NameCensus.

UK name, mostly girls

Payton

English name meaning "estate guard" or "royal foreman".

For 2026, the newest official UK baby-name figures on this page are from 2024. That release is the current official benchmark rather than a forecast.

Payton is mostly registered for girls in the UK records. People looking for Payton popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2024 in this profile. In that release it ranked #1353, with 24 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2010, with 77 births.

This profile covers 939 England and Wales registrations across 29 recorded years from 1996 to 2024. The figures come from ONS England and Wales, NRS Scotland and NISRA Northern Ireland, so the page is a view of published baby-name registrations rather than a forecast or a live count of people using the name today.

The latest count is about 31% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.

We estimate that about 1,251 living people in the UK are called Payton. This uses published birth registrations from England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, then applies ONS national life tables to estimate how many are likely still alive. It does not forecast extra births for 2025 or 2026.

Key insights

  • Payton ranked #1353 for girls in England and Wales in 2024, with 24 registrations.
  • The name peaked in 2010, when 77 girls were registered as Payton.
  • Payton ranks best in Northern Ireland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #355 in 2017.
  • About 1,251 living people in the UK are estimated to have Payton as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.
  • Across the England and Wales records shown here, 90.1% of Payton registrations are for girls.

Latest rank (E&W)

#1353

2024

Births in 2024

24

Latest year

Peak year

2010

77 births

Estimated living

1,251

2026

Gender

Boy and girl registrations for Payton

In England and Wales birth records, Payton has been registered for both boys and girls. Across the years shown here, 9.9% of registrations are for boys and 90.1% are for girls.

These figures use the sex categories in the published baby-name files. They are useful for spotting how the name is used at registration, but they are not a live measure of gender identity or everyone living with the name today.

90% girls
Boys103 (9.9%)Girls939 (90.1%)

Payton registered for boys

  • Ranked #4,991 in 2023
  • 3 boys registered in 2023
  • Peak: 2018 (13 births)

Payton registered for girls

  • Ranked #1,353 in 2024
  • 24 girls registered in 2024
  • Peak: 2010 (77 births)

Meaning

What does Payton mean?

The name Payton has its origins in the Old English language and is derived from the word "Pæga", which means "dweller by the pæga or peacock enclosure". The name is believed to have first emerged in the 5th or 6th century AD in Anglo-Saxon England.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Payton can be found in the Domesday Book, a manuscript record of landholders in England compiled in 1086 by order of William the Conqueror. The entry lists a landowner named "Payton de Warrewic" in the county of Warwickshire.

In the 12th century, a Benedictine monk named Payton of Malmesbury was renowned for his scholarly works, including a chronicle of English history titled "Historia Novella". He lived from around 1095 to 1170.

During the 14th century, Sir Payton Rous was a notable English antiquarian and historian who compiled the "Rous Roll", a genealogical record of the English monarchy from the reign of King Egbert in the 9th century.

In the 16th century, Payton Randolph was a prominent English author and playwright who wrote several works, including the play "The Jealous Lovers" in 1584. He was born in 1542 and died in 1608.

Another notable figure with the name Payton was Sir Payton Ventris, an English jurist and legal scholar who lived from 1638 to 1691. He made significant contributions to the development of English common law and is remembered for his influential legal treatises.

These examples illustrate the long-standing presence of the name Payton in various regions of England and its association with individuals from diverse backgrounds, including scholars, writers, and legal experts throughout history.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

Popularity

Payton over time

The chart below compares boys and girls registered as Payton in England and Wales, from 1996 to 2024. Empty years are left out so rare names are not stretched across long periods where the published files do not show any registrations.

For Payton, the clearest high point is 2010. The latest England and Wales figure is 24 births in 2024, compared with 77 at the peak.

Babies born per year

BoysGirls
021426283199620102024

Decades

Payton by decade

Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Payton was a short-lived spike or a name that stayed in regular use. Average rank is calculated only from years where a published rank exists.

Decade Average rank Total births Years covered
2020s #998 178 5
2010s #725 566 10
2000s #1999 154 10
1990s #1660 41 4

Geography

Where Payton is most common

The bars show the latest published local birth counts for Payton. They are useful for spotting where the name is showing up in real numbers, while the rank beside each bar shows how strongly it performs inside that region.

Payton ranks best in Northern Ireland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #355 in 2017.

Scotland
8
Northern Ireland
4

Across the UK

Payton in Scotland and Northern Ireland

Scotland (NRS)

#384 in 2024

23 years of NRS records, 306 total registered

Northern Ireland (NISRA)

#355 in 2017

3 years of NISRA records, 12 total registered

Related

Names similar to Payton

FAQ

Payton: questions and answers

How popular is the name Payton in the UK right now?

In 2024, Payton was ranked #1353 for girls in England and Wales, with 24 births registered.

When was Payton most popular?

The peak year on record was 2010, with 77 babies registered as Payton in England and Wales.

What is the meaning and origin of Payton?

English name meaning "estate guard" or "royal foreman".

How many people are called Payton in the UK?

A total of 939 babies have been registered as Payton across the 29 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here, plus 306 more in Scotland and 12 in Northern Ireland.

Where is Payton most common?

In the latest published local rankings, Payton ranks best in Northern Ireland, where it placed #355 in 2017. The regional bars on this page use birth counts, so they also reflect the size of each region.

Which records is this page based on?

The England and Wales timeline uses ONS baby-name records. Scotland figures come from NRS and Northern Ireland figures come from NISRA. Counts are registrations in published baby-name files. The living estimate uses those birth registrations with ONS national life tables.