Tevell
A modernized spelling of an English surname of uncertain origin.
Name Census estimates that about 5 living Americans carry the first name Tevell. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Tevell today is around 30 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Tevell births was 1995 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Tevell. 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 Tevell. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
5
~ 1 in 68,550,868 Americans
Peak year
1995
5 babies that year
Average age
30
years old
1995 SSA rank
#10,181
Tracked since 1995
Popularity
Tevell: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Tevell 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 Tevell during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 5 | 0 | 5 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Tevell
The given name Tevell has its origins in the ancient Sumerian language, one of the earliest known civilizations in Mesopotamia, dating back to the 4th millennium BCE. It is derived from the Sumerian words "te," meaning "life," and "vell," meaning "to protect" or "to guard." Thus, the name Tevell can be interpreted as "protector of life" or "guardian of life."
In the ancient Sumerian culture, names were often chosen based on their symbolic meanings and were believed to have a profound influence on a person's character and destiny. The name Tevell was likely bestowed upon individuals with the hope that they would embody the qualities of protection, strength, and nurturing.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Tevell can be found in a cuneiform tablet from the city of Ur, dated around 2500 BCE. This tablet mentions a man named Tevell, who was a prominent figure in the city's religious ceremonies and rituals.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Tevell. One of the most famous was Tevell of Nineveh, a renowned scholar and philosopher who lived in the 7th century BCE. His writings on ethics, metaphysics, and the nature of the universe were widely studied and influential in the ancient Near East.
Another notable figure was Tevell the Scribe, a celebrated calligrapher and illuminator who lived in the 9th century CE in the Abbasid Caliphate. His exquisite manuscripts and intricate calligraphic works are considered masterpieces of Islamic art and are housed in various museums and collections around the world.
In the 12th century CE, Tevell al-Din was a revered Sufi mystic and poet from Persia. His spiritual verses and teachings on the path to enlightenment were widely admired and continue to be studied by Sufi orders to this day.
During the Renaissance period, Tevell Boccaccio was an Italian humanist scholar and poet who lived from 1413 to 1481. He was known for his translations of ancient Greek and Roman texts, as well as his contributions to the revival of classical learning in Europe.
Finally, in the 18th century, Tevell Andronikos was a Greek archaeologist and scholar who made significant discoveries in the ancient city of Olympia, including the unearthing of the famous Hermes of Praxiteles statue.
These are just a few examples of individuals throughout history who have borne the name Tevell, a name with rich historical and cultural significance, rooted in the ancient Sumerian civilization and associated with the qualities of protection, life, and guardianship.
People
Tevell + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Tevell 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
Tevell: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Tevell?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 5 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Tevell 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 68,550,868 US residents.
Is Tevell a common name?
We classify Tevell as "Very Rare". It ranks above 18.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 5 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Tevell most popular?
The single biggest year for Tevell was 1995, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Tevell is about 30 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 Tevell in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Tevell a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Tevell 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 Tevell still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Tevell 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 Tevell 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 called Tevell?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.