Tahirah
Pure, immaculate, from the Arabic language.
Name Census estimates that about 887 living Americans carry the first name Tahirah. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Tahirah today is around 31 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Tahirah births was 1982 (32 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Tahirah. 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 Tahirah with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
887
~ 1 in 386,420 Americans
Peak year
1982
32 babies that year
Average age
31
years old
2023 SSA rank
#17,340
Tracked since 1971
Census
Tahirah in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 799 people with the first name Tahirah, which placed it at #14,674 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
#14,674
National first-name rank
People counted
799
799 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.3
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
82.0% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Tahirah
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Tahirah is Black at 82.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (6.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (3.9%). 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 Tahirah 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 Tahirah at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American82.0% · 655
- Two or more races6.4% · 51
- Asian and Pacific Islander3.9% · 31
- White3.6% · 29
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 29
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 4
Popularity
Tahirah: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Tahirah from the 1970s through to the 2020s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 245 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1990s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Tahirah 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 Tahirah during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Tahirahs live
The SSA's state-level files cover 5 states and territories. New York, Pennsylvania, California recorded the most babies named Tahirah, while Florida, New Jersey, California recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 28 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Tahirah
The name Tahirah is derived from the Arabic language and has its roots in the Islamic faith. It is a feminine name that means "pure" or "virtuous." The name can be traced back to the 7th century when Islam emerged in the Arabian Peninsula.
In Islamic tradition, Tahirah is one of the names attributed to Fatimah, the daughter of the Prophet Muhammad. Fatimah, who lived from 605 to 632 CE, is revered as one of the most important figures in the religion and is considered a role model for Muslim women.
The earliest recorded use of the name Tahirah can be found in various Islamic texts and historical records from the medieval period. One notable example is Tahirah Qadri, a 12th-century Sufi saint and poet from Iran who wrote extensively on spiritual themes.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals who have borne the name Tahirah. One such figure is Tahirah Shamsuddin (1768-1825), an Indian princess and poet from the Mughal Empire. Her poetry, written in Persian, explored themes of love, spirituality, and the human condition.
Another notable Tahirah was Tahirah Qurratulain Hyder (1928-1988), a renowned Indian novelist and academic who wrote in Urdu and English. She is celebrated for her groundbreaking works that blended elements of Eastern and Western literature, including the novel "River of Fire."
In the 19th century, Tahirah Pardeh (1809-1868) was a prominent Iranian woman who played a significant role in the Baha'i Faith. She was one of the first women to embrace the teachings of the Baha'i prophet, the Bab, and is remembered for her courage and devotion.
Tahirah Noor (1950-2003) was a Pakistani poet and writer who gained recognition for her powerful works that explored themes of love, spirituality, and social justice. Her poetry collections, such as "Shaddows of Madness," received critical acclaim and reflected her unique voice.
The name Tahirah has a rich history and cultural significance, particularly in the Islamic world and regions influenced by Arabic and Persian cultures. Its meaning of purity and virtue has resonated through the centuries, making it a popular choice for parents seeking a name with deep spiritual and historical roots.
People
Tahirah + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Tahirah 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
Tahirah: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Tahirah?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 887 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Tahirah 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 386,420 US residents.
Is Tahirah a common name?
We classify Tahirah as "Very Rare". It ranks above 89.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 925 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Tahirah most popular?
The single biggest year for Tahirah was 1982, when 32 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Tahirah is about 31 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Tahirah in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 799 people with the name Tahirah, or 0.26 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #14,674 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 Tahirah 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 Tahirah?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Tahirah appears almost entirely female. Of the 795 people counted with this name, 99.2% were female and only a very small share were male. 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 Tahirah?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Tahirah is Black at 82.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (6.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (3.9%). 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 Tahirah most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Tahirah in the 2020 Census, accounting for 82.0% (655 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 Tahirah in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Tahirah a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Tahirah 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 Tahirah still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Tahirah 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 Tahirah 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 common is the name Tahirah?
For a quick modern take, check how many people share the name Tahirah on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.