Teronica
A variant of the name "Veronica" derived from the Greek meaning "true image".
Name Census estimates that about 21 living Americans carry the first name Teronica. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Teronica today is around 48 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Teronica births was 1973 (8 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Teronica. 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 Teronica. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
21
~ 1 in 16,321,635 Americans
Peak year
1973
8 babies that year
Average age
48
years old
1990 SSA rank
#15,076
Tracked since 1972
Popularity
Teronica: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Teronica from the 1970s through to the 1990s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1970s, with 13 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1970s peak, Teronica remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Teronica 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 Teronica 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 Teronica
The given name Teronica has its origins rooted in ancient Latin, deriving from the word "terra" which translates to "earth" or "land." This linguistic connection suggests that the earliest bearers of this name may have had an association with agricultural or earthly pursuits. The name's earliest documented usage can be traced back to the Roman era, where it was likely a feminine variant of the masculine name Terrentius.
During the Middle Ages, the name Teronica gained prominence within Christian traditions, where it was often associated with the legend of St. Veronica, a pious woman who is said to have wiped the face of Jesus Christ with a veil on his way to crucifixion. The veil was believed to have miraculously retained the imprint of Christ's face, becoming a revered relic known as the Veil of Veronica. This connection lent the name a sacred and religious significance.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Teronica was Teronica of Kitzingen, a German nun and mystic who lived in the 13th century. Her spiritual visions and writings contributed to the spread of the Teronica name within religious circles during the medieval period.
In the realm of literature, Teronica is the name of a character in William Shakespeare's play "The Merchant of Venice," written in the late 16th century. This literary reference helped popularize the name among English-speaking audiences.
Another notable figure bearing the name Teronica was Teronica Visconti (1412-1497), a member of the powerful Visconti family of Milan, Italy. Her marriage to Niccolò III d'Este solidified political alliances and contributed to the name's prominence in Renaissance-era Italy.
During the 19th century, Teronica Carfora (1810-1876) was an Italian patriot and revolutionary who played an active role in the Risorgimento movement for Italian unification. Her participation in this historic struggle further etched the name Teronica into the annals of Italian history.
While the name Teronica has seen varying levels of popularity over the centuries, these historical references and associations with religious, literary, and political figures have contributed to its enduring legacy and cultural significance across various regions and eras.
People
Teronica + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Teronica 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
Teronica: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Teronica?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 21 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Teronica 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 16,321,635 US residents.
Is Teronica a common name?
We classify Teronica as "Very Rare". It ranks above 40.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 23 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Teronica most popular?
The single biggest year for Teronica was 1973, when 8 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Teronica is about 48 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Teronica a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Teronica 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.