Paulinho is a Portuguese

Portuguese language

Portuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...

 diminutive

Diminutive

In language structure, a diminutive, or diminutive form , is a formation of a word used to convey a slight degree of the root meaning, smallness of the object or quality named, encapsulation, intimacy, or endearment...

 name

Personal name

A personal name is the proper name identifying an individual person, and today usually comprises a given name bestowed at birth or at a young age plus a surname. It is nearly universal for a human to have a name; except in rare cases, for example feral children growing up in isolation, or infants...

.

It is frequently used as a nickname of various people named Paulo (Paul -inho, the little Paul). In this case it is often combined with an epithet, sometimes a demonym

Demonym

A demonym , also referred to as a gentilic, is a name for a resident of a locality. A demonym is usually – though not always – derived from the name of the locality; thus, the demonym for the people of England is English, and the demonym for the people of Italy is Italian, yet, in english, the one...

 referring to their place of origin, to distinguish them from other people with the same nickname, as shown in several of the following examples:

• Paulinho Da Costa
  Paulinho Da Costa
  Paulinho da Costa is a Brazilian percussionist born in Rio de Janeiro, considered one of the most recorded musicians of modern times. Playing over two hundred percussion instruments, he has participated in thousands of recording sessions, Grammy Award-winning albums, hit songs, soundtracks, radio...
  
  , Brazilian percussionist
• Sérgio Paulinho
  Sérgio Paulinho
  Sérgio Miguel Moreira Paulinho is a Portuguese road bicycle racer for UCI ProTour team . He was a domestique in the 2007, 2009 and 2010 Tour de France....
  
  , Portuguese cyclist, real name Sérgio Miguel Moreira
• Paulinho Santos
  Paulinho Santos
  João Paulo Maio dos Santos , aka Paulinho Santos, is a retired Portuguese footballer who played as a defensive midfielder....
  
  , Portuguese footballer

Brazilian footballers

• Paulinho Criciúma
  Paulinho Criciúma
  Paulo Roberto Rocha usually known as Paulinho or Paulinho Criciúma is a former football player and a football manager.-Playing career:...
  
  , real name Paulo Roberto Rocha; footballer born in Criciúma
• Paulinho Piracicaba
  Paulinho Piracicaba
  Paulo Robspierry Carreiro , also known as Paulinho Piracicaba, is a Brazilian footballer, who plays for Citizen in Hong Kong First Division League.-Club: Citizen AA*Hong Kong Senior Challenge Shield**Winner2010-11-External links:...
  
  , real name Paulo Robspierry Carreiro; footballer born in Piracicaba
• Paulo Sérgio Betanin
  Paulo Sérgio Betanin
  Paulinho realname Paulo Sergio Betanin is a Brazilian footballer who plays for Sorrento. He also holds Italian passport through Italian descent.-Biography:...
  
  , born in Rio Grande do Sul
• Paulo Benedito Bonifácio Maximiano
• Paulinho Guará
  Paulinho Guará
  Paulinho Guará is a Brazilian football player who currently plays for Sweedish football club Hammarby IF. He signed for Hammarby IF on a four-year contract from Örgryte IS during the 2005 season . He played for Örgryte IS from 2002 to 2005. In summer of 2008, he was loaned to Korean team Busan...
  
  
• Paulo Antônio de Oliveira
  Paulo Antonio de Oliveira
  Paulo Antonio de Oliveira , or simply Paulinho, is a Brazilian football striker who plays for Ventforet Kofu.-Career:...
  
  , playing for Ventforet Kofu
  Ventforet Kofu
  are a Japanese football club from Kofu. They compete in the J. League Division 1, and their home ground is the Kose Sports Stadium.The word "Ventforet" is coined combining two French words Vent and Forêt...
  
  
• Paulo Roberto Sobrinho
  Paulo Roberto Sobrinho
  Paulo Roberto Sobrinho known as Paulinho is a Brazilian football player currently playing in Cyprus for Olympiakos Nicosia.-External links:...
  
  
• Paulo Luiz Massariol
  Paulo Luiz Massariol
  Paulo Luiz Massariol, commonly known as just Paulinho , is a former Brazilian football forward, who played in several Série A clubs. He was the top goalscorer of the Série A 1978.-Career:...
  
  
• José Paulo Bezerra Maciel Júnior
  José Paulo Bezerra Maciel Júnior
  José Paulo Bezerra Maciel Júnior, commonly known as Paulinho, is a Brazilian football player, currently playing as a midfielder for Corinthians.-External links:* * * at Corinthians website...