Tinka
A feminine name of unknown origin, possibly a diminutive form.
Name Census estimates that about 8 living Americans carry the first name Tinka. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Tinka today is around 60 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Tinka births was 1951 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Tinka. 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 Tinka. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
8
~ 1 in 42,844,292 Americans
Peak year
1951
5 babies that year
Average age
60
years old
1970 SSA rank
#9,249
Tracked since 1951
Census
Tinka in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 142 people with the first name Tinka, which placed it at #46,696 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#46,696
National first-name rank
People counted
142
142 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.0
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
62.7% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Tinka
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Tinka is White at 62.7%. The next largest groups are Black (19.7%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (6.3%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Tinka described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Tinka at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White62.7% · 89
- Black or African American19.7% · 28
- Asian and Pacific Islander6.3% · 9
- Two or more races4.9% · 7
- Hispanic or Latino4.2% · 6
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.1% · 3
Popularity
Tinka: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Tinka from the 1950s through to the 1970s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1970s, with 5 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Tinka 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 Tinka during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Tinka
The name Tinka is believed to have its origins in the Slavic languages, particularly in the Czech and Slovak regions of Central Europe. It is thought to be a diminutive form of the name Tineta, which itself is a variation of the name Martina, derived from the Latin name Martinus.
The earliest recorded use of the name Tinka can be traced back to the 16th century in Bohemia, which is now part of the Czech Republic. At that time, it was primarily used as a nickname or pet form of longer names like Martina or Katarina.
One of the earliest known historical figures with the name Tinka was Tinka Desnická, a Bohemian noblewoman who lived in the late 16th century. She was a member of the prominent Desnice family and was known for her patronage of the arts and literature.
Another notable figure from history was Tinka Kuřátková, a Czech artist and painter who lived in the 19th century. She was known for her landscapes and portraits, and her works are displayed in various museums and galleries throughout the Czech Republic.
In the realm of literature, the name Tinka has appeared in several works, including the novel "Tinka" by Czech author Karolina Světlá, published in 1868. The book tells the story of a young woman named Tinka and her struggles in 19th-century Czech society.
Moving into the 20th century, one of the most famous individuals with the name Tinka was Tinka Kurilovič, a Slovenian writer and poet who lived from 1937 to 2014. She was known for her powerful and evocative works that explored themes of identity, feminism, and the human condition.
Another notable figure was Tinka Žerovnik, a Slovenian actress and television personality who lived from 1941 to 2015. She had a successful career spanning several decades, appearing in numerous films, TV shows, and stage productions.
While the name Tinka may not be as common today as it once was, it continues to hold a place in the cultural heritage of Central Europe, particularly in the Czech and Slovak regions, where it has its roots. The name has a rich history and has been borne by notable figures across various fields, from literature and art to nobility and entertainment.
People
Tinka + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Tinka 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
Tinka: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Tinka?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 8 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Tinka 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 42,844,292 US residents.
Is Tinka a common name?
We classify Tinka as "Very Rare". It ranks above 24.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 10 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Tinka most popular?
The single biggest year for Tinka was 1951, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Tinka is about 60 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Tinka in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 142 people with the name Tinka, or 0.05 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #46,696 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Tinka in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Tinka?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Tinka leans strongly female. 140 people counted with this name were female (97.9%), compared with 3 male bearers (2.1%). The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Tinka?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Tinka is White at 62.7%. The next largest groups are Black (19.7%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (6.3%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Tinka most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Tinka in the 2020 Census, accounting for 62.7% (89 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
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 Tinka in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Tinka a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Tinka 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.
Is Tinka still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Tinka 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 Tinka 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.
How common is the name Tinka?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans are named Tinka at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.