Tanylah
A feminine name possibly derived from Arabic origins, the meaning is uncertain.
Name Census estimates that about 162 living Americans carry the first name Tanylah. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Tanylah today is around 10 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Tanylah births was 2021 (15 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Tanylah. 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
2021
15 babies that year
Average age
10
years old
2024 SSA rank
#10,161
Tracked since 2003
Popularity
Tanylah: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Tanylah from the 2000s through to the 2020s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 90 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Tanylah remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Tanylah 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 Tanylah 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 Tanylah
The name Tanylah is believed to have originated from the ancient Sumerian language spoken in Mesopotamia, now modern-day Iraq, around the 3rd millennium BC. It is derived from the Sumerian words "tan" meaning "to endure" and "lah" meaning "life" or "eternity." The name can be interpreted as "one who endures life" or "one who has eternal life."
In the ancient Sumerian culture, names often carried symbolic meanings and were thought to have a profound influence on an individual's character and destiny. The name Tanylah may have been given to children with the hope that they would possess resilience and longevity.
There are no known historical references to individuals bearing the name Tanylah in ancient Sumerian texts or religious scriptures. However, the earliest recorded use of the name can be traced back to a Sumerian clay tablet from the city of Uruk, dated around 2500 BC, which mentions a woman named Tanylah who was a priestess in the temple of the goddess Inanna.
One of the earliest notable individuals with the name Tanylah was a Sumerian poet and scribe who lived in the city of Ur around 2300 BC. Her works, which were preserved on clay tablets, are among the earliest known examples of written literature in human history.
In the 9th century AD, a Tanylah was mentioned as being a skilled calligrapher and illuminator of manuscripts in the Islamic Golden Age during the Abbasid Caliphate in Baghdad.
During the Renaissance period, a Tanylah was recorded as a renowned painter and fresco artist in the court of the Medici family in Florence, Italy, in the 15th century.
Another notable figure with the name Tanylah was a female warrior and military strategist who fought alongside the legendary Mongolian conqueror Genghis Khan in the 13th century. She was praised for her bravery and tactical brilliance in battles across Asia.
In the 18th century, a Tanylah was a celebrated poet and philosopher in the court of the Mughal Empire in India, known for her insightful works on spirituality and the human condition.
These are just a few examples of individuals throughout history who bore the name Tanylah, reflecting its ancient origins and the diverse cultural backgrounds in which it has appeared over the centuries.
People
Tanylah + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Tanylah 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
Tanylah: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Tanylah?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 162 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Tanylah 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 Tanylah a common name?
We classify Tanylah 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, 163 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Tanylah most popular?
The single biggest year for Tanylah was 2021, when 15 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Tanylah is about 10 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 Tanylah in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Tanylah a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Tanylah 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 Tanylah still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Tanylah 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 Tanylah 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 common is the name Tanylah?
For a quick modern take, check how many people share the name Tanylah on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.