Tajai
An invented name with no definite meaning or origin.
Name Census estimates that about 310 living Americans carry the first name Tajai. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 53.6% of registrations being male. The average person named Tajai today is around 26 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Tajai births was 1994 (34 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Tajai. 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
310
~ 1 in 1,105,659 Americans
Peak year
1994
34 babies that year
Average age
26
years old
2019 SSA rank
#13,891
Tracked since 1989
Gender
Gender distribution for Tajai
Tajai is one of the more evenly split names in the SSA data. Of the 317 total registrations, 170 (53.6%) were male and 147 (46.4%) were female.
Tajai as a male name
- Ranked #13,891 in 2019
- 5 male births in 2019
- Peak: 1996 (21 births)
Tajai as a female name
- Ranked #17,400 in 2007
- 6 female births in 2007
- Peak: 1994 (16 births)
Popularity
Tajai: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Tajai from the 1980s through to the 2010s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 173 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
Tajai 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 Tajai during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Tajai
The name Tajai is a relatively modern name with roots in both African and Asian cultures. It is believed to have originated as a variant of the Swahili name Tajiri, which translates to "rich" or "wealthy." This connection suggests that the name Tajai may have been derived from cultures in East Africa, particularly in regions such as Kenya and Tanzania, where Swahili is widely spoken.
While the exact origin of the name Tajai is uncertain, it is thought to have emerged in the 20th century as a combination of various cultural influences. One possible source is the Hindi word "Taj," which means "crown" or "royal dignity." This could link the name to the Indian subcontinent and the rich cultural heritage associated with the Mughal Empire and iconic structures like the Taj Mahal.
The earliest recorded use of the name Tajai is difficult to pinpoint, as it is a relatively modern name. However, some historical figures have carried this name or variants of it. One notable example is Tajai Massey, an American artist and sculptor born in 1917, who was known for his work in the Harlem Renaissance movement. Another individual named Tajai is Tajai Rice, an American football player who played professionally in the National Football League (NFL) in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
While not an exhaustive list, other prominent individuals who have carried the name Tajai include Tajai Punyasavat, a Thai actress and model born in 1989, and Tajai Harewood, a British actor known for his roles in television shows like "The Split" and "Grantchester." Additionally, Tajai Johnson is an American basketball player who competed professionally in various leagues in the early 2000s.
It is worth noting that while the name Tajai is not as widely recorded in historical texts or scriptures as some more ancient names, its unique blend of cultural influences and modern appeal have contributed to its growing popularity in recent decades.
People
Tajai + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Tajai 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
Tajai: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Tajai?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 310 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Tajai 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 1,105,659 US residents.
Is Tajai a common name?
We classify Tajai as "Very Rare". It ranks above 79.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 317 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Tajai most popular?
The single biggest year for Tajai was 1994, when 34 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Tajai is about 26 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Tajai a male name?
Yes, 53.6% of people registered as Tajai 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.