Tareva
A feminine name derived from the Russian word meaning "given by God".
Name Census estimates that about 80 living Americans carry the first name Tareva. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Tareva today is around 40 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Tareva births was 1986 (63 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Tareva. 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 Tareva. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
80
~ 1 in 4,284,429 Americans
Peak year
1986
63 babies that year
Average age
40
years old
1987 SSA rank
#7,930
Tracked since 1985
Popularity
Tareva: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Tareva 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 Tareva during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 0 | 85 | 85 |
Geography
Where Tarevas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 3 states and territories. Florida, North Carolina, New York recorded the most babies named Tareva, while New York, North Carolina, Florida recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 7 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Tareva
The name Tareva has its origins in the ancient Sumerian language, one of the earliest known written languages in human history. It first emerged around 3500 BCE in the region known as Mesopotamia, which is now modern-day Iraq. The name is believed to be derived from the Sumerian root words "tar," meaning "to guide or lead," and "eva," which translates to "life" or "existence." Thus, the name Tareva likely signified a person who leads or guides others in life.
Records of the name's usage can be found in cuneiform inscriptions on clay tablets from the ancient Sumerian city-states of Uruk and Ur. These early occurrences suggest that Tareva was a popular name among the ruling classes and priesthood during the Sumerian civilization's peak.
One of the earliest known individuals bearing the name Tareva was a high priestess who served in the temple of the moon goddess Nanna in the city of Ur around 2500 BCE. Her name is etched into the walls of the temple, indicating her significant religious and societal role.
In the centuries that followed, the name Tareva spread across the ancient Near East, appearing in various forms and spellings. It was adopted by other Semitic cultures, such as the Akkadians and Babylonians, who had close ties with the Sumerians.
Around 1800 BCE, a prominent Babylonian scribe and scholar named Tareva is recorded as having authored several important works on astronomy and mathematics. His contributions to the development of early sciences were highly regarded in his time.
The name also appeared in the ancient Hittite civilization, centered in modern-day Turkey, around 1500 BCE. Tareva was the name of a highly respected military commander who led the Hittite armies to several victories against their rivals.
In the 7th century BCE, a renowned Greek philosopher from the city of Miletus, named Tareva, is credited with being one of the first thinkers to propose a non-mythological explanation for the origin of the universe. His theories laid the foundation for the later development of scientific thought in ancient Greece.
During the medieval period, Tareva was a name used among various Persian and Arabic cultures. One notable figure was Tareva al-Isfahani, a 10th-century Persian poet and scholar who was highly regarded for her contributions to literature and philosophy.
People
Tareva + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Tareva 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
Tareva: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Tareva?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 80 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Tareva 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 4,284,429 US residents.
Is Tareva a common name?
We classify Tareva as "Very Rare". It ranks above 61.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 85 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Tareva most popular?
The single biggest year for Tareva was 1986, when 63 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Tareva is about 40 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 Tareva in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Tareva a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Tareva 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 Tareva still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Tareva 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 Tareva 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 are called Tareva?
You can see how many people share the name Tareva on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.