The family surname is derived from the Italian first name Paladino. The first recorded Paladino was a medieval knight and the nephew to the Holy Roman Emperor Charlemagne, 742-814 AD. Many romantic fables are told of Charlemagne and his paladins. The most famous of the paladins was Roland, the favorite nephew of Charlemagne. It is Roland, the Italian, bestowed by Charlemagne with the name Paladin, who may be our famous ancestral noble Cavaliere that all Palladino's and modern-day Pauldine's are descended from. genealogy and objective interpretation of these topics can spell the difference between real family history and fanciful family folklore. It is in a whimsical and fanciful vein that I portend that the Palladino and modern-day Pauldine clan is in some way related to the famous Holy Roman Emperor Charlemagne and his equally famous nephew, Roland the Paladin. But, who knows! Perhaps a future Palladino explorer with the inclination and, more importantly, possessing very deep pockets, might one day embark on the eternal quest for the truth and in the process even perchance recover Roland's magical sword, Durandal.