Paine surname: meaning, census count and records | FamilyCrests

The Paine surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 8,501 people carried this name — #4,171 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 34,700 people counted. About the same as in 2000 (8,495).

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What the name means

The meaning of the Paine surname

An English surname, of Norman derivation, meaning someone who lived outside of a city (see Latin pagus).

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Paine» (English), by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · excerpt, lightly adapted.

In Argentina’s national register

At least 215 people named Paine live in Argentina.

RENAPER only publishes a name in a province when more than ten people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in Río Negro.

Where it concentrates, on the map

Where they live today

Río Negro 95
Neuquén 85
Buenos Aires Province 23
Chubut 12

RENAPER (National Registry of Persons, Argentina), surnames of residents by province, December 2021 — CC BY 4.0.

In France’s civil register

France’s register of deaths holds 71 people named Paine.

14 of them were born outside France. Those born in France came from 7 départements, most often Seine-Maritime.

Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.

Where they were born

Born outside France 14
Seine-Maritime 43
Paris 5
Eure 3
Creuse 2
Puy-de-Dôme 2
Hérault 1
Meurthe-et-Moselle 1

Fichier des personnes décédées, INSEE — Licence Ouverte 2.0 · deaths recorded in France since 1970, by place of birth.

In Switzerland’s population statistics

26 people named Paine live in Switzerland.

They live in 6 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in Zurich.

Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.

Where they live today

Zurich 8
Aargau 4
Fribourg 4
Geneva 4
Bern 3
Basel-Stadt 3

Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO), «Surnames of the permanent resident population by canton», 2025, opendata.swiss/en/dataset/nachnamen-der-standigen-wohnbevolkerung-nach-kanton3 · names with fewer than 3 bearers in a canton are not published.

In print

Paine in American newspapers,
1879–1927.

Newspaper page from The Broad Ax carrying the name Paine
The Broad Ax 1902-04-26
Newspaper page from The Montgomery Advertiser carrying the name Paine
The Montgomery Advertiser 1927-07-25
Newspaper page from Luxemburger Gazette carrying the name Paine
Luxemburger Gazette 1879-02-11

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 332,683 pages in all carry the name.

Who carried it

People named Paine,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Catherine Paine d. 1925
  • Caroline Mary Piers d. 1924
  • Benjamin Paine d. 1801
  • Joseph Paine d. 1712
  • John Paine d. 1775
  • Thomas Paine d. 1766

Wikidata (CC0) · 10 lives in all are documented under this name.

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Paine.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Paine is.
A volume says what happened to it.

Every page in the index is free and stays free. The Heritage Volume is the long form: the full paper trail, the arms, the crossing — bound, and yours.

See what a volume holds
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