Find out how popular the last name Perna is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Perna.

Perna, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Perna surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Perna in America

Perna is the 9382nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Perna surname appeared 3,467 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Perna.

We can also compare 2010 data for Perna to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Perna

The surname Perna is of Italian origin, originating from the northern regions of the country. It is believed to have derived from the Italian word "perna," which translates to "ham" or "haunch." This suggests that the name may have originally been an occupational surname for someone who dealt with the curing or selling of hams or other pork products.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the Perna surname can be found in the Libro d'Oro della Nobiltà Italiana, a register of Italian nobility published in the 15th century. It mentions a noble family with the surname Perna residing in the city of Milan during the 14th century.

The Perna name also appears in several historical documents from the 16th century, including records of the University of Padua, which was one of the most prestigious institutions of higher learning in Europe at the time. A notable figure associated with this name was Giovanni Battista Perna, a renowned printer and publisher from the city of Lecce, who lived from 1535 to 1596.

Another individual of note bearing the Perna surname was Pietro Perna, a 17th-century Italian sculptor and architect who worked primarily in Rome. His most famous work is the bronze statue of St. Peter, which stands in the basilica of St. Peter's in the Vatican City.

In the 18th century, the Perna name gained prominence in the field of music with the birth of Francesco Perna (1710-1789), an Italian composer and violinist who was highly regarded in his time. His compositions, particularly his violin concertos, were widely performed throughout Europe.

Moving into the 19th century, a notable figure was Carlo Perna (1836-1914), an Italian lawyer and politician who served as a member of the Italian Parliament and was actively involved in the Risorgimento, the movement for Italian unification.

Over the centuries, the Perna surname has also been associated with various places and regions across Italy, such as the town of Perna in the province of Salerno, and the comune of Perno in the province of Novara.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Perna

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Perna.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Perna was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Perna has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Perna was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Perna, please contact us.

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