Tavin
Of Celtic origin, meaning "twin" or "second son."
Name Census estimates that about 1,864 living Americans carry the first name Tavin. It is a predominantly male name (98.8% of registrations). The average person named Tavin today is around 19 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Tavin births was 2009 (153 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Tavin. 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
1.9K
~ 1 in 183,881 Americans
Peak year
2009
153 babies that year
Average age
19
years old
2024 SSA rank
#5,403
Tracked since 1981
Census
Tavin in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 1,672 people with the first name Tavin, which placed it at #8,631 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
#8,631
National first-name rank
People counted
1.7K
1,672 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.6
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
63.4% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Tavin
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Tavin is White at 63.4%. The next largest groups are Black (15.4%) and Two or More Races (9.2%). 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 Tavin 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 Tavin at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White63.4% · 1,060
- Black or African American15.4% · 258
- Two or more races9.2% · 154
- Hispanic or Latino6.6% · 111
- Asian and Pacific Islander3.6% · 61
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.7% · 28
Gender
Gender distribution for Tavin
Tavin leans heavily male at 98.8% of total registrations, but 23 girls have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Tavin as a male name
- Ranked #5,403 in 2024
- 18 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2009 (153 births)
Tavin as a female name
- Ranked #13,344 in 2010
- 8 female births in 2010
- Peak: 2010 (8 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Tavin leans strongly male. 1,596 people counted with this name were male (94.9%), compared with 85 female bearers (5.1%).
Popularity
Tavin: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Tavin from the 1980s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 745 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
Tavin 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 Tavin during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Tavins live
The SSA's state-level files cover 26 states and territories. California, Utah, Texas recorded the most babies named Tavin, while Virginia, North Carolina, Montana recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 21 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Tavin
The given name Tavin is believed to have originated from the Celtic languages, specifically deriving from the Gaelic word "taibhsean," which means "vision" or "apparition." This name is thought to have first emerged in Ireland and Scotland during the medieval period, around the 11th or 12th century.
Tavin was initially a surname or clan name used by various Scottish and Irish families. Over time, it gradually transitioned into being used as a masculine given name. The name's association with visions and apparitions may have held spiritual or mystical connotations for those who bore it.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Tavin can be found in the Annals of the Four Masters, a chronicle of medieval Irish history compiled in the 17th century. The annals mention a figure named Tavin O'Conor, who was a prominent chieftain in the 14th century.
In the 16th century, a Scottish nobleman named Tavin Douglas was known for his military service and loyalty to Mary, Queen of Scots. He played a significant role in the Scottish Reformation and the religious conflicts of that era.
During the 18th century, a Welsh poet and writer named Tavin Jones gained recognition for his works in the Welsh language. His poetry often explored themes of nature and the rural landscapes of Wales.
Another notable figure was Tavin Williamson, an English explorer and naturalist who lived in the 19th century. He is renowned for his expeditions to the South Pacific and his contributions to the study of botany and island ecosystems.
In more recent times, Tavin Purevdorj was a Mongolian wrestler who competed in the heavyweight division and won a silver medal at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City. His achievement brought pride and recognition to his home country.
While the name Tavin has its origins in the Celtic cultures of the British Isles, it has since spread to various parts of the world and been adopted by people of different backgrounds and nationalities. However, its rich historical roots and connection to visions and the mystical realm remain an intriguing aspect of this unique and evocative name.
People
Tavin + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Tavin 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
Tavin: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Tavin?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,864 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Tavin 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 183,881 US residents.
Is Tavin a common name?
We classify Tavin as "Rare". It ranks above 93.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,888 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Tavin most popular?
The single biggest year for Tavin was 2009, when 153 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Tavin is about 19 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Tavin in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 1,672 people with the name Tavin, or 0.55 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #8,631 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 Tavin 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 Tavin?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Tavin leans strongly male. 1,596 people counted with this name were male (94.9%), compared with 85 female bearers (5.1%). 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 Tavin?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Tavin is White at 63.4%. The next largest groups are Black (15.4%) and Two or More Races (9.2%). 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 Tavin most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Tavin in the 2020 Census, accounting for 63.4% (1,060 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 Tavin in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Tavin a male name?
Yes, 98.8% of people registered as Tavin 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 Tavin still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Tavin 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 Tavin 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 share the name Tavin?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.