Thames
An English river name derived from the Celtic word "Tamas" meaning "dark" or "cloudy" water.
Name Census estimates that about 0 living Americans carry the first name Thames. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Thames today is around 0 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Thames births was 1931 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Thames. 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 Thames. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
0
~ - Americans
Peak year
1931
5 babies that year
Average age
-
1931 SSA rank
#4,271
Tracked since 1931
Popularity
Thames: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Thames 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 Thames during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1930s | 5 | 0 | 5 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Thames
The name Thames is derived from the river that flows through London, England. The river itself gets its name from the Celtic word "Tamas", which means "dark" or "cloudy". The name can be traced back to ancient Britain and the Roman era.
The earliest recorded use of the name Thames dates back to the 1st century AD, when the Roman historian Tacitus referred to the river as "Tamesis". During the Anglo-Saxon period, the name evolved into "Temes" and "Temese".
In ancient Celtic mythology, the river Thames was considered sacred and was personified as a goddess. There are references to the Thames goddess in various Celtic texts and folklore.
One of the earliest known people with the name Thames was Thames Towne, an English colonist who was born in 1616 and settled in Massachusetts Bay Colony. He was one of the founders of the town of Topsfield, Massachusetts.
Another notable bearer of the name was Thames Williamson, an English sea captain who was born in 1698. He is known for his voyages to the East Indies and his exploration of the Pacific Ocean.
In the 19th century, the name Thames gained popularity as a given name in England and the United States. One famous bearer of the name was Thames Romford, an English politician who was born in 1810 and served as a Member of Parliament for Southwark.
Another notable person with the name was Thames Williamson Ligon, an American lawyer and politician who was born in 1846. He served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from Mississippi.
In the 20th century, the name Thames was less common, but one notable bearer was Thames Williamson Williamson, an American author and historian who was born in 1901. He wrote several books on the history of South Carolina and the American South.
People
Thames + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Thames 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
Thames: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Thames?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 0 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Thames 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 - US residents.
Is Thames a common name?
We classify Thames as "Very Rare". It ranks above 2.9% 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 Thames most popular?
The single biggest year for Thames was 1931, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Thames is about 0 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 Thames in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Thames a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Thames 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 Thames still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Thames 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 Thames 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 Americans are named Thames?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.