2000
#33,380
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 645
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.24
Very Rare Last name
Perelman
A surname derived from the Yiddish word "perel" meaning pearl or pearl merchant.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 736 Americans carry the last name Perelman. That puts it at #37,317 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.21 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 465,699 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Perelman surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
Bearers in the US
736
1 in 465,699
Census rank
#37,317
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
642
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 642 bearers of the surname Perelman in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.21 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 37317th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Perelman, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Perelman
The surname Perelman has its origins in the Russian language, derived from the word "peregon," which means "to drive" or "to chase." It is believed to have emerged in the 14th or 15th century in regions of modern-day Russia and Ukraine.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Perelman name can be found in the Velvet Book, a collection of documents from the Grand Duchy of Moscow, dating back to the 16th century. The name is thought to have initially referred to individuals involved in herding or driving livestock.
In the 17th century, the Perelman surname appeared in various historical records, including tax registers and court documents, particularly in the areas around Moscow and Kiev. During this period, the name may have also been associated with individuals who worked as coachmen or drivers for aristocratic families.
A notable figure bearing the Perelman surname was Grigory Perelman, a Russian mathematician born in 1966, who is renowned for his groundbreaking work on the Poincaré conjecture. His proof, published in 2002 and 2003, earned him the prestigious Fields Medal, although he declined to accept the award.
Another prominent individual with this surname was Yakov Perelman, a Russian author and physicist born in 1882. He is celebrated for his popular science books, which aimed to make complex scientific concepts accessible to a wider audience.
In the 19th century, the Perelman name appeared in various records across Eastern Europe, including Poland, Belarus, and Ukraine. One notable example is Chaim Perelman, a Polish-Belgian philosopher and logician born in 1912, who made significant contributions to the study of rhetoric and argumentation theory.
The Perelman surname can also be traced back to Jewish communities in Eastern Europe, where it may have originated as a variant of the Hebrew name "Perel" or "Perl," meaning "pearl."
Throughout history, the Perelman name has been associated with individuals from diverse fields, including mathematics, science, philosophy, and literature, reflecting the versatility and adaptability of this surname across various cultures and regions.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Perelman
Among Census respondents with the surname Perelman, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Perelman bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Perelman surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.0% · 597
- Hispanic or Latino4.4% · 28
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.9% · 12
- Two or more races0.8% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Perelman
Perelman appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#34,801
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 649
+4 bearers (+0.6%)
Per 100,000 0.22
Rank movement Down 1,421 places
2020
#37,317
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 642
-7 bearers (-1.1%)
Per 100,000 0.21
Rank movement Down 2,516 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #33,380 | 645 | 0.24 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #34,801 | 649 | 0.22 | +4 bearers (+0.6%) | Down 1,421 places |
| 2020 | #37,317 | 642 | 0.21 | -7 bearers (-1.1%) | Down 2,516 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Perelman surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #34,801 | #37,317 | -7.2% |
| Count | 649 | 642 | -1.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.22 | 0.21 | -2.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Perelman bearers went from 649 to 642 (-1.1% change). The surname moved down 2,516 positions in the national ranking, going from #34,801 to #37,317.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Perelman
FAQ
Perelman surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Perelman?
Name Census estimates that about 736 living Americans carry the surname Perelman. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 465,699 residents.
How common is Perelman?
Perelman ranks #37,317 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.21 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 642 people with the surname Perelman. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (736), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.21 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.21 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Perelman.
Has Perelman become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Perelman went from 649 recorded bearers to 642. That is a decrease of 7 (-1.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #34,801 to #37,317.
What does the Census say about the background of Perelman?
Among Census respondents with the surname Perelman, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.9%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Perelman in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.0% (597 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Perelman appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.0%), Hispanic (4.4%), Asian/Pacific Islander (1.9%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Perelman (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Perelman mean?
A surname derived from the Yiddish word "perel" meaning pearl or pearl merchant. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Perelman (0.21 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people share the surname Perelman?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.