Tya
A feminine name of Hawaiian origin representing "child".
Name Census estimates that about 761 living Americans carry the first name Tya. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Tya today is around 30 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Tya births was 1999 (41 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Tya. 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 Tya with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
761
~ 1 in 450,400 Americans
Peak year
1999
41 babies that year
Average age
30
years old
2024 SSA rank
#15,059
Tracked since 1967
Census
Tya in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 707 people with the first name Tya, which placed it at #16,066 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
#16,066
National first-name rank
People counted
707
707 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
59.5% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Tya
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Tya is Black at 59.5%. The next largest groups are White (26.2%) and Two or More Races (6.4%). 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 Tya 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 Tya at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American59.5% · 421
- White26.2% · 185
- Two or more races6.4% · 45
- Hispanic or Latino4.5% · 32
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.1% · 15
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.3% · 9
Popularity
Tya: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Tya from the 1960s through to the 2020s, spanning 7 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 245 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Tya 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 Tya during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Tyas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 3 states and territories. Texas, California, Ohio recorded the most babies named Tya, while Ohio, California, Texas recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 7 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Tya
The name Tya is believed to have originated from the Latin language, with roots dating back to ancient Roman times. It is derived from the Latin word "tyia," which translates to "aunt" or "little aunt." This suggests that the name may have been initially used as an affectionate term for a young woman or a female relative.
In ancient Rome, names often held symbolic meanings or were associated with specific virtues or characteristics. While the exact origin of Tya as a given name is unclear, it is possible that it was initially bestowed upon individuals with a maternal or nurturing nature, or those who were considered to be caring and protective figures within their community.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Tya can be found in the writings of the Roman historian Tacitus, who mentioned a woman by that name in his work "Annals." However, details about this individual are scarce, and it is uncertain whether Tya was her given name or a nickname.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Tya. One such person was Tya of Macedon, a noble woman who lived in the 4th century BC and was a member of the Macedonian royal court. She is mentioned in historical records as having been a companion to Queen Eurydice, the wife of King Amyntas III.
Another notable figure was Tya of Thebes, a Greek philosopher who lived in the 3rd century BC. She was a follower of the Pythagorean school of thought and is said to have authored several treatises on mathematics and geometry, although none of her works have survived to the present day.
In the medieval period, Tya was the name of a nun who lived in a convent in present-day Italy during the 12th century. She is remembered for her contributions to the preservation of ancient manuscripts and her role in the transcription and illumination of religious texts.
During the Renaissance, Tya Ferrero was an Italian painter and artist who lived in the 15th century. She was known for her vibrant and expressive portraits, and her works were highly regarded by her contemporaries.
In more recent times, Tya Helliwell was a British actress and singer who gained popularity in the 1960s and 1970s. She appeared in several films and television shows and was also a successful recording artist, releasing several albums during her career.
While the name Tya is not as common today as it once was, it still holds a rich historical significance and serves as a testament to the diverse cultural influences that have shaped the naming traditions throughout the ages.
People
Tya + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Tya 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
Tya: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Tya?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 761 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Tya 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 450,400 US residents.
Is Tya a common name?
We classify Tya as "Very Rare". It ranks above 88.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 791 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Tya most popular?
The single biggest year for Tya was 1999, when 41 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Tya is about 30 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Tya in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 707 people with the name Tya, or 0.23 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #16,066 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 Tya 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 Tya?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Tya leans strongly female. 698 people counted with this name were female (97.8%), compared with 16 male bearers (2.2%). 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 Tya?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Tya is Black at 59.5%. The next largest groups are White (26.2%) and Two or More Races (6.4%). 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 Tya most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Tya in the 2020 Census, accounting for 59.5% (421 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 Tya in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Tya a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Tya 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 Tya still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Tya 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 Tya 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 named Tya?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.