105+ Last Names That Start With P: Names and Meanings

Last names that start with P come from many languages, cultures, and naming traditions. Popular examples include Parker, Perez, Peterson, Phillips, Patel, Perry, and Powell. Some surnames developed from occupations or personal names, while others refer to geographical locations, family relationships, or descriptive nicknames.

If you’re researching your family history, choosing a surname for a fictional character, or simply exploring names, this guide brings together common, unique, famous, and culturally diverse P surnames. You’ll also find examples beginning with Pa and Pe, along with explanations of selected surname meanings and origins.

Common Last Names That Start With P

Many familiar P surnames have English, European, South Asian, or Hispanic roots. The following names appear in American surname references, although their prevalence varies by population and dataset.

These examples show why a surname’s spelling alone cannot establish a family’s complete history. A name can have several origins, and migration can introduce it into countries where it did not originally develop.

Unique and Cool Last Names That Start With P

If you’re looking for a distinctive surname for a story, game character, pen name, or creative project, these P names offer a range of sounds and backgrounds.

“Unique” and “cool” are subjective descriptions, not official surname categories. A name that feels unusual to an American reader may be familiar in another country or language.

Famous Last Names That Start With P

Some P surnames are recognizable because of well-known people in entertainment, literature, sports, science, and history.

• Picasso — Associated with Pablo Picasso, the Spanish-born artist.
• Poe — Associated with Edgar Allan Poe, the American writer and poet.
• Poppins — Recognized through the fictional character Mary Poppins.
• Parker — Shared by many notable people and fictional characters; it is a common surname rather than one belonging to a single family.
• Presley — Associated with musician Elvis Presley.
• Pitt — Associated with actor Brad Pitt and other public figures.
• Puzo — Associated with Mario Puzo, the American novelist.
• Pavarotti — Associated with Luciano Pavarotti, the Italian operatic tenor.
• Pele — Commonly written Pelé, associated with the Brazilian football legend.
• Perry — Associated with public figures in music, television, and other fields.

A famous association does not necessarily reveal a surname’s original meaning. If you’re researching a particular person, use biographical records rather than assuming everyone with the same last name shares ancestry.

Last Names That Start With Pa

Names beginning with Pa include common surnames, historical family names, and regional variations.

Last Names That Start With Pe

The letters Pe introduce many patronymic, occupational, geographical, and descriptive surnames.

When searching records, remember that accents may be omitted or added depending on the language, historical document, and database. Pérez and Perez may represent the same spelling tradition in different contexts, but that does not prove that two families are related.

Last Names That Start With P by Cultural Origin

Surnames often reflect language, geography, religion, occupation, or descent from a personal name. The categories below are useful starting points, but they are not strict boundaries. Migration and cultural exchange mean that many surnames appear in several countries.

Spanish, Hispanic, and Mexican Last Names

Spanish-language surnames beginning with P include:

• Pérez — Derived from Pedro, traditionally interpreted as “son of Pedro.”
• Peña — Associated with a rock or rocky outcrop.
• Padilla — A surname linked to Spanish place names.
• Pacheco — A historic Iberian surname.
• Pineda — Associated with a pine forest.
• Peralta — A Spanish, Catalan, and Portuguese surname connected with place names.
• Palacios — Derived from the Spanish word palacio, meaning “palace.”
• Prieto — A Spanish surname associated with a descriptive word whose historical usage and interpretation can vary.
• Ponce — A traditional surname found in Spanish-speaking communities.
• Pardo — A surname with Iberian roots and several possible historical associations.

These names can be found in Spain and across Latin America, including Mexico and the Dominican Republic. However, not every person with a Spanish surname has Spanish ancestry, and the same surname may have different family histories.

Italian Last Names

Italian P surnames include names connected with places, occupations, personal names, and descriptive words. Examples include:

• Pellegrini — Associated with the Italian word for pilgrim.
• Palumbo — Associated with a regional word for a male dove.
• Pace — Connected with the Italian word for peace, though individual family histories may differ.
• Pastore — Associated with the Italian word for shepherd.
• Paglia — Associated with the Italian word for straw.
• Pavone — Associated with the Italian word for peacock.
• Parisi — May be connected with the place name Paris or a personal-name tradition.
• Pietro — A personal-name form that also appears in some surname traditions.
• Pinto — Has multiple possible historical explanations.
• Palmieri — A surname associated with historical pilgrimage and personal-name traditions.

Italian surname etymologies can be regional, and variants may reflect dialect or local spelling. ItalyHeritage’s surname reference documents many of these names and their proposed origins.

