Tamu
A feminine name of Japanese origin meaning "beautiful".
Name Census estimates that about 260 living Americans carry the first name Tamu. It is a predominantly female name (98.3% of registrations). The average person named Tamu today is around 52 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Tamu births was 1972 (55 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Tamu. 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
260
~ 1 in 1,318,286 Americans
Peak year
1972
55 babies that year
Average age
52
years old
1976 SSA rank
#6,395
Tracked since 1969
Gender
Gender distribution for Tamu
Tamu leans heavily female at 98.3% of total registrations, but 5 boys have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Tamu as a male name
- Ranked #6,395 in 1976
- 5 male births in 1976
- Peak: 1976 (5 births)
Tamu as a female name
- Ranked #8,981 in 1980
- 7 female births in 1980
- Peak: 1972 (55 births)
Popularity
Tamu: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Tamu from the 1960s through to the 1980s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1970s, with 276 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1970s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Tamu 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 Tamu during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Tamus live
The SSA's state-level files cover 3 states and territories. California, New York, Illinois recorded the most babies named Tamu, while Illinois, New York, California recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 18 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Tamu
The name Tamu traces its roots back to the Tamil language, which is primarily spoken in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu and the northern and eastern provinces of Sri Lanka. The name is believed to have originated during the ancient Sangam period, which spanned from the 3rd century BC to the 3rd century AD.
Tamu is derived from the Tamil word "tamizh," which means "the ancient language of the Tamil people." The name is closely associated with the rich cultural heritage and literary traditions of the Tamil civilization, one of the oldest surviving classical civilizations in the world.
Historical references to the name Tamu can be found in ancient Tamil literary works, such as the Tolkappiyam, which is considered one of the earliest works on Tamil grammar and poetics, dating back to the 3rd century BC. The name is also mentioned in various Tamil epic poems and religious scriptures, including the Silappadikaram and the Manimekalai.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Tamu is found in the 7th century AD, when a Tamil prince named Tamu Naicker ruled over the Chola kingdom, which was one of the most prominent empires in southern India during that era. Tamu Naicker was known for his patronage of the arts and his support for the Tamil language and culture.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Tamu, including:
1. Tamu Davidar (1730-1806), a Tamil scholar and poet who made significant contributions to Tamil literature during the 18th century.
2. Tamu Mudaliar (1885-1954), a prominent Indian freedom fighter and social reformer who played a crucial role in the Indian independence movement.
3. Tamu Ramasami (1804-1876), a Tamil scholar and reformist who advocated for the upliftment of the underprivileged classes in Tamil society.
4. Tamu Sivagnana Devar (1730-1819), a Tamil mystic and poet whose works are celebrated for their spiritual insights and literary excellence.
5. Tamu Venkata Rao (1855-1923), a renowned Tamil scholar and author who wrote extensively on Tamil culture, literature, and history.
The name Tamu continues to be popular among Tamil communities, carrying with it a rich cultural heritage and a deep connection to the Tamil language and traditions.
People
Tamu + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Tamu 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
Tamu: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Tamu?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 260 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Tamu 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 1,318,286 US residents.
Is Tamu a common name?
We classify Tamu as "Very Rare". It ranks above 77.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 290 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Tamu most popular?
The single biggest year for Tamu was 1972, when 55 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Tamu is about 52 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Tamu a female name?
Yes, 98.3% of people registered as Tamu 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.