Tarissa
A feminine name of Greek origin meaning "bringer of light".
Name Census estimates that about 237 living Americans carry the first name Tarissa. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Tarissa today is around 33 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Tarissa births was 1992 (15 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Tarissa. 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
237
~ 1 in 1,446,221 Americans
Peak year
1992
15 babies that year
Average age
33
years old
2007 SSA rank
#20,268
Tracked since 1974
Popularity
Tarissa: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Tarissa from the 1970s through to the 2000s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 102 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1990s peak, Tarissa remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Tarissa 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 Tarissa 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 Tarissa
The name Tarissa is believed to have its roots in Ancient Greek, originating from the word "tarsós," which means "flat basket." This name likely emerged during the Classical Greek period, around the 5th century BCE, and was primarily used in regions where Greek culture flourished, such as the Greek mainland, the Aegean islands, and parts of modern-day Turkey and Egypt.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the name Tarissa can be found in the works of the ancient Greek playwright Aristophanes, who lived from circa 446 BCE to 386 BCE. In his comedic play "The Birds," he makes a reference to a character named Tarissa, although the context and significance of this character are unclear.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals who bore the name Tarissa. One of the earliest was Tarissa of Crete, a philosopher and mathematician who lived in the 3rd century BCE. She is credited with making significant contributions to the field of geometry and is believed to have been a student of the renowned mathematician Euclid.
In the 2nd century CE, there was a Roman woman named Tarissa Paulina who gained fame for her philanthropic efforts. She is mentioned in several historical records as having donated substantial sums of money to support the construction of public buildings and infrastructure projects in various cities throughout the Roman Empire.
During the Byzantine era, a notable figure named Tarissa Comnena lived in the 12th century. She was a member of the influential Comnenus dynasty and is known for her literary works, including a collection of poems and a historical account of the reign of her father, Emperor Alexios I Komnenos.
In more recent times, one of the most famous individuals named Tarissa was Tarissa Arrighetti, an Italian opera singer who lived from 1886 to 1952. She gained international acclaim for her powerful soprano voice and performed in some of the most prestigious opera houses across Europe and North America.
While the name Tarissa may have evolved and taken on different variations over time, its Greek origins and historical significance have endured. From ancient philosophers and mathematicians to Roman philanthropists and Byzantine writers, the name has been borne by notable figures throughout various eras and cultures.
People
Tarissa + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Tarissa 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
Tarissa: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Tarissa?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 237 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Tarissa 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 1,446,221 US residents.
Is Tarissa a common name?
We classify Tarissa as "Very Rare". It ranks above 76.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 247 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Tarissa most popular?
The single biggest year for Tarissa was 1992, when 15 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Tarissa is about 33 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Tarissa a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Tarissa 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.
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.