Taja
Of Indian origin meaning crown or princess.
Name Census estimates that about 1,840 living Americans carry the first name Taja. It is a predominantly female name (98.5% of registrations). The average person named Taja today is around 31 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Taja births was 1988 (259 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Taja. 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
1.8K
~ 1 in 186,280 Americans
Peak year
1988
259 babies that year
Average age
31
years old
2001 SSA rank
#8,222
Tracked since 1968
Gender
Gender distribution for Taja
Taja leans heavily female at 98.5% of total registrations, but 28 boys have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Taja as a male name
- Ranked #8,222 in 2001
- 8 male births in 2001
- Peak: 1997 (9 births)
Taja as a female name
- Ranked #15,019 in 2024
- 6 female births in 2024
- Peak: 1988 (259 births)
Popularity
Taja: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Taja from the 1960s through to the 2020s, spanning 7 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 692 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
Taja 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 Taja during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Tajas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 23 states and territories. California, Texas, Illinois recorded the most babies named Taja, while Missouri, Kansas, Kentucky recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 31 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Taja
The name Taja is believed to have originated from the Sanskrit language, which is one of the oldest Indo-Aryan languages of the Indian subcontinent. The name Taja is derived from the Sanskrit word 'tājas,' which means 'splendor' or 'radiance.' This suggests that the name Taja was likely given to individuals who were perceived as possessing a certain brightness or brilliance.
In ancient Hindu texts, the name Taja is mentioned as a name given to individuals born under the astrological sign of Aries, which is represented by the ram. This astrological connection further reinforces the association of the name with strength, energy, and vitality.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Taja can be found in the ancient Indian epic, the Mahabharata. The text mentions a character named Taja, who was a skilled archer and warrior in the service of the Pandava princes. This reference dates back to around the 4th century BCE.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals who bore the name Taja. One such person was Taja al-Malik, a prominent 12th-century Arab poet and philosopher from Persia. He was renowned for his works on ethics and moral philosophy, which were widely read and studied during his time.
Another historical figure with the name Taja was Taja Begum, a 16th-century Mughal princess from the Indian subcontinent. She was known for her patronage of the arts and her advocacy for women's education, which was progressive for her era.
In the 18th century, there was Taja Singh, a distinguished Sikh warrior and military leader from the Punjab region of India. He played a crucial role in defending the Sikh Empire against various invaders and is celebrated for his bravery and strategic prowess.
Moving forward in time, Taja Kramberger was a 19th-century Slovenian painter and artist who gained recognition for her portraits and landscape paintings. Her works are still admired today and can be found in various art galleries and museums across Europe.
Finally, Taja Gabrielle was a 20th-century American actress and singer who rose to fame for her roles in several Broadway musicals and Hollywood films during the 1940s and 1950s. She was known for her versatility as a performer and her captivating stage presence.
People
Taja + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Taja 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
Taja: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Taja?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,840 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Taja 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 186,280 US residents.
Is Taja a common name?
We classify Taja as "Rare". It ranks above 93.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,910 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Taja most popular?
The single biggest year for Taja was 1988, when 259 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Taja is about 31 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Taja a female name?
Yes, 98.5% of people registered as Taja 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.
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.