French Last Names

French surnames beginning with P include:

• Petit — Often associated with the French word for “small.”
• Perrin — Derived from a form of the personal name Pierre.
• Pierre — The French form of Peter, also used as a surname.
• Poirier — Associated with a pear tree.
• Parent — A surname with historical French usage and multiple possible origins.
• Proulx — A surname found in French-speaking communities, particularly in North America.
• Pascal — Derived from a personal name associated with Easter.
• Pelletier — Traditionally associated with the fur trade or fur-working occupation.

French surnames may have regional spelling variants, and a French surname does not necessarily indicate recent ancestry from France.

German Last Names

Examples of German P surnames include:

• Peters — Derived from Peter.
• Pfeiffer — An occupational surname associated with a piper or player of a wind instrument.
• Pohl — A surname with regional and geographical associations.
• Pfeffer — Associated with the German word for pepper, potentially reflecting a nickname or trade.
• Popp — A surname with regional and personal-name origins.
• Probst — Historically associated with an ecclesiastical or administrative office.
• Pietsch — A surname with regional German and Slavic connections.
• Pabst — Historically associated with the word for pope or a related title.

Surname origins can cross modern national borders, especially in areas where German and Slavic languages have long interacted.

Greek Last Names

Greek surnames beginning with P include:

• Papadopoulos — A patronymic surname traditionally interpreted as “son of a priest.”
• Papadakis — A surname associated with Greek naming traditions, particularly in Crete.
• Pappas — Associated with the Greek word for priest or father.
• Panagiotopoulos — Derived from the personal name Panagiotis.
• Papas — A surname associated with a title or word for priest.
• Pavlidis — A patronymic surname derived from Pavlos, the Greek form of Paul.
• Petropoulos — A surname built from a form of Peter and a patronymic element.

Greek surnames may contain elements that point to a father’s name, a religious association, or regional naming traditions. Specific meanings should be checked against the family’s language and historical records.

Irish Last Names

Some Irish surnames beginning with P include:

• Power — An Irish surname with Norman-French historical connections.
• Prendergast — Associated with Norman origins and established Irish family histories.
• Phelan — An anglicized form of an Irish surname associated with the name Faolán.
• Piggott — A surname found in Ireland and Britain with historical Norman connections.
• Purcell — A surname with Anglo-Norman roots that became established in Ireland.

Irish surnames can have anglicized spellings that differ substantially from their earlier Gaelic forms.

Polish Last Names

Examples include:

• Pawlak — Commonly associated with the personal name Paweł.
• Piotrowski — A surname associated with places named Piotrów or with the personal name Piotr.
• Pietrzak — A surname derived from Piotr, the Polish form of Peter.
• Pawłowski — Often associated with a place name or the personal name Paweł.
• Przybylski — A surname with Polish linguistic and geographical associations.
• Piekarski — Commonly associated with the Polish word for a baker.

Polish surnames may include diacritics such as ł. Historical records in other countries sometimes remove these marks or use alternative spellings.

Indian Last Names

Indian surnames are exceptionally diverse because India contains many languages, religions, and regional naming systems. Examples include:

• Patel — Especially associated with Gujarati communities and historical village leadership.
• Pillai — A surname or title used in several South Indian communities.
• Pandey — A surname found in several North Indian communities.
• Prasad — A name associated with Sanskrit-derived usage and religious or personal-name traditions.
• Pawar — A surname found in several Indian regional communities.
• Patil — Associated historically with a village headman in Marathi-speaking regions.
• Purohit — Associated with the role of a Hindu priest or ritual officiant.
• Parmar — A surname found in several communities, including parts of western and central India.

These names do not all share one linguistic or cultural origin. Their interpretation depends on the language, region, community, and family history.

Japanese Last Names

Japanese surnames are often written in kanji, and their meanings depend on the characters used. Romanization can also create several possible spellings.

Examples beginning with P in standard romanized spelling are comparatively limited, but Park may appear in Japan among people with Korean family backgrounds. Some Japanese names containing sounds that romanize with P may be encountered in specialized or historical contexts, but a list should not treat Korean or other immigrant surnames as originally Japanese without evidence.

For accurate Japanese surname research, search the original Japanese characters when possible and verify the romanization. It is better to acknowledge this limitation than to label unrelated names Japanese simply to fill a list.

Filipino and Dominican Last Names

Filipino surnames beginning with P include:

• Panganiban
• Pascual
• Paredes
• Pangan
• Padilla
• Pacheco

Many Filipino surnames reflect Spanish colonial-era naming influences, although Filipino family names have varied origins.

Dominican surnames beginning with P include Pérez, Peña, Paredes, Polanco, Pimentel, and Paulino. These names are also found elsewhere in the Spanish-speaking world. A surname alone cannot establish Dominican ancestry.

