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Non-authoritative answer:
I have Nadeau ancestry dating back to the mid 1600s in Quebec. Prior to that, they go back primarily to central France in the Massif Central and westward. Add Nadaud as another alternate spelling. (My maternal grandmother was born a Neddo.)
When I lived in France in the mid 1980's, I did some background research to see where the Nadeau (and variant) name could be found. By far the largest concentration was around the city of La Rochelle on the Atlantic Coast. Historically, the French don't tend to migrate much from generation-to-generation, certainly not like modern Americans. The concentration of occurrences was very distinctive, as most areas of France had no record of the name at all.
Historically, La Rochelle was a Protestant stronghold, while the rest of France was (and still is) mostly Catholic. The Protestants were known as Huguenots. From the time of the Edict of Nantes, they were heavily persecuted.
Because of the geography and timeframe, I always assumed that the early Quebecois Nadeaus must have been Huguenot refugees. However, one point at issue is that in 1627, Cardinal Richelieu forbade non-Catholics from living in New France, of which Canada was one of five colonies. Many, therefore, came to the English colonies rather than renounce Protestantism.
I am not sure how soon things relaxed toward the Protestants, however. Quebec was founded in 1608, but only had a population of 355 by 1640. With Indian wars and the harsh climate, it was not easily settled, nor easily administered from France. It wasn't until the 1660s that it was declared a royal province by Louis XIV and military garrison was sent there.
So the evidence in favor of a Huguenot origin is only circumstantial, and suspect at that. The earliest date I have on hand for my own Quebecois ancestry is a marriage that took place in Quebec in 1665.
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