Tereca
A feminine name of unknown origin and meaning.
Name Census estimates that about 14 living Americans carry the first name Tereca. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Tereca today is around 54 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Tereca births was 1971 (6 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Tereca. 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
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Tereca. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
14
~ 1 in 24,482,453 Americans
Peak year
1971
6 babies that year
Average age
54
years old
1980 SSA rank
#12,009
Tracked since 1956
Popularity
Tereca: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Tereca from the 1950s through to the 1980s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1970s, with 6 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Tereca 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 Tereca 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 Tereca
The name Tereca has its origins in the ancient Sumerian language, which dates back to around 3500 BC. It is believed to be derived from the Sumerian word "terekku," meaning "to sustain" or "to nourish." The name was initially associated with fertility and abundance, as the Sumerians were an agricultural society heavily dependent on the fertile lands between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers.
Tereca gained popularity in the region that is now modern-day Iraq and parts of Iran during the height of the Sumerian civilization. It was a common name among women of that era, as it symbolized the nurturing and life-giving qualities that were highly valued in their culture.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Tereca can be found in the cuneiform tablets of the ancient city of Uruk, dating back to around 2500 BC. These tablets document the names of individuals involved in various transactions and legal proceedings, providing a glimpse into the lives of the people of that time.
Throughout history, several notable figures have borne the name Tereca. One of the most renowned was Tereca of Babylon, a high priestess who lived in the 6th century BC. She was renowned for her wisdom and her contributions to the advancement of astronomy and astrology in ancient Mesopotamia.
Another prominent Tereca was a Sumerian poet and scholar who lived in the 3rd century BC. Her works, preserved on clay tablets, offer valuable insights into the literary traditions and cultural practices of the Sumerian people.
During the Parthian Empire, which ruled over much of present-day Iran from 247 BC to 224 AD, a powerful queen named Tereca reigned for nearly two decades. She was known for her strategic military campaigns and her efforts to protect the empire from external threats.
In the 9th century AD, a renowned Islamic scholar and philosopher named Tereca ibn al-Haytham made significant contributions to the fields of mathematics, physics, and optics. Her treatises on the principles of vision and light have had a lasting impact on scientific thought.
Tereca al-Andalusi was a notable poet and calligrapher who lived in the 11th century in the Iberian Peninsula, during the golden age of Muslim rule in Spain. Her works were widely celebrated for their beauty and emotional depth, and she was considered a master of the Arabic language.
While the name Tereca has its roots in ancient Sumerian culture, it has endured through the ages and has been borne by individuals from various backgrounds and eras, each leaving their mark on history in their own unique way.
People
Tereca + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Tereca 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
Tereca: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Tereca?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 14 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Tereca 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 24,482,453 US residents.
Is Tereca a common name?
We classify Tereca as "Very Rare". It ranks above 34% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 16 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Tereca most popular?
The single biggest year for Tereca was 1971, when 6 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Tereca is about 54 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Tereca a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Tereca 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.