Paddy

Paddy began as a pet form of Pádraig, the Irish form of Patrick. Patrick comes from the Latin Patricius, a word for a member of Rome’s noble class, and it is known everywhere through Saint Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland. Paddy can also be short for Patricia, but in Ireland it is almost always a boy’s name.

For a long time Paddy was what a Patrick was called at home rather than the name on his birth certificate. Abroad the word has also been used as slang for any Irish person, sometimes in an unfriendly way.

As a registered name Paddy first reached the Irish list in 1988 and has climbed steadily since the 2000s. Its best rank came in 2023, at number 96 on the CSO list. Patrick is counted separately and is still far more common. Paddy is rare in Northern Ireland, where its best place was 216th, in 2024.