Tanyon
An English name derived from the Cornish place name meaning "valley town".
Name Census estimates that about 149 living Americans carry the first name Tanyon. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Tanyon today is around 22 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Tanyon births was 2005 (24 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Tanyon. 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
149
~ 1 in 2,300,365 Americans
Peak year
2005
24 babies that year
Average age
22
years old
2010 SSA rank
#12,038
Tracked since 1997
Census
Tanyon in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 199 people with the first name Tanyon, which placed it at #38,518 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
#38,518
National first-name rank
People counted
199
199 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
77.9% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Tanyon
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Tanyon is White at 77.9%. The next largest groups are Black (11.1%) and Two or More Races (5.5%). 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 Tanyon 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 Tanyon at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White77.9% · 155
- Black or African American11.1% · 22
- Two or more races5.5% · 11
- Hispanic or Latino4.5% · 9
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 1
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 1
Popularity
Tanyon: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Tanyon from the 1990s through to the 2010s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 117 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Tanyon 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 Tanyon during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Tanyons live
Origin
Meaning and history of Tanyon
The name Tanyon has its origins in the ancient Sumerian civilization, one of the earliest known civilizations in the world, which flourished in Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq) around 4500-1900 BCE. It is derived from the Sumerian word "tan-yo-nu," which roughly translates to "keeper of the sacred fire" or "guardian of the eternal flame."
During the Sumerian era, Tanyon was likely a title bestowed upon the high priests or priestesses responsible for maintaining the sacred flames that burned in the temples and shrines dedicated to the various Sumerian deities. These sacred fires were believed to hold immense spiritual significance and were tended to with utmost care and reverence.
One of the earliest known references to the name Tanyon can be found in the Sumerian cuneiform tablets dating back to the 3rd millennium BCE. These ancient clay tablets, which recorded various aspects of Sumerian life, including religious rituals, myths, and legends, mention the name in connection with the worship of the god Enlil, the supreme deity in the Sumerian pantheon.
Throughout the centuries, the name Tanyon has been carried by several notable individuals. One of the earliest recorded bearers of this name was Tanyon of Uruk, a revered high priest who lived in the ancient Sumerian city of Uruk during the 3rd millennium BCE. His name is etched into the walls of the iconic Ziggurat of Ur, a monumental stepped pyramid that served as a religious temple.
Another prominent figure bearing the name Tanyon was a Babylonian astronomer and mathematician who lived around the 6th century BCE. He is credited with making significant contributions to the development of ancient Babylonian astronomy and the creation of the earliest known lunar calendar.
In the realm of mythology, the name Tanyon is associated with a legendary figure from the Epic of Gilgamesh, one of the earliest known works of literary fiction. In this epic tale, Tanyon is portrayed as a wise and enigmatic character who guides the hero Gilgamesh on his quest for immortality.
During the Hellenistic period, a Greek philosopher named Tanyon of Cyrene (born around 325 BCE) gained fame for his teachings on ethics and the pursuit of happiness. His ideas and writings had a profound influence on later Stoic philosophers.
In more recent times, Tanyon Ramirez (1923-2001) was a renowned Mexican artist and muralist whose vibrant works celebrated the rich cultural heritage and traditions of his homeland.
While the name Tanyon may not be as commonly used today, its ancient roots and historical significance remain a testament to the enduring legacy of the Sumerian civilization and the reverence they held for the sacred flames that burned in their temples.
People
Tanyon + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Tanyon 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
Tanyon: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Tanyon?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 149 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Tanyon 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 2,300,365 US residents.
Is Tanyon a common name?
We classify Tanyon as "Very Rare". It ranks above 70.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 151 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Tanyon most popular?
The single biggest year for Tanyon was 2005, when 24 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Tanyon is about 22 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Tanyon in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 199 people with the name Tanyon, or 0.07 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #38,518 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 Tanyon 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 Tanyon?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Tanyon leans strongly male. 177 people counted with this name were male (89.4%), compared with 21 female bearers (10.6%). 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 Tanyon?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Tanyon is White at 77.9%. The next largest groups are Black (11.1%) and Two or More Races (5.5%). 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 Tanyon most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Tanyon in the 2020 Census, accounting for 77.9% (155 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 Tanyon in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Tanyon a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Tanyon in the SSA data are male. 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 Tanyon still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Tanyon 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 Tanyon 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 Tanyon as a first name?
For a quick modern take, check how many Americans are named Tanyon on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.