Tamma
A feminine name of Indian origin representing a pure, gentle maiden.
Name Census estimates that about 176 living Americans carry the first name Tamma. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Tamma today is around 61 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Tamma births was 1967 (17 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Tamma. 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
176
~ 1 in 1,947,468 Americans
Peak year
1967
17 babies that year
Average age
61
years old
1981 SSA rank
#11,981
Tracked since 1955
Census
Tamma in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 257 people with the first name Tamma, which placed it at #32,623 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
#32,623
National first-name rank
People counted
257
257 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
72.0% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Tamma
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Tamma is White at 72.0%. The next largest groups are Black (19.1%) and Two or More Races (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 Tamma 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 Tamma at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White72.0% · 185
- Black or African American19.1% · 49
- Two or more races3.9% · 10
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.7% · 7
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.6% · 4
- Hispanic or Latino0.8% · 2
Popularity
Tamma: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Tamma from the 1950s through to the 1980s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1960s, with 135 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
Tamma 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 Tamma 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 Tamma
The given name Tamma is believed to have its origins in Sanskrit, an ancient Indo-Aryan language that dates back to the 2nd millennium BCE. It is derived from the Sanskrit word "tamas," which means darkness or ignorance. In Hindu mythology, Tamas is one of the three gunas or fundamental qualities of nature, representing inertia, ignorance, and materialistic tendencies.
The name Tamma gained popularity in various regions of the Indian subcontinent, particularly among Hindu communities. It was often bestowed upon children with the intention of helping them overcome the influence of Tamas and embrace the qualities of wisdom, enlightenment, and spiritual growth.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Tamma can be found in ancient Hindu scriptures, such as the Bhagavad Gita, where it is mentioned in the context of the three gunas. However, its use as a personal name is not widely documented in these texts.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Tamma. One of the earliest known figures was Tamma Bhatta (c. 10th century CE), a Hindu philosopher and logician from ancient India. He is renowned for his work on the principles of reasoning and logic, particularly his commentary on the Tarka-Sastra, a treatise on logic.
Another prominent figure was Tamma Naidoo (1876-1933), a South African activist and journalist who played a significant role in the struggle against racial segregation and discrimination during the early 20th century. He founded the Tamil Mercantile Union and worked tirelessly to promote the rights of Indian South Africans.
In the realm of literature, Tamma Kak (1901-1977) was a renowned Kashmiri poet and writer who made significant contributions to the Kashmiri language and culture. Her works, including poetry collections and short stories, explored themes of love, nature, and the struggles of the Kashmiri people.
Tamma Murti (1931-2019) was an Indian classical dancer and choreographer who dedicated her life to preserving and promoting the Kuchipudi dance form. She received numerous accolades, including the prestigious Padma Shri and Padma Bhushan awards, for her contributions to the arts.
Tamma Schalk (born 1969) is a contemporary Swedish artist and illustrator known for her intricate and whimsical drawings inspired by nature, folklore, and mythology. Her works have been exhibited in galleries and museums around the world, captivating audiences with their intricate details and imaginative narratives.
People
Tamma + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Tamma 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
Tamma: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Tamma?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 176 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Tamma 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 1,947,468 US residents.
Is Tamma a common name?
We classify Tamma as "Very Rare". It ranks above 72.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 215 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Tamma most popular?
The single biggest year for Tamma was 1967, when 17 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Tamma is about 61 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Tamma in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 257 people with the name Tamma, or 0.09 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #32,623 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 Tamma 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 Tamma?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Tamma appears almost entirely female. Of the 258 people counted with this name, 100.0% 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 Tamma?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Tamma is White at 72.0%. The next largest groups are Black (19.1%) and Two or More Races (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 Tamma most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Tamma in the 2020 Census, accounting for 72.0% (185 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 Tamma in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Tamma a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Tamma 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 Tamma still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Tamma 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 Tamma 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 Tamma?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.