Home › Baby Names Directory › Perian

Perian

♀ Girl

How to Pronounce Perian

Pronounced PER-ee-uhn /ˈpɛr.i.ən/Medium

Meaning: Perian is a rare American girl's name whose origin is uncertain. It most plausibly reads as a blend of a Peri- or Perry element with Ann, in the pattern of Marian and Vivian, but no firm etymology is documented.Low

In 30 seconds: Perian is a very rare American girl's name, most likely a Peri-plus-Ann blend. It flickered briefly around 1960 and is one of the tiniest names on this list.

💕 Browse more names

Origin LowEnglish

MeaningPerian is a rare American girl's name whose origin is uncertain. It most plausibly reads as a blend of a Peri- or Perry element with Ann, in the pattern of Marian and Vivian, but no firm etymology is documented.

U.S. rank (1962)#5175 ↗ Rising

1962 U.S. births8 girls (0.00% of U.S. girls)

Peak year1960

Total births (all-time)≈ 73

Popularity in the U.S. · SSA data

U.S. births per year (Social Security Administration, 1880–present). Pink marker = peak year.

SSA data updated May 2026. How we source & verify this data.

History & Origin

Perian is an obscure American girl's name with no well-documented origin. Its shape suggests a blend — a Peri- or Perry- element joined to Ann, following the model of Marian, Vivian and Lillian — but this is a reasonable reading rather than a settled etymology. It may also have arisen as a family or regional coinage in the American South.

Perian is genuinely tiny: it surfaced only in a very short window around 1960, chosen by only a few families, and effectively disappeared within a few years. With so little to trace, it is flagged as uncertain. A Perian from that brief moment would be in her sixties today.

Did you know? Perian barely registered at all — its entire recorded history spans just a handful of years around 1960, making it one of the rarest names in this group.

Overall data confidence 45%

References — Perian — rare American name; origin uncertain, likely Peri+Ann blendU.S. Social Security Administration — popularity counts 1880–present

Variations

PeriannePeriann

Nicknames

PeriAnn

Famous Bearers

Famous bearers coming soon.

If you like Perian…

Marian— a same-pattern -ian blend name

Vivian— shares the three-beat -ian ending

Lillian— another classic -ian girl's name

Perry— the likely Peri- element behind it

Explore names like Perian

By themeuncertain rare vintage

All themes →All meanings →All origins →

Frequently Asked

What does the name Perian mean?

Perian is a rare American girl's name of uncertain origin, most likely a blend of a Peri- element with Ann.

How do you pronounce Perian?

It's said PER-ee-uhn /ˈpɛr.i.ən/ — three syllables, stress on the first.

Is Perian a boy or girl name?

Perian is used as a girl's name.

How popular is Perian?

Perian is extremely rare; it appeared only briefly around nineteen-sixty and has essentially not been used since.