Parent’s name
Perez surname meaning
Son of Pedro (Peter) — Spanish patronymic; some Jewish lines are Peretz or adopted Perez.
The short story
Perez is usually Spanish Pérez: "son of Pedro," the Iberian form of Peter. The -ez ending does the same patronymic job as in López or Hernández. That reading covers the large majority of US Census Perez households today.
DAFN also notes Breton Pérez and Jewish Peretz (and Sephardic adoption of the Spanish form). Those are real but secondary for the American frequency story. Lead with son of Pedro; check family history before assuming the biblical Peretz line.
Also seen as: Pérez, Peres, Peretz
Sources used
- Ancestry surname meaning for Perez citing DAFN 2022 (Spanish patronymic from Pedro; also Breton/Jewish senses)
- Wikipedia 'Pérez' (Castilian Spanish surname of patronymic origin)
- Names2020_LastNames_RaceHispanic_Top1000.xlsx (2020 Census)