Taz
A modern name derived from the lead character in the Looney Tunes franchise.
Name Census estimates that about 506 living Americans carry the first name Taz. It is a predominantly male name (98.1% of registrations). The average person named Taz today is around 24 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Taz births was 1992 (30 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Taz. 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
506
~ 1 in 677,380 Americans
Peak year
1992
30 babies that year
Average age
24
years old
2024 SSA rank
#4,846
Tracked since 1960
Gender
Gender distribution for Taz
Taz leans heavily male at 98.1% of total registrations, but 10 girls have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Taz as a male name
- Ranked #4,846 in 2024
- 21 male births in 2024
- Peak: 1993 (26 births)
Taz as a female name
- Ranked #15,384 in 1992
- 5 female births in 1992
- Peak: 1991 (5 births)
Popularity
Taz: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Taz from the 1960s through to the 2020s, spanning 7 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 192 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1990s peak, Taz remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Taz 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 Taz during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Taz' live
The SSA's state-level files cover 3 states and territories. Texas, Ohio, Washington recorded the most babies named Taz, while Washington, Ohio, Texas recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 5 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Taz
The name Taz is a relatively modern nickname derived from the popular Looney Tunes cartoon character, the Tasmanian Devil, which first appeared in 1954. The character's full name is Taz the Tasmanian Devil, with Taz being a shortened form. The name is likely inspired by the island state of Tasmania, located south of mainland Australia, where the real Tasmanian devil marsupial is found.
While the name Taz itself does not have an ancient origin or historical significance, it has gained popularity as a given name in recent decades due to the enduring appeal of the Looney Tunes franchise. Some notable individuals who have borne the name Taz include Taz Munji, a British actor born in 1980, and Taz van Rassel, a Canadian professional wrestler born in 1986.
Another individual named Taz is Antonio Inoki, a Japanese professional wrestler and politician who was born in 1943. Although his given name is Antonio, he is widely known by the ring name Taz. Similarly, Peter Senerchia, an American radio personality and former professional wrestler, has been known professionally as Taz since the 1990s.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Taz being used as a given name is Taz Ahmed, a British actor born in 1967. Although the name was likely inspired by the cartoon character, Ahmed's parents may have chosen it for its unique and memorable qualities.
While the name Taz may not have a deep historical or cultural significance, its association with a beloved cartoon character has made it a recognizable and iconic name in popular culture, particularly among fans of animation and wrestling.
People
Taz + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Taz 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
Taz: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Taz?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 506 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Taz 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 677,380 US residents.
Is Taz a common name?
We classify Taz as "Very Rare". It ranks above 84.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 520 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Taz most popular?
The single biggest year for Taz was 1992, when 30 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Taz is about 24 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Taz a male name?
Yes, 98.1% of people registered as Taz 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.
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.