Jewish and Black American Surnames

P surnames found among Jewish families include Perlman, Pollack, Pomerantz, Pinsky, and Pasternak. Their origins vary, and some are associated with Yiddish, Slavic, German, or other European-language traditions.

Black Americans may have surnames such as Parker, Phillips, Price, Perry, and Powell, among many others. These names are shared across the wider US population. African American surname histories may involve slavery, emancipation, migration, marriage, and personal family choices, so an individual family’s records are more informative than a generalized surname list.

American Last Names

The United States has no single, exclusive set of American surnames. Common names beginning with P include:

• Parker
• Phillips
• Peterson
• Perez
• Price
• Perry
• Powell
• Patterson
• Porter
• Palmer
• Pierce
• Payne

These surnames reflect the country’s diverse migration and settlement history. Some have English or Welsh roots, while others are associated with Spanish-speaking, South Asian, and other communities.

Last Names That Start With P for Girls and Female Characters

Last names do not usually change based on whether a person is male or female in English-speaking naming traditions. However, certain surnames may suit a particular character, pen name, or creative style.

These are style suggestions, not surnames reserved for women. In most English-language contexts, the same family surname can be used by people of any gender.

How to Choose or Research a P Surname

Finding a surname that sounds right is only one part of the process. If you’re choosing a name for a character or researching your own family, these practical steps can help.

1. Start with the intended purpose. A surname for a historical novel may need a different cultural or regional fit than a modern American character’s name. For genealogy, begin with the spelling found in your oldest available family records.

2. Check the language and origin. Parker has an English occupational origin, while Pérez is associated with Spanish patronymic naming. Comparing names within their linguistic context helps avoid confusing similar spellings with shared ancestry.

3. Look for spelling variations. Historical documents often contain inconsistent spellings. Pérez may appear as Perez, and a surname with diacritics may be recorded without them. Search both forms when examining historical records.

4. Use records to verify family connections. Census records, birth and marriage certificates, immigration documents, and church registers can help connect generations. FamilySearch recommends using records to investigate family history rather than relying on a surname alone.

5. Treat surname meanings as clues, not proof. Two families may share a surname without having a recent common ancestor. Some surnames also developed independently in different regions, so a name’s general etymology cannot establish your own family’s origin.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the most common last names that start with P?

Parker, Perez, Peterson, Phillips, Patel, Perry, Powell, Patterson, Price, and Porter are recognizable examples. Exact rankings depend on the country, population, and dataset being used.

What are some unique last names that start with P?

Penrose, Pemberton, Pomeroy, Prescott, Pascoe, and Palladino are options for readers looking for distinctive surnames. Whether a name is unusual depends on its cultural and regional context.

What Spanish last names start with P?

Examples include Pérez, Peña, Padilla, Pacheco, Pineda, Palacios, Prieto, Ponce, and Pardo. Some are also common in Latin American countries, including Mexico and the Dominican Republic.

What are some Italian last names that start with P?

Italian surnames beginning with P include Pellegrini, Palumbo, Pace, Pastore, Paglia, Pavone, Parisi, and Palmieri. Their origins may relate to occupations, places, personal names, or descriptive words.

What last names start with Pe?

Examples include Perez, Perry, Peterson, Peters, Petersen, Pereira, Pennington, Pendleton, Peck, Peña, and Peralta. Some have related spellings or origins across different European languages.

Can a last name tell you someone’s ethnicity?

Not reliably on its own. A surname may suggest a linguistic or geographical connection, but migration, marriage, adoption, and historical spelling changes can complicate its origins. Family records and broader historical evidence provide a stronger basis for understanding ancestry.

Conclusion

Last names that start with P offer a wide range of choices, from familiar surnames such as Parker, Perez, and Peterson to distinctive names such as Penrose, Pemberton, and Palladino. They also reflect many naming traditions, including Spanish, Italian, Welsh, Polish, Indian, and other cultural backgrounds.

If you’re selecting a surname for a character, focus on its sound, style, and cultural fit. If you’re researching your family history, use the surname as a starting point and verify its origins through historical records. The most useful surname is not necessarily the rarest or most popular one, but the one that best fits your purpose and the evidence available.

Noah Williams

I am Noah Williams, an animal enthusiast and pet content creator who loves discovering creative ways to celebrate the bond between pets and their owners. I specialize in researching memorable pet names, naming trends, and meaningful ideas for dogs, cats, and other beloved animals.

I enjoy helping families choose names that are not only beautiful but also reflect their pet’s personality and unique qualities. My goal is to provide simple, inspiring, and practical naming advice for every type of pet owner.

My books include:

• The Ultimate Pet Names Encyclopedia
• Finding the Right Name for Your New Best Friend