Tanequa
A feminine name of uncertain origin, potentially from Native American roots.
Name Census estimates that about 162 living Americans carry the first name Tanequa. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Tanequa today is around 38 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Tanequa births was 1991 (23 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Tanequa. 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
162
~ 1 in 2,115,768 Americans
Peak year
1991
23 babies that year
Average age
38
years old
1995 SSA rank
#9,474
Tracked since 1976
Census
Tanequa in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 163 people with the first name Tanequa, which placed it at #43,340 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
#43,340
National first-name rank
People counted
163
163 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
92.0% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Tanequa
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Tanequa is Black at 92.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.7%) and Two or More Races (2.5%). 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 Tanequa 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 Tanequa at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American92.0% · 150
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 6
- Two or more races2.5% · 4
- White1.2% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 1
Popularity
Tanequa: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Tanequa from the 1970s through to the 1990s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 87 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Tanequa 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 Tanequa during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Tanequas live
Origin
Meaning and history of Tanequa
The name Tanequa has its origins in the Choctaw language, spoken by the Choctaw Nation, a Native American people who historically inhabited the Southeastern United States. The Choctaw language is a member of the Muskogean language family.
The name Tanequa is believed to be derived from the Choctaw word "tana," which means "to go" or "to travel." It may have been given to individuals who were known for their wandering or adventurous spirit. The spelling "Tanequa" is an anglicized version of the original Choctaw name.
While there are no known historical records of the name appearing in ancient texts or religious scriptures, it is likely that the name has been in use within the Choctaw culture for centuries, passed down through oral tradition.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Tanequa can be found in the late 19th century. Tanequa Haijo (1856-1936) was a prominent Choctaw artist, known for her intricate beadwork and basketry. She was instrumental in preserving and promoting Choctaw cultural traditions.
Another notable figure with the name Tanequa was Tanequa Diome (1912-1986), a Choctaw writer and activist. She was involved in the Native American literary renaissance of the 20th century and advocated for the preservation of Choctaw language and culture.
In the field of sports, Tanequa Jeffries (born 1980) is a former professional basketball player who played in the WNBA for the Phoenix Mercury and the Detroit Shock. She was a standout player at the University of Georgia and helped lead the team to the NCAA Women's Final Four in 1999.
Tanequa Raven Diggs (born 1976) is an American actress and singer, best known for her role as Felicia Boudreau in the television series "Empire." She has also appeared in various films and stage productions.
Tanequa Williams (born 1981) is an American entrepreneur and businesswoman. She founded and currently serves as the CEO of R.B.X. Media, a full-service production company based in Los Angeles.
People
Tanequa + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Tanequa 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
Tanequa: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Tanequa?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 162 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Tanequa 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 2,115,768 US residents.
Is Tanequa a common name?
We classify Tanequa as "Very Rare". It ranks above 71.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 171 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Tanequa most popular?
The single biggest year for Tanequa was 1991, when 23 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Tanequa is about 38 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Tanequa in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 163 people with the name Tanequa, or 0.05 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #43,340 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 Tanequa 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 Tanequa?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Tanequa appears almost entirely female. Of the 159 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 Tanequa?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Tanequa is Black at 92.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.7%) and Two or More Races (2.5%). 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 Tanequa most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Tanequa in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.0% (150 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 Tanequa in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Tanequa a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Tanequa 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 Tanequa still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Tanequa 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 Tanequa 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 Tanequa?
For a quick modern take, check how many Americans are named Tanequa on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.