Explore the Family Name Perala

The meaning of Perala

Finnish (Perälä): habitational name from farms so named, from perä ‘end, back, remote’ + the locative suffix -lä, referring to their remote location. This surname is common in western Finland, especially in Ostrobothnia. Some characteristic forenames: Finnish Toivo, Reino, Sulo, Jukka, Olavi, Onni, Waino, Wilho.

Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.

How common is the last name Perala in the United States?

Based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the surname Perala saw a slight dip in popularity from 2000 to 2010. In 2000, it sat at rank 46,839, but by 2010 it had dropped to 48,060, a decrease of 2.61%. However, the overall count of individuals with this surname increased slightly during the same period, rising from 427 to 440, a modest growth of 3.04%. This implies that despite its drop in rank, the surname Perala expanded in actual numbers. The proportion per 100k also dropped by 6.25% during this decade.

	2000	2010	Change
Rank	#46,839	#48,060	-2.61%
Count	427	440	3.04%
Proportion per 100k	0.16	0.15	-6.25%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Perala

Looking at the ethnic identity of those bearing the surname Perala, based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, there was a notable shift between 2000 and 2010. Most notably, the percentage identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander rose dramatically from 2.11% to 5.91%, an increase of 180.09%. Those identifying as Hispanic also grew, albeit more modestly, from 2.58% to 2.95%. Meanwhile, the percentage identifying as White decreased slightly from 94.61% to 90.91%. There were no changes in the percentages identifying as two or more races, Black, or American Indian and Alaskan Native.

	2000	2010	Change
White	94.61%	90.91%	-3.91%
Asian/Pacific Islander	2.11%	5.91%	180.09%
Hispanic	2.58%	2.95%	14.34%
Two or More Races	0%	0%	0%
Black	0%	0%	0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native	0%	0%	0%