# Pearson (surname)

Source: https://namelineage.com/surname/pearson/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. Counts from the US Census Bureau; origin and etymology from Wiktionary; bearers from Wikidata. Data updated 2026-11-11.

A patronymic surname transferred from the given name.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Origin | not recorded |
| Type | patronymic, formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name |
| People in the US (2010 Census) | 101,836 |
| US rank (2010) | 308 of 162,253 |
| How often | about 1 in every 3,032 people |
| Change since 2000 | +3.1% (98,728 in 2000) |
| Pronunciation | /ˈpɪɹ.sən/, 2 syllables |
| Variant spellings | Pierson, Peirson |

## Etymology

From Piers + -son.

## Who carries it

Share of people named Pearson in the 2010 US Census by the Census's own race and ethnicity groups. The Census suppresses a share when the count behind it is small.

| Group | Share |
|---|---|
| White (not Hispanic) | 72% |
| Black (not Hispanic) | 23% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 2.2% |
| Asian and Pacific Islander | 0.6% |
| American Indian and Alaska Native | 0.4% |
| Two or more races | 2.1% |

## Where

Wikidata records people named Pearson in the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.

## People named Pearson

- Lester B. Pearson, 14th Prime Minister of Canada, from 1963 to 1968 (1897–1972)
- Sally Pearson, Australian short-distance runner and hurdler
- April Pearson, British actress
- Virginia Pearson, American stage and film actress (1886-1958)
- Adam Pearson, British actor
- Duke Pearson, American jazz pianist (1932–1980)
- Luke Pearson, British cartoonist
- Felicia Pearson, American actress
- David Pearson, American racecar driver (1934-2018)
- Morgan Pearson, American triathlete
- Eric Pearson, American screenwriter
- Todd Pearson, Australian swimmer, Olympic gold medallist

and 18 more on Wikidata.

## Similar surnames

Person, Pierson, Parson, Presson, Persson, Pehrson, Parsons, Persons, Perkinson, Persing, Pershing, Perkins.

## How to read these numbers

A Census count is people alive and counted in 2010, not births, and names occurring fewer than 100 times are not published at all. Ethnicity shares are the Census's own categories.