2000
#14,064
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,965
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.73
Rare Last name
Perla
Italian occupational surname referring to a pearl diver or someone who worked with mother-of-pearl.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,116 Americans carry the last name Perla. That puts it at #11,147 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.91 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 109,998 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Perla 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
3.1K
1 in 109,998
Census rank
#11,147
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,717 bearers of the surname Perla in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.91 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11147th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Perla, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 69.5%. The next largest groups are White (23.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (5.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Perla
The surname Perla has its origins in Italy, where it first appeared in the late medieval period. The name is derived from the Italian word "perla," meaning "pearl," which in turn comes from the Latin "perula" or "pirula." This suggests that the name may have originally referred to someone who worked with pearls or perhaps had a physical characteristic that reminded others of a pearl.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Perla surname can be found in a document from the city of Genoa, dated 1312, which mentions a merchant named Giovanni Perla. In the 15th century, records show a Nicolo Perla holding land near the town of Salerno. The name also appears in various other Italian records from this era, with spellings like Perlae, Perli, and Perlini.
During the Renaissance, a notable figure with the Perla surname was Antonio Perla (1542-1611), a painter from the Venetian Republic who is known for his religious works and portraits. Another noteworthy individual was Girolamo Perla (1573-1638), an Italian mathematician and astronomer who wrote extensively on topics such as optics and mechanics.
In the 17th century, the Perla name can be found in the records of the Republic of Genoa, with several families of that name residing in the city and surrounding areas. One such family produced Giovanni Battista Perla (1647-1725), a Genoese nobleman and patron of the arts who commissioned works from notable artists of the time.
As the Perla surname spread throughout Italy, it also began to appear in other parts of Europe. In the 19th century, a French nobleman named Charles-Henri Perla (1816-1892) achieved some renown as a writer and historian, publishing works on topics such as the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars.
Other notable individuals with the Perla surname include Guido Perla (1869-1945), an Italian politician and journalist who served as a member of the Chamber of Deputies, and Enrico Perla (1885-1943), an Italian painter and sculptor known for his Futurist works.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Perla
Among Census respondents with the surname Perla, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 69.5%. The next largest groups are White (23.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (5.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Perla 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 Perla surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino69.5% · 1,888
- White23.8% · 646
- Asian and Pacific Islander5.4% · 147
- Black or African American0.6% · 17
- Two or more races0.6% · 17
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Perla
Perla 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
#12,541
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,470
+505 bearers (+25.7%)
Per 100,000 0.84
Rank movement Up 1,523 places
2020
#11,147
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,717
+247 bearers (+10.0%)
Per 100,000 0.91
Rank movement Up 1,394 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #14,064 | 1,965 | 0.73 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,541 | 2,470 | 0.84 | +505 bearers (+25.7%) | Up 1,523 places |
| 2020 | #11,147 | 2,717 | 0.91 | +247 bearers (+10.0%) | Up 1,394 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 Perla 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 | #12,541 | #11,147 | 11.1% |
| Count | 2,470 | 2,717 | 10.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.84 | 0.91 | 8.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Perla bearers went from 2,470 to 2,717 (+10.0% change). The surname moved up 1,394 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,541 to #11,147.
FAQ
Perla surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Perla?
Name Census estimates that about 3,116 living Americans carry the surname Perla. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 109,998 residents.
How common is Perla?
Perla ranks #11,147 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.91 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,717 people with the surname Perla. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,116), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.91 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.91 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Perla.
Has Perla become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Perla went from 2,470 recorded bearers to 2,717. That is an increase of 247 (+10.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #12,541 to #11,147.
What does the Census say about the background of Perla?
Among Census respondents with the surname Perla, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 69.5%. The next largest groups are White (23.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (5.4%). 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?
Hispanic is the largest self-reported group for the surname Perla in the 2020 Census, accounting for 69.5% (1,888 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Perla appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (69.5%), White (23.8%), Asian/Pacific Islander (5.4%). 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 Perla (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 Perla mean?
Italian occupational surname referring to a pearl diver or someone who worked with mother-of-pearl. 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 Perla (0.91 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 Americans have the surname Perla?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.