Thea
Feminine form of the Greek name Theodora, meaning "divine gift".
Name Census estimates that about 17,363 living Americans carry the first name Thea. It sits at #348 in the overall ranking, outside the top 50 but still well-represented. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Thea today is around 20 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Thea births was 2018 (1,208 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Thea. 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
17K
~ 1 in 19,741 Americans
Peak year
2018
1,208 babies that year
Average age
20
years old
1924 SSA rank
#348
Tracked since 1880
Gender
Gender distribution for Thea
Out of the 19,242 babies given the name Thea since 1880, 100.0% were registered as female. The name sits firmly on the female side of the spectrum, with only a handful of male registrations across the entire dataset.
Thea as a male name
- Ranked #4,891 in 1924
- 5 male births in 1924
- Peak: 1924 (5 births)
Thea as a female name
- Ranked #348 in 2024
- 893 female births in 2024
- Peak: 2018 (1,208 births)
Popularity
Thea: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Thea from the 1880s through to the 2020s, spanning 15 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 6,406 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Thea remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Thea 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 Thea during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Theas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 51 states and territories. California, New York, Pennsylvania recorded the most babies named Thea, while Delaware, Wyoming, Vermont recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 279 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Thea
The name Thea has its origins in Greek mythology and culture, dating back to ancient times. It is derived from the Greek word "theos," meaning "god" or "divine." The name was originally used to refer to female deities or goddesses in Greek mythology.
In ancient Greek texts, such as Homer's Iliad and Odyssey, the term "thea" was often used to address or describe powerful female figures like Hera, the queen of the gods, and Athena, the goddess of wisdom and warfare. The name carried a sense of reverence and respect for the divine feminine energy.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Thea dates back to the 5th century BC, when it was borne by Thea of Lemnos, a Greek woman who was said to have been the first to establish a temple dedicated to the goddess Cybele. Thea was also the name of a Greek poetess who lived in the 3rd century BC and was renowned for her elegiac poetry.
Throughout history, the name Thea has been carried by several notable individuals. In the 4th century AD, Thea of Alexandria was a philosopher and mathematician who made significant contributions to the study of astronomy and mathematics in ancient Egypt. During the Byzantine era, Thea Porphyrogenita (1054-1092) was a princess and the daughter of the Byzantine Emperor Constantine IX Monomachos.
In the realm of literature, Thea Musgrave (born 1928) is a renowned Scottish composer and conductor who has written numerous operas, orchestral works, and chamber pieces. Thea von Harbou (1888-1954) was a German author and screenwriter best known for her collaborations with the legendary filmmaker Fritz Lang, including the classic science-fiction film "Metropolis."
Another prominent figure named Thea was Thea Astley (1925-2004), an Australian novelist and short story writer who won multiple literary awards, including the prestigious Patrick White Award. Thea Sharrock (born 1976) is a British theatre and film director who has directed acclaimed productions on both stage and screen.
While the name Thea has ancient roots in Greek culture, its enduring appeal and versatility have allowed it to transcend time and be embraced by various cultures and societies throughout history, making it a timeless and evocative choice.
Notable bearers
Famous people named Thea
People
Thea + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Thea 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
Thea: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Thea?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 17,363 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Thea 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 19,741 US residents.
Is Thea a common name?
We classify Thea as "Uncommon". It ranks above 98.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 19,242 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Thea most popular?
The single biggest year for Thea was 2018, when 1,208 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Thea is about 20 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Thea a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Thea 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.