What does "Per [person's name]" mean?

What does "Per John:" mean?

From the context of the article I'm reading (article unlinked), it seems to mean "From John:" or "John (said):"

What exactly does the word "per" mean when used as such?


Solution 1:

"Per" in this case means "according to", taken from the Latin word per which meant "per : (+ acc.) (cause) because of, on account of. "

The OED has a citation from 1818 where the meaning is "as laid down by (by a judge)"

The above was taken from here and here