Tsion
An Ethiopian name meaning "daughter of Zion" and referring to Jerusalem.
Name Census estimates that about 382 living Americans carry the first name Tsion. It is a predominantly female name (90.4% of registrations). The average person named Tsion today is around 14 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Tsion births was 2019 (21 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Tsion. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Tsion with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
382
~ 1 in 897,263 Americans
Peak year
2019
21 babies that year
Average age
14
years old
2006 SSA rank
#9,476
Tracked since 1998
Census
Tsion in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 933 people with the first name Tsion, which placed it at #13,076 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#13,076
National first-name rank
People counted
933
933 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.3
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
94.4% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Tsion
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Tsion is Black at 94.4%. The next largest groups are White (3.3%) and Two or More Races (1.4%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Tsion described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Tsion at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American94.4% · 881
- White3.3% · 31
- Two or more races1.4% · 13
- Hispanic or Latino0.6% · 6
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.2% · 2
Gender
Gender distribution for Tsion
Tsion leans heavily female at 90.4% of total registrations, but 37 boys have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Tsion as a male name
- Ranked #13,878 in 2006
- 5 male births in 2006
- Peak: 2001 (9 births)
Tsion as a female name
- Ranked #9,476 in 2024
- 11 female births in 2024
- Peak: 2019 (21 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Tsion leans strongly female. 873 people counted with this name were female (93.4%), compared with 62 male bearers (6.6%).
Popularity
Tsion: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Tsion from the 1990s through to the 2020s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 160 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Tsion remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Tsion by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Tsion during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Tsions live
The SSA's state-level files cover 3 states and territories. Texas, Virginia, Maryland recorded the most babies named Tsion, while Maryland, Virginia, Texas recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 6 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Tsion
The name Tsion has its origins in the Semitic languages of the Middle East. It is derived from the Hebrew word "Tziyon," which means "Zion" or "the highest point." The name is deeply rooted in the biblical tradition and has significant religious connotations.
In the Hebrew Bible, Zion refers to the hill upon which the city of Jerusalem is built. It is considered a sacred place and is often used as a metaphor for the city itself, the land of Israel, and even the entire Jewish nation. The name Tsion, therefore, carries a strong symbolic meaning of holiness, strength, and unity.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Tsion can be found in the Book of Psalms, where it is mentioned numerous times. For example, Psalm 48:2 states, "Beautiful in elevation, the joy of the whole earth, is Mount Zion on the sides of the north, the city of the great King." This verse highlights the reverence and admiration associated with Zion, and by extension, the name Tsion.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals who bore the name Tsion. One of the most famous was Tsion Ben-Judah, a Jewish philosopher and scholar who lived in the 13th century. He was known for his influential work on Jewish ethics and his commentaries on the Talmud.
Another notable bearer of the name was Tsion Kahana, a prominent Israeli rabbi and scholar who lived in the 20th century (1905-1986). He was widely respected for his expertise in Jewish law and his contributions to the study of the Talmud.
In the realm of literature, Tsion Gershuni (1923-1995) was an Israeli poet and novelist who made significant contributions to modern Hebrew literature. His works often explored themes of identity, exile, and the human condition.
In the field of music, Tsion Golan (born 1950) is an Israeli composer and conductor who has gained international recognition for his compositions, which blend traditional Jewish melodies with contemporary styles.
Finally, Tsion Ben-David (born 1995) is a contemporary Israeli basketball player who has represented his country in international competitions and played professionally in various leagues around the world.
These are just a few examples of individuals who have carried the name Tsion throughout history, each contributing to their respective fields and embodying the rich cultural and religious significance of this ancient name.
People
Tsion + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Tsion as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with T
Other first names starting with T with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Tsion: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Tsion?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 382 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Tsion going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 897,263 US residents.
Is Tsion a common name?
We classify Tsion as "Very Rare". It ranks above 81.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 386 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Tsion most popular?
The single biggest year for Tsion was 2019, when 21 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Tsion is about 14 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Tsion in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 933 people with the name Tsion, or 0.31 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #13,076 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Tsion in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Tsion?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Tsion leans strongly female. 873 people counted with this name were female (93.4%), compared with 62 male bearers (6.6%). The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Tsion?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Tsion is Black at 94.4%. The next largest groups are White (3.3%) and Two or More Races (1.4%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Tsion most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Tsion in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.4% (881 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Tsion in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Tsion a female name?
Yes, 90.4% of people registered as Tsion in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Tsion still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Tsion in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Tsion can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
How many people are called Tsion?
You can see how many people share the name Tsion on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.