Given name & surname
Pierce
“as solid and strong as a rock”
Pierce is a variant of Petronela. In Latin use, Petronela carries the interpretation “as solid and strong as a rock.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
In English use, Pierce carries the interpretation “as solid and strong as a rock.” Pierce is a variant of Petronela. In Latin use, Petronela carries the interpretation “as solid and strong as a rock.”
Combines direct and name-family evidence
Where it comes from
A possible origin is English, although the derivation remains uncertain.
How it developed
Pierce is used as a form of Peter.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1880. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin. In English use, Pierce has a related form in Piers. The history of Piers gives this family its wider story. William Langland’s Piers Plowman presents Piers as a figure associated with work, honesty, and fairness. The poem may have helped encourage the name’s revival in the twentieth century.
Combines direct and name-family evidence
Pierce through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 20,634
- 20,245 boys · 389 girls
- Most popular year
- 2015
- 668 babies
- 2025
- 618
- #505 for boys · #6,061 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −4%
- Steady
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 598 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 505 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 5.4% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 648 in 2015. It also appeared in 20 birth records for girls in 2025. In 2025, Texas had the largest reported state-level birth count for boys with this name (62). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 14,535 as a first name in 2020; 132,277 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Pierce’s family of names
Pierce is a form of Peter. In English usage, Pierce has a conventional equivalent in the German form Peter. Pierce has a related form in Pierson.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 17
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 1
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 2
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
People named Pierce
- Pierce BrosnanIrish actor (born 1953)
- Pierce LePageCanadian athletics competitorborn 1996
- Pierce GagnonAmerican child actorborn 2005
- Pierce BrownAmerican writerborn 1988
- Pierce ButlerUnited States Founding Father, from South Carolina1744–1822
- Pierce BrodkorbAmerican ornithologist and paleontologist (1908–1992)
- Pierce ButlerSupreme Court associate justice (1866–1939)
- Pierce M. B. YoungConfederate Army general (1836–1896)
- Pierce Mason ButlerAmerican politician1798–1846
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Pierce, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
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Fedrick
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Šekspīrs
Šekspīrs is a surname from English. It is used in Latvian.
—
Shakespeare
“to brandish a weapon”
75% boys · 25% girls