Perry is an English surname that means "pear tree", from the Old English pirige, and in some families comes instead from the Welsh ap Herry, "son of Harry". The crooner Perry Como kept it in the air for mid-century America, and the actor Matthew Perry made it a familiar surname. Perry ranked number 679 in 2000, its best year, and has hovered around number 1300 for the past decade, standing at number 1373 in 2025.