Terrence
Feminine
Terrence is given to boys far more often — 72,412 boys against 527 girls since 1880. See Terrence as a boy name
Terrence is the English form of Terentius, the Roman family name of the playwright Terence. It is two firm syllables with an easy short form, Terry. Its best-known modern bearer is the filmmaker Terrence Malick, whose The Tree of Life won the Palme d'Or at Cannes.
How old is the name Terrence?
Terrence first appears in US birth records in 1943 — 82 years ago. The typical Terrence alive today was born around 1971, making them about 54 years old. About 500 people named Terrence are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Terrence most popular?
Terrence peaked in 1949, reaching #2726 nationally. See the whole 1949 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From Terentius (Roman family name) to Terrence
The story of Terrence
Terentius was the name of a Roman clan, and the playwright Publius Terentius Afer, who came to Rome from North Africa and wrote six comedies in the second century BC, carried it into the reading of every later century. English made it Terence, and Terrence, with a second r, grew up beside it. Terrence Malick studied philosophy at Harvard and Oxford before making Badlands and Days of Heaven, and his The Tree of Life won the Palme d'Or at Cannes in 2011.
Meaning
from the Roman family name Terentius
The descent from Terentius is clear. What Terentius itself meant is not established; the proposals that circulate are guesses, and no Roman source settles them.
How the name formed
- TerentiusRoman family name
- TerenceEnglish
- Terrence
Related forms: Terentius · Terenzio · Terencio · Térence
Pronouncing Terrence
TER-ens
Two syllables, stress on the first. Terence and Terrance are said the same way.
Nicknames for Terrence
Limited
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1943
- Most girls named
- 197821 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #2726reached in 1949
- Change vs 1991
- −12.5%7 in 1992, from 8
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Terrence in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Terentius in Latin — related form
- Terenzio in Italian — related form
- Terencio in Spanish — related form
- Térence in French — related form
Terrences among us
people named Terrence are estimated to be alive in the US today
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
Questions parents actually ask
Fashion outlook
Terrence sits outside the current charts, and that is its own kind of answer: naming cycles can only date the names they carried up. A name this rare has no decade stamped on it — it cannot go out of fashion, because it was never in.
Based on 146 years of naming cycles. How we read them
The trade-off
- A classical name with a clear line back to Rome.
- Terry, its short form, is already familiar as a name of its own.
- Known across generations without being common among children today.
- Terrence, Terence and Terrance are all in use, so the name will be spelled out and sometimes misspelled.
- Terry is also a girls' name, which some families like and others do not.
- A very few girls are recorded with this spelling; for them it will be read as a boy's name on most forms.
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What they receive
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Terrence
Feminine
Frequently asked
- How many Terrences are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 500 people named Terrence are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Terrence in 2025?
- Terrence is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 girl names.
- Will my child share the name Terrence with classmates?
- Terrence will almost certainly be the only one in school.
More T names
The most-given names starting with T, all years combined.
Teresa#908 · Theresa#1548 · Tiffany#878 · Tammy#3645 · Taylor#403 · Tina#2778 · Tracy#2153 · Thelma#4661
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Terrence? See the current top 100.
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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