Taiyo
Japanese name meaning "sun" or "sun child".
Name Census estimates that about 295 living Americans carry the first name Taiyo. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Taiyo today is around 14 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Taiyo births was 2008 (16 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Taiyo. 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.
People living today
295
~ 1 in 1,161,879 Americans
Peak year
2008
16 babies that year
Average age
14
years old
2024 SSA rank
#6,403
Tracked since 1997
Popularity
Taiyo: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Taiyo 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 118 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Taiyo remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Taiyo 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 Taiyo during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Taiyos live
Origin
Meaning and history of Taiyo
The name Taiyo has its origins in Japanese culture, where it is a relatively common given name for both males and females. The name itself is derived from the Japanese words "tai" meaning "great" or "large" and "yo" meaning "sun" or "ocean." Thus, the name Taiyo can be translated to mean "great sun" or "great ocean."
One of the earliest known uses of the name Taiyo can be traced back to the 8th century CE, where it appears in several ancient Japanese texts and records, often referring to the sun or celestial bodies. The name's connection to the sun is believed to have been influenced by Japan's strong cultural and religious ties to solar deities and the worship of the sun.
In Japanese mythology, the sun goddess Amaterasu is a prominent figure, and the name Taiyo may have been used as a way to honor or pay tribute to this deity. Additionally, the name's association with the ocean could be linked to Japan's island geography and the importance of the sea in its culture and history.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Taiyo was a Japanese poet and courtier who lived during the Heian period (794-1185 CE). Known as Taiyo no Kiyomori, he was a renowned composer of waka poetry and served at the imperial court.
In the 16th century, Taiyo was the name of a renowned Japanese swordsmith who crafted some of the finest katanas of his time. His blades were highly sought after by samurai warriors and are still considered masterpieces of Japanese sword-making.
During the Edo period (1603-1868 CE), there was a prominent Japanese painter named Taiyo Okuhara, whose works depicting landscapes and scenes from everyday life were widely admired and influential in the development of Japanese art.
In more recent history, Taiyo Matsumoto is a celebrated Japanese manga artist and writer, best known for his critically acclaimed series "Ping Pong" and "Sunny." Born in 1967, Matsumoto's works have been praised for their unique art style and exploration of complex themes.
Another notable figure with the name Taiyo is Taiyo Onorato, a Swiss-born artist and photographer who has gained recognition for his collaborative works with Nico Krebs, exploring themes of landscape, technology, and the human relationship with the natural world.
While the name Taiyo may have evolved in meaning and usage over time, its connection to the sun, ocean, and Japanese culture remains a central part of its historical significance and enduring popularity as a given name.
People
Taiyo + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Taiyo 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
Taiyo: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Taiyo?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 295 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Taiyo 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 1,161,879 US residents.
Is Taiyo a common name?
We classify Taiyo as "Very Rare". It ranks above 79% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 298 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Taiyo most popular?
The single biggest year for Taiyo was 2008, when 16 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Taiyo is about 14 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Taiyo a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Taiyo in the SSA data are male. 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.
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.