Percival

Meaning of Percival

Percival strolls onto the baby-name stage like a storybook hero in a silk kurta, his Old French roots (“Perce-val,” loosely “to pierce the valley”) glinting like a knight’s spear while the echoes of King Arthur’s Round Table beat like tabla drums in the background. He’s forever the quest-seeker, the champion who finds the Holy Grail before tea time, yet he carries an eye-twinkling charm that feels right at home in a Mumbai monsoon, splashing through puddles with a grin. Parents hear PUR-suh-vuhl and sense both chivalry and chai—an irresistible mix of steel and saffron—so it’s no surprise the name keeps popping up on the U.S. charts, climbing from a rare gem in the mid-1900s to nearly a hundred tiny Percivals in 2024. He’s vintage without the mothballs, gallant without the stiffness, and just quirky enough to make grandma raise an eyebrow and then smile; in short, Percival is a passport to a life of big adventures and even bigger heart.