Terrah
A feminine name of American origin meaning "Earth" or "World".
Name Census estimates that about 643 living Americans carry the first name Terrah. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Terrah today is around 34 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Terrah births was 1987 (33 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Terrah. 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
643
~ 1 in 533,055 Americans
Peak year
1987
33 babies that year
Average age
34
years old
2023 SSA rank
#15,000
Tracked since 1970
Popularity
Terrah: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Terrah from the 1970s through to the 2020s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1980s, with 237 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1980s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Terrah 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 Terrah during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Terrahs live
Origin
Meaning and history of Terrah
The name Terrah is believed to have its origins in the ancient Hebrew language. It is thought to be derived from the Hebrew word "eretz," which means "earth" or "land." The name may have been given to children as a symbol of connection to the land and the natural world.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Terrah can be found in the Book of Genesis in the Hebrew Bible. Here, Terrah is mentioned as the father of the biblical patriarch Abraham. This would place the name's usage around the 2nd millennium BCE in the ancient Near East.
In the Middle Ages, the name Terrah appeared sporadically in various regions of Europe, particularly among Jewish communities. One notable figure who bore the name was Terrah ben Elijah, a 12th-century Jewish scholar and philosopher from Provence, France.
During the Renaissance period, the name Terrah gained some popularity in certain parts of Europe, particularly in regions with strong Jewish cultural influences. One example is Terrah de Herrera, a 16th-century Jewish philosopher and theologian from Spain.
In the 19th century, the name Terrah was occasionally used in various English-speaking countries, though it remained relatively uncommon. One notable individual with this name was Terrah Cooley, an American educator and author born in 1822.
Another notable figure was Terrah Parravicini, an Italian-Swiss painter and artist who lived from 1890 to 1955. His works were heavily influenced by the Symbolist movement and often depicted mythological and allegorical subjects.
In more recent times, the name Terrah has remained relatively rare, though it has been used sporadically in various parts of the world. One example is Terrah Lail, an Australian-born singer and songwriter who rose to prominence in the 2000s.
People
Terrah + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Terrah 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
Terrah: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Terrah?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 643 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Terrah 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 533,055 US residents.
Is Terrah a common name?
We classify Terrah as "Very Rare". It ranks above 86.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 674 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Terrah most popular?
The single biggest year for Terrah was 1987, when 33 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Terrah is about 34 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Terrah a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Terrah 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.