Percy
The English surname Percy is of Norman origin, coming from Normandy to England, United Kingdom. It was from the House of Percy, Norman lords of Northumberland, and derives from the village of Percy-en-Auge in Normandy. From there, it came into use as a mostly masculine and rarely feminine given name. It is also a short form of the given name Percival, Perseus, etc.
Meaning & Origin of Percy
What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.
The English surname Percy is of Norman origin, coming from Normandy to England, United Kingdom. It was from the House of Percy, Norman lords of Northumberland, and derives from the village of Percy-en-Auge in Normandy. From there, it came into use as a mostly masculine and rarely feminine given name. It is also a short form of the given name Percival, Perseus, etc.
Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →
The Story of Percy
Percy first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a baby boy name in 1880, with 94 babies given the name that year. Its peak popularity came in 1921, when 603 Percys were born — ranking #220 that year. As of 2026, Percy ranks #1,220 for baby boys with 166 births, rising sharply (+109% over the past five years). In total, more than 32K Percys have been born in the U.S. since records began in 1880, spanning the 1880s through the 2020s.
Popularity Over Time
Popularity by State
Names that sound like Percy
Phonetically similar names — useful when Percy is the vibe but a different syllable count or letter feel might suit better. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.
- Pursy
- Percey
- Persi
- Persea
- Pursue
- Perso
- Persa
- Persei
- Prsa
- Bursey
- Pussy
- Pussi
Source: Datamuse . Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated.
Frequently Asked Questions about Percy
What does the name Percy mean?
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About the name Percy
Percy is a boy baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1880 and has accumulated 32K births in the dataset. Percy's peak popularity came in 1921 when it ranked #98. Use the chart and map above to compare Percy's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.
Continue exploring
- Top names of 1921 →
- Names of the 1920s →
- Names starting with "P" →
- Browse all boy names →
- Top names of 2026 →
Data sources
- Birth statistics (counts, ranks, years 1880–2026) — U.S. Social Security Administration . Predictions for years not yet released by SSA are computed by Peek a Name from historical trends; we update with official data as soon as it ships.
- Etymology, cultural origins, and related forms — Behind the Name (used under their public API terms).
- Meaning prose and editorial summary — Wikipedia article extracts, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 .
- Predicted nationality distribution — Nationalize.io .
- Phonetically similar names — Datamuse .
Peek a Name aggregates and presents the above data for informational purposes. Statistical predictions and external attributions are clearly labelled where shown; we make no guarantee of accuracy beyond what each source provides.