Taneika
A feminine name of African origin meaning "to be merciful".
Name Census estimates that about 227 living Americans carry the first name Taneika. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Taneika today is around 42 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Taneika births was 1982 (22 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Taneika. 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
227
~ 1 in 1,509,931 Americans
Peak year
1982
22 babies that year
Average age
42
years old
1996 SSA rank
#13,330
Tracked since 1973
Census
Taneika in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 229 people with the first name Taneika, which placed it at #35,223 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
#35,223
National first-name rank
People counted
229
229 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
90.4% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Taneika
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Taneika is Black at 90.4%. The next largest groups are White (3.1%) and Two or More Races (3.1%). 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 Taneika 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 Taneika at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American90.4% · 207
- White3.1% · 7
- Two or more races3.1% · 7
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.2% · 5
- Hispanic or Latino0.9% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 1
Popularity
Taneika: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Taneika from the 1970s through to the 1990s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1980s, with 145 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1980s peak, Taneika remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Taneika 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 Taneika during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Taneikas live
Origin
Meaning and history of Taneika
Taneika is a feminine given name of uncertain origin, with roots potentially tracing back to various cultures and languages around the world. One theory suggests that the name may have derived from the Swahili word "tanika," which means "to be clean" or "to be pure." This connection could align with the name's association with virtues of purity and cleanliness.
Another possible origin lies in the Native American Sioux language, where "taneika" or similar variations may have been used as a name with meanings related to nature, such as "flower" or "blossom." The name's potential link to indigenous cultures adds a layer of richness and diversity to its history.
Historically, the name Taneika does not appear to have been widely documented in ancient texts or religious scriptures. However, records show that it gained popularity in certain regions, particularly in parts of Africa and among African-American communities in the United States.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Taneika can be traced back to the late 19th century. Taneika Williams, born in 1879 in South Carolina, was a notable figure in the African-American community, known for her advocacy for education and civil rights.
Among other notable individuals with the name Taneika throughout history are Taneika Gunn (1902-1988), a renowned artist from Jamaica whose vibrant paintings captured the essence of Caribbean life, and Taneika Okara (1924-2003), a Nigerian poet and playwright whose works explored themes of identity and social justice.
In the field of sports, Taneika Bourke (born 1976) is a former Australian basketball player who represented her country in multiple international competitions, including the Olympic Games. Taneika Lipscomb (born 1989) is an American sprinter and hurdler, known for her impressive performances in various track and field events.
While the name Taneika may have multiple cultural roots and interpretations, its enduring use throughout history reflects a sense of beauty, grace, and resilience embodied by those who have carried this name.
People
Taneika + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Taneika 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
Taneika: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Taneika?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 227 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Taneika 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 1,509,931 US residents.
Is Taneika a common name?
We classify Taneika as "Very Rare". It ranks above 75.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 242 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Taneika most popular?
The single biggest year for Taneika was 1982, when 22 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Taneika is about 42 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Taneika in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 229 people with the name Taneika, or 0.08 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #35,223 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 Taneika 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 Taneika?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Taneika appears almost entirely female. Of the 221 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 Taneika?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Taneika is Black at 90.4%. The next largest groups are White (3.1%) and Two or More Races (3.1%). 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 Taneika most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Taneika in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.4% (207 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 Taneika in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Taneika a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Taneika 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 Taneika still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Taneika 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 Taneika 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 many people have Taneika as a first name?
If you just want to know how many Americans are named Taneika, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.