Tanesia
A feminine name of uncertain origin, possibly a blend of Tanika and Tanisha.
Name Census estimates that about 268 living Americans carry the first name Tanesia. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Tanesia today is around 41 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Tanesia births was 1983 (20 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Tanesia. 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
268
~ 1 in 1,278,934 Americans
Peak year
1983
20 babies that year
Average age
41
years old
2003 SSA rank
#18,142
Tracked since 1972
Census
Tanesia in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 266 people with the first name Tanesia, which placed it at #31,950 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
#31,950
National first-name rank
People counted
266
266 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
85.3% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Tanesia
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Tanesia is Black at 85.3%. The next largest groups are White (5.3%) and Hispanic (3.8%). 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 Tanesia 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 Tanesia at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American85.3% · 227
- White5.3% · 14
- Hispanic or Latino3.8% · 10
- Two or more races3.8% · 10
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.1% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 2
Popularity
Tanesia: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Tanesia from the 1970s through to the 2000s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1980s, with 127 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1980s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Tanesia 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 Tanesia 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 Tanesia
The name Tanesia is a modern variation of the ancient Greek name Thanasia, which means "immortality" or "immortal life." It is derived from the Greek word "athanasia," which has the same meaning. The name Tanesia was likely developed as a feminized version of the male name Thanasios.
In ancient Greek mythology, Athanasia was the personification of immortality and was often depicted as a beautiful young woman. She was associated with the concept of eternal life and was revered by those seeking to transcend the mortal realm. The name Tanesia carries this symbolic meaning of longevity and endurance.
The earliest recorded use of the name Tanesia can be traced back to the late 20th century, although it is unclear exactly when and where it first emerged. It is possible that the name was inspired by the ancient Greek roots, but its modern popularity is relatively recent.
One notable individual named Tanesia was Tanesia Monique Arnold, an American model and beauty queen born in 1983. She was crowned Miss New York USA in 2006 and competed in the Miss USA pageant the same year.
Another individual with this name was Tanesia Vivian Calhoun, an American author and businesswoman born in 1975. She is known for her work in the self-help and personal development genres, and has published several books on topics such as goal-setting and personal growth.
In the field of athletics, Tanesia Monique Williams was an American sprinter born in 1983. She specialized in the 100-meter and 200-meter events and competed in several international competitions, including the World Championships and the Olympic Games.
Tanesia Adell Walker was an American musician and singer born in 1980. She was a member of the R&B group Changing Faces and co-wrote several of their hit songs in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
Finally, Tanesia Cynthia Johnson was an American politician and activist born in 1968. She served as a member of the Michigan House of Representatives from 2009 to 2019, representing the 4th district.
While the name Tanesia is a modern creation, its roots can be traced back to ancient Greek mythology and the concept of immortality. Through its use by various individuals throughout history, the name has taken on a unique identity and significance.
People
Tanesia + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Tanesia 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
Tanesia: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Tanesia?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 268 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Tanesia 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 1,278,934 US residents.
Is Tanesia a common name?
We classify Tanesia as "Very Rare". It ranks above 77.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 285 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Tanesia most popular?
The single biggest year for Tanesia was 1983, when 20 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Tanesia is about 41 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Tanesia in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 266 people with the name Tanesia, or 0.09 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #31,950 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 Tanesia 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 Tanesia?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Tanesia appears almost entirely female. Of the 269 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 Tanesia?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Tanesia is Black at 85.3%. The next largest groups are White (5.3%) and Hispanic (3.8%). 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 Tanesia most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Tanesia in the 2020 Census, accounting for 85.3% (227 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 Tanesia in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Tanesia a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Tanesia 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 Tanesia still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Tanesia 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 Tanesia 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 the name Tanesia?
See how many Americans are named Tanesia on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.