Tien
Vietnamese unisex name meaning "heaven" or "sky".
Name Census estimates that about 1,271 living Americans carry the first name Tien. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 61.3% of registrations being male. The average person named Tien today is around 27 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Tien births was 1992 (57 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Tien. 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
- • Tien sits in rare territory as a truly gender-neutral name, given to boys and girls in near-equal numbers.
People living today
1.3K
~ 1 in 269,673 Americans
Peak year
1992
57 babies that year
Average age
27
years old
2024 SSA rank
#10,767
Tracked since 1975
Gender
Gender distribution for Tien
Tien is one of the more evenly split names in the SSA data. Of the 1,306 total registrations, 800 (61.3%) were male and 506 (38.7%) were female.
Tien as a male name
- Ranked #10,767 in 2024
- 7 male births in 2024
- Peak: 1992 (30 births)
Tien as a female name
- Ranked #17,450 in 2021
- 5 female births in 2021
- Peak: 1992 (27 births)
Popularity
Tien: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Tien from the 1970s through to the 2020s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 369 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1990s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Tien 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 Tien during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Tiens live
Origin
Meaning and history of Tien
The name Tien has its origins in the Vietnamese language and culture. It is a unisex name that can be used for both males and females. The name is believed to have derived from the word "tien," which means "before" or "ahead" in Vietnamese.
In ancient Vietnamese culture, the name Tien was often given to children born during auspicious times or to those who were considered to be ahead of their peers in terms of intelligence or skill. The name was seen as a symbol of good fortune and a desire for the child to excel in life.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Tien can be found in the "Annals of Dai Viet," a historical text that dates back to the 13th century. The text mentions a nobleman named Tien Ngo who served as a high-ranking official during the Tran Dynasty.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals who bore the name Tien. One famous example is Tien Ong Kiat (1907-1939), a prominent Singaporean businessman and philanthropist who founded the Ong Tien Group, a successful trading company in Southeast Asia.
Another notable figure is Tien Phuoc (1759-1822), a Vietnamese general and military strategist who played a crucial role in the Tay Son Rebellion against the Nguyen Dynasty in the late 18th century.
In the field of literature, Tien Chueh (1501-1587) was a renowned Chinese scholar and playwright who lived during the Ming Dynasty. He is best known for his contributions to the development of the kunqu opera form.
Tien Hung (1932-2012) was a Vietnamese-American artist and sculptor who gained recognition for his intricate wood carvings depicting scenes from Vietnamese folklore and history.
Finally, Tien Sokhoeun (born 1965) is a Cambodian politician and member of the National Assembly, serving as the leader of the Cambodian National Rescue Movement party.
These are just a few examples of notable individuals throughout history who have borne the name Tien. The name has endured across various cultures and time periods, reflecting its deep cultural significance and historical roots.
People
Tien + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Tien 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
Tien: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Tien?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,271 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Tien 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 269,673 US residents.
Is Tien a common name?
We classify Tien as "Rare". It ranks above 91.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,306 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Tien most popular?
The single biggest year for Tien was 1992, when 57 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Tien is about 27 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Tien a male name?
Yes, 61.3% of people registered as Tien 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.
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.