Tamera
An English feminine name possibly derived from the Arabic name "Tamr" meaning "date palm".
Name Census estimates that about 12,422 living Americans carry the first name Tamera. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Tamera today is around 49 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Tamera births was 1959 (614 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Tamera. 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
12K
~ 1 in 27,593 Americans
Peak year
1959
614 babies that year
Average age
49
years old
2024 SSA rank
#7,532
Tracked since 1940
Popularity
Tamera: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Tamera from the 1940s through to the 2020s, spanning 9 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1960s, with 5,260 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1960s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Tamera 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 Tamera during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Tameras live
The SSA's state-level files cover 44 states and territories. California, Texas, Ohio recorded the most babies named Tamera, while District of Columbia, Wyoming, Nevada recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 245 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Tamera
Tamera is a feminine given name derived from the Greek word "tamias," meaning "housekeeper" or "steward." Its origins can be traced back to ancient Greece, where it was used as a title for those responsible for managing household affairs and finances.
The earliest recorded use of the name Tamera dates back to the 5th century BCE, when it appeared in ancient Greek texts and inscriptions. It gained popularity during the Hellenistic period and was sometimes associated with the goddess Hestia, the protector of the hearth and home.
In the Middle Ages, the name Tamera spread to other parts of Europe, particularly in Italy, where it was sometimes spelled as "Tamara." During the Renaissance period, it was used by several notable figures, including Tamera Buonacorsi (1411-1494), an Italian noblewoman and patron of the arts.
The name Tamera also has a connection to the Christian tradition. In the 4th century CE, there was a Saint Tamera who was a martyr in Antioch. Her feast day is celebrated on August 26th in the Eastern Orthodox Church.
Over the centuries, several prominent individuals have borne the name Tamera. One of the earliest was Tamera of Normandy (c. 1060-1100), a countess and one of the most powerful women in medieval Europe. Another notable figure was Tamera of Bavaria (1451-1501), a German princess and duchess.
In the modern era, Tamera has been the name of several famous actresses and singers, including Tamera Mowry-Housley (born 1978), an American actress known for her role in the sitcom "Sister, Sister," and Tamera Foster (born 1973), a British singer and former member of the pop group Quintessence.
Other notable individuals named Tamera include Tamera Alexander (born 1957), an American author of historical fiction, and Tamera Green (born 1970), an American basketball player who won two Olympic gold medals with the United States women's national basketball team.
People
Tamera + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Tamera 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
Tamera: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Tamera?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 12,422 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Tamera 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 27,593 US residents.
Is Tamera a common name?
We classify Tamera as "Uncommon". It ranks above 98% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 14,263 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Tamera most popular?
The single biggest year for Tamera was 1959, when 614 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Tamera is about 49 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Tamera a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Tamera 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.