Teriq
Meaning "traveler or wanderer", derived from the Arabic word "tariq".
Name Census estimates that about 58 living Americans carry the first name Teriq. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Teriq today is around 26 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Teriq births was 1996 (9 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Teriq. 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 Teriq. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
58
~ 1 in 5,909,558 Americans
Peak year
1996
9 babies that year
Average age
26
years old
2009 SSA rank
#14,285
Tracked since 1993
Popularity
Teriq: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Teriq from the 1990s through to the 2000s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 33 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1990s peak, Teriq remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Teriq 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 Teriq 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 Teriq
The name Teriq is believed to have originated from the Arabic language. It is a variation of the name Tarik, which means "morning star" or "bringer of good news." The name can be traced back to the 7th century AD, during the early days of Islam.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Tarik was in reference to Tariq ibn Ziyad, a Berber Muslim commander who led the Umayyad conquering forces across the Strait of Gibraltar in 711 AD, marking the beginning of the Islamic conquest of the Iberian Peninsula. The name Teriq is believed to be a derivative of this historical figure's name.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Teriq or its variations. One example is Teriq al-Bakri, an 11th-century Arab geographer and historian from Andalusia, who authored several works on the geography and history of the Islamic world.
Another prominent figure was Teriq ibn Ali al-Muqaddasi, a 10th-century Arab geographer and traveler who is known for his detailed descriptions of the regions he visited, including Palestine, Syria, and parts of modern-day Iran and Iraq.
In the literary world, Teriq al-Shami was a 13th-century Arab poet and scholar from Damascus, renowned for his contributions to Arabic literature and his mastery of various poetic forms.
Moving forward in history, Teriq ibn Abdallah al-Jazari was a 12th-century Arab inventor and engineer best known for his groundbreaking work on the development of mechanical clocks and automata.
Lastly, Teriq al-Arabi was a 16th-century Arab navigator and explorer who accompanied the Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama on his famous voyages to India and the East Indies, serving as an interpreter and guide.
These are just a few examples of notable individuals throughout history who have borne the name Teriq or its variations, highlighting the rich cultural and historical significance of this name across various fields and time periods.
People
Teriq + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Teriq 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
Teriq: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Teriq?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 58 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Teriq 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 5,909,558 US residents.
Is Teriq a common name?
We classify Teriq as "Very Rare". It ranks above 56.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 59 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Teriq most popular?
The single biggest year for Teriq was 1996, when 9 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Teriq is about 26 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
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 Teriq in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Teriq a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Teriq 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 Teriq still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Teriq 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 Teriq 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.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people are named Teriq?
Find out how many people share the name Teriq on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.