Tarry
A unisex name derived from the English word "tarry", meaning to linger or delay.
Name Census estimates that about 478 living Americans carry the first name Tarry. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 69.5% of registrations being male. The average person named Tarry today is around 63 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Tarry births was 1963 (29 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Tarry. 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
478
~ 1 in 717,059 Americans
Peak year
1963
29 babies that year
Average age
63
years old
2004 SSA rank
#9,145
Tracked since 1940
Census
Tarry in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 592 people with the first name Tarry, which placed it at #18,254 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
#18,254
National first-name rank
People counted
592
592 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
71.3% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Tarry
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Tarry is White at 71.3%. The next largest groups are Black (19.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (5.1%). 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 Tarry 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 Tarry at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White71.3% · 422
- Black or African American19.4% · 115
- Asian and Pacific Islander5.1% · 30
- Two or more races2.5% · 15
- Hispanic or Latino0.8% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 5
Gender
Gender distribution for Tarry
Tarry is one of the more evenly split names in the SSA data. Of the 619 total registrations, 430 (69.5%) were male and 189 (30.5%) were female.
Tarry as a male name
- Ranked #13,008 in 2004
- 5 male births in 2004
- Peak: 1968 (20 births)
Tarry as a female name
- Ranked #9,145 in 1976
- 6 female births in 1976
- Peak: 1964 (13 births)
2020 Census snapshot
The 2020 Census sex table shows Tarry on both sides of the split. Of the 596 people counted with this name, 394 were male (66.1%) and 202 were female (33.9%).
Popularity
Tarry: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Tarry from the 1940s through to the 2000s, spanning 7 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1960s, with 220 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1960s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Tarry 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 Tarry 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 Tarry
The given name Tarry is a relatively uncommon one, with its origins shrouded in a certain degree of mystery. Some scholars believe that it may have derived from the Old English word "tarrian," which means "to linger" or "to delay." This would suggest that the name might have been originally bestowed upon individuals who were perceived as being unhurried or leisurely in their demeanor.
Another plausible theory links the name to the Middle English word "tarrien," which carried the meaning of "to provoke" or "to irritate." If this etymology is accurate, then the name Tarry might have been given to those who were known for their ability to stir up conflict or provoke others to anger.
A third possibility is that the name originated from the French word "tartre," which refers to the tartaric acid found in wine. This could indicate that the name was somehow associated with the wine-making industry or those who worked in vineyards.
Unfortunately, there are no definitive historical references or ancient texts that shed light on the exact origins of the name Tarry. However, some of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in various historical documents and records.
One notable bearer of the name was Tarry Evert, a Dutch merchant and explorer who lived in the late 16th century. He is best known for his extensive travels throughout the East Indies and his detailed accounts of the region's geography and cultures.
Another prominent individual with the name Tarry was Sir Tarry Mallet, an English politician and landowner who lived during the 17th century. He served as a member of Parliament and was also involved in various business ventures.
In the 18th century, there was Tarry Wilkins, an American Revolutionary War soldier who fought alongside George Washington's Continental Army. He is remembered for his bravery and dedication to the cause of American independence.
Moving into the 19th century, we have Tarry Hawkins, a British author and poet who was renowned for her romantic and sentimental works. Her poems were widely published and admired during her lifetime.
Lastly, in the early 20th century, there was Tarry Emerson, an American artist and painter who was part of the Impressionist movement. His landscapes and seascapes captured the beauty of nature and were highly praised by art critics of the time.
While the name Tarry may not be as common as other given names, it has been borne by individuals from diverse backgrounds and walks of life throughout history. Despite the uncertainty surrounding its etymological roots, the name has left a lasting impact on those who have carried it over the centuries.
People
Tarry + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Tarry 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
Tarry: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Tarry?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 478 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Tarry 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 717,059 US residents.
Is Tarry a common name?
We classify Tarry as "Very Rare". It ranks above 84.1% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 619 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Tarry most popular?
The single biggest year for Tarry was 1963, when 29 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Tarry is about 63 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Tarry in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 592 people with the name Tarry, or 0.20 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #18,254 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 Tarry 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 Tarry?
The 2020 Census sex table shows Tarry on both sides of the split. Of the 596 people counted with this name, 394 were male (66.1%) and 202 were female (33.9%). 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 Tarry?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Tarry is White at 71.3%. The next largest groups are Black (19.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (5.1%). 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 Tarry most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Tarry in the 2020 Census, accounting for 71.3% (422 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 Tarry in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Tarry a male name?
Yes, 69.5% of people registered as Tarry 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 Tarry still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Tarry 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 Tarry 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 Americans are named Tarry?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.