Tempie
A feminine name derived from the French word "temps", meaning "time" or "season".
Name Census estimates that about 371 living Americans carry the first name Tempie. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Tempie today is around 70 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Tempie births was 1918 (39 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Tempie. 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
- • The typical person named Tempie is about 70 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Tempies were born before 1966.
People living today
371
~ 1 in 923,866 Americans
Peak year
1918
39 babies that year
Average age
70
years old
2014 SSA rank
#18,973
Tracked since 1880
Popularity
Tempie: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Tempie from the 1880s through to the 2010s, spanning 13 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1910s, with 287 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1910s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Tempie 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 Tempie during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Tempies live
The SSA's state-level files cover 6 states and territories. North Carolina, Alabama, Georgia recorded the most babies named Tempie, while Tennessee, Texas, Mississippi recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 47 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Tempie
The given name Tempie is believed to have originated from the Old English word "temp," which means "time" or "season." This name can be traced back to the early medieval period in England and parts of northern Europe.
In its earliest form, the name was likely used as a nickname or descriptive term for someone born during a particular season or time of year. It may have also been used to describe someone with a sense of timing or punctuality.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Tempie can be found in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of landowners and properties in England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. This suggests that the name was in use among the Anglo-Saxon population before the Norman Conquest.
Throughout the Middle Ages, the name Tempie remained relatively uncommon, but it did appear in various historical records and chronicles. One notable figure bearing the name was Tempie de Vere, a noblewoman and landowner who lived in England during the 13th century.
In the 16th century, a variant spelling of the name, "Tempye," appeared in the works of the English poet and playwright William Shakespeare. In his play "The Taming of the Shrew," one of the characters is referred to as "Tempye the Shrew."
During the 17th century, the name Tempie gained some popularity among the Puritan communities in New England. One prominent figure was Tempie Winthrop, the wife of John Winthrop, the first governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. She was born in 1588 and died in 1647.
In the 19th century, the name Tempie experienced a resurgence in popularity, particularly in the southern United States. One notable bearer of the name was Tempie Avery, a pioneer and educator who founded the Greensboro Female College in North Carolina. She was born in 1788 and died in 1865.
Another significant figure with the name Tempie was Tempie Herndon Durham, a prominent philanthropist and social activist from Georgia. She was born in 1845 and dedicated her life to improving education and social services in her community.
While not as common today, the name Tempie continues to be used, particularly in certain regions and cultural communities. Its unique historical roots and associations with timing, seasons, and perseverance have made it a distinctive and memorable name throughout the centuries.
People
Tempie + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Tempie 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
Tempie: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Tempie?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 371 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Tempie 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 923,866 US residents.
Is Tempie a common name?
We classify Tempie as "Very Rare". It ranks above 81.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,681 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Tempie most popular?
The single biggest year for Tempie was 1918, when 39 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Tempie is about 70 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Tempie a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Tempie 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.