Tess
Feminine
Tess is Teresa cut to one syllable, and Teresa's own meaning has never been recovered — a great name of Spanish Catholicism with an origin nobody can settle.
How old is the name Tess?
Tess first appears in US birth records in 1889 — 136 years ago. The typical Tess alive today was born around 2000, making them about 25 years old. About 14,000 people named Tess are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Tess most popular?
Tess peaked in 1992, reaching #465 nationally. Today it ranks #1777, 1,312 places below that high. See the whole 1992 chart.
Tess appears on this list:
Where it comes from
From Teresa to Tess
The story of Tess
Teresa of Ávila reformed the Carmelites and wrote the Interior Castle; Thérèse of Lisieux repeated the effect three centuries later. English clipped Teresa to Tess. Hardy's Tess of the d'Urbervilles, published in 1891, made the short form a name in its own right. It appears in the American registers and is in current use.
Meaningnot established
Not established
Through Teresa, whose origin is genuinely unrecovered. Proposals include the Greek therizo, 'to harvest', and a link to the island of Therasia. Neither is established, and the name may be pre-Greek. The earliest bearer is a fourth-century Spanish saint.
How the name formed
- Teresa
- Tess
Related forms: Tess · Tessa · Teresa
Pronouncing Tess
TESS
One syllable. Said identically in every English accent.
Nicknames for Tess
Moderate
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
- 1889
- Most girls named
- 1993524 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #465reached in 1992
- Change vs 2023
- −3.4%113 in 2025, from 117
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.
Tess in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Tess in Dutch — same name
- Tessa in English — related form
- Teresa in Spanish — related form
Strongest US states over the last decade: California, Texas, New York.
Tesss among us
people named Tess are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 14,224 born in 2025 was named Tess
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Shanda test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Tess's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Shanda climbed just as high around 1974, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Shanda's path sketches the road Tess is walking now.
Tess sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Where Tess is headed
Tess should hold steady through 2030 — the curve is flat, and flat curves are the most predictable kind.
Medium confidence — fitted on official counts through 2025.
A damped-trend projection of the official birth data — a sketch of momentum, not a promise. Every name's forecast, ranked.
Tess beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Tess in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- Teresa stands behind it with two of the most significant women in Catholic history.
- One of the major English novels of the nineteenth century carries it.
- One syllable, clean, and never mispronounced.
- The meaning is genuinely unrecovered, and honest sources say so.
- Hardy's novel is a tragedy, which some families will weigh.
- It is very short and can be swallowed by a long surname.
Nobody names a baby alone.
Put Tess to the vote.
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What they receive
Someone added a name to your list
Tess
Feminine · #1777 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Tesss are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 14,000 people named Tess are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Tess in 2025?
- Tess ranks #1777 among US girl names in 2025, with 113 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Tess?
- About 1 in every 14,224 US girls born in 2025 was named Tess — 113 in all.
- Will my child share the name Tess with classmates?
- Tess will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Tess
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Adore#1777 · Ronnie#1777 · Arizbeth#1777 · Jalayah#1777 · Katarina#1777 · Cosette#1777 · Yesly#1777 · Harlowe#1777
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Tess? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Tess and another name?
See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.
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Weighing a whole shortlist? Add the rest in the builder, or settle it with a bracket.
Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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