Tangier
A masculine name of French origin meaning "port city in Morocco".
Name Census estimates that about 14 living Americans carry the first name Tangier. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Tangier today is around 47 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Tangier births was 1970 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Tangier. 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.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Tangier. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
14
~ 1 in 24,482,453 Americans
Peak year
1970
5 babies that year
Average age
47
years old
1989 SSA rank
#14,331
Tracked since 1970
Popularity
Tangier: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Tangier from the 1970s through to the 1980s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1970s, with 10 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1970s peak, Tangier remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Tangier 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 Tangier 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 Tangier
The given name Tangier is derived from the name of the Moroccan city of Tangier, which is located on the Strait of Gibraltar. The city's name comes from the ancient Greek word "Tingis," which referred to the nearby Phoenician settlement of the same name. The name Tingis itself is believed to be derived from the Amazigh (Berber) language, possibly meaning "marsh" or "lagoon."
In ancient times, Tingis (modern-day Tangier) was an important trading post and strategic location for various civilizations, including the Phoenicians, Carthaginians, Romans, and later the Vandals and Byzantines. The city's name was well-known in the ancient Mediterranean world and was mentioned in several historical texts, including the writings of Pliny the Elder and Ptolemy.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Tangier as a given name dates back to the 12th century. Tangier ibn Yusuf al-Muhari (1134-1204) was a prominent Moroccan scholar and philosopher who wrote extensively on topics such as logic, grammar, and theology. He was known for his work in preserving and transmitting the intellectual legacy of the Islamic Golden Age.
Another notable figure with the name Tangier was Tangier ibn Battuta (1304-1377), a famous Moroccan explorer and traveler. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest travelers of the pre-modern era, having journeyed across vast distances in Africa, Asia, and Europe. His travel accounts, known as the "Rihla" (Journey), provide valuable insights into the cultures and societies of the 14th century.
In the 16th century, Tangier ibn al-Mutawakkil (1520-1588) was a renowned Moroccan mathematician and astronomer. He made significant contributions to the study of astronomy and developed improved methods for calculating the positions of celestial bodies.
During the 17th century, Tangier al-Fasi (1633-1689) was a prominent Moroccan scholar and jurist. He was known for his expertise in Islamic jurisprudence and his influential legal rulings, which were widely respected throughout the region.
In more recent times, Tangier al-Maghribi (1890-1957) was a Moroccan writer and poet who played a significant role in the literary and cultural renaissance of the early 20th century. His works explored themes of nationalism, identity, and the struggle for independence from colonial rule.
While the name Tangier has its roots in the ancient Mediterranean world, it has been adopted and used as a given name across various cultures and regions, reflecting the historical significance and enduring influence of the city's name.
People
Tangier + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Tangier 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
Tangier: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Tangier?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 14 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Tangier 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 24,482,453 US residents.
Is Tangier a common name?
We classify Tangier as "Very Rare". It ranks above 34% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 15 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Tangier most popular?
The single biggest year for Tangier was 1970, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Tangier is about 47 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
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 Tangier in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Tangier a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Tangier 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 Tangier still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Tangier 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 Tangier 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.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people share the name Tangier?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.