 2010
Katherine Paterson
American children's writer born and mainly raised in China, born 1932
Andrew Barton Paterson
Australian journalist, author and poet (1864 - 1941)
Tim Paterson
American computer programmer, born 1956
Isabel Paterson
Author and editor (1886–1961)
Jodi Ann Paterson
American actress and model, born 1975
Pat Paterson
British actress (1910-1978)
Vincent Paterson
American choreographer and film director, born 1950
Amy Paterson
Argentinian composer (1912–2019)

Notable Patersons come mostly from the United States (6), Australia (1) and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (1).

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Surnames that sound like Paterson

Paterson has the Soundex code P362, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code P362.

Other English surnames

All 1,446 English surnames

Questions

Where does the surname Paterson come from?: From a Middle English short form of Patrick + -son.
How common is the surname Paterson?: 7,035 people in the United States had the surname Paterson in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 43,887 Americans. It ranked 4,990th of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname Paterson?: In the 2010 Census, 84% of people named Paterson identified as white (not Hispanic), and 10% as Black (not Hispanic).
Who is the most famous person named Paterson?: David Paterson, 55th Governor of New York from 2008 to 2010, followed by Katherine Paterson.
Where is the surname Paterson most common?: Wikidata records people named Paterson in the United States, Australia and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and 1 other country.
How do you pronounce Paterson?: Paterson is /ˈpætəɹ.sən/, 3 syllables.
What type of surname is Paterson?: Paterson is a patronymic surname, formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name.
Is the surname Paterson getting more or less common?: More common. 6,809 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 7,035 in 2010, up 3.3%.