Pereira (surname)

For information about other uses of Pereira, see Pereira (disambiguation).
Pereira
Coat of arms associated with Pereira surname
Pronunciation[pɨˈɾɐjɾɐ] or [peˈɾejɾɐ]
Origin
Word/namePortuguese, Galician
Meaning"pear tree"
Region of originPortugal, and Galicia region of Spain
Other names
Variant form(s)Da Pereira, Dapereira, Pereyra, Pereiras, Pereyras, Perera, Pereire, Peral, Perales and others
The coat of arms of Saint Nuno Álvares Pereira. The cross, which is a cross flory voided, is a common charge found in the coats of arms of Pereira families, as are the red and white colours.
The coat of arms of Diego Pereira d'Aguilar, a baron of the Holy Roman Empire and privy councilor to the Crowns of the Netherlands and Italy

Pereira is a surname in the Portuguese and Galician languages, well known and quite common, mostly in Portugal, Galicia, Brazil, other regions of the former Portuguese Empire, among Galician descendants in Spanish-speaking Latin America. The adoption of this surname also became common among Sephardic Jews of Portuguese origin and was historically spread throughout the Sephardic Jewish diaspora[citation needed]. Origin: toponymic/natural world, from Latin pirum or pyrus (pear, pear-tree). Currently, it is one of the most common surnames in South America and Europe. Started as a noble Christian toponym of the Middle Ages, taken from the feudal estate of Pereira, Portugal, which in Portuguese means 'pear tree'.

The variants of this name are more commonly found in other countries like Spain (Galicia) with different spellings such as Pereyra or Perera, Trinidad and Tobago, India (specifically between Goa and Kerala along the Konkan coast), Pakistan and Sri Lanka. In France, the variant is Pereire. Many Portuguese immigrants to the United States, especially Massachusetts, chose to Americanize their surname into Perry.