Tisa
A feminine name originating from Sanskrit meaning "sharp" or "pointed".
Name Census estimates that about 1,272 living Americans carry the first name Tisa. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Tisa today is around 51 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Tisa births was 1970 (144 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Tisa. 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
1.3K
~ 1 in 269,461 Americans
Peak year
1970
144 babies that year
Average age
51
years old
2021 SSA rank
#17,458
Tracked since 1948
Popularity
Tisa: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Tisa from the 1940s through to the 2020s, spanning 9 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1970s, with 631 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1970s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Tisa 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 Tisa during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Tisas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 16 states and territories. California, New York, Illinois recorded the most babies named Tisa, while Texas, Tennessee, Louisiana recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 20 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Tisa
The name Tisa has its origins in the Sanskrit language, which was the ancient language of the Indian subcontinent. It is believed to have emerged during the Vedic period, which spanned from approximately 1500 BCE to 500 BCE. The name Tisa is derived from the Sanskrit word "Tishya," which means "bright" or "luminous."
One of the earliest known references to the name Tisa can be found in the Hindu epic, the Mahabharata. In this ancient text, Tisa is mentioned as the name of a warrior who fought alongside the Pandavas in the great battle of Kurukshetra.
Throughout history, the name Tisa has been borne by several notable individuals. One of the earliest recorded examples is Tisa, a Greek philosopher who lived in the 5th century BCE and was a student of the renowned philosopher Pythagoras.
In the realm of art and literature, Tisa was the name of a 12th-century Italian poet and scholar. She is known for her contributions to the literary movement of the Italian Renaissance.
Another notable figure with the name Tisa was a 14th-century Tibetan Buddhist monk and scholar. He played a significant role in the preservation and dissemination of Buddhist teachings in the Himalayan region.
In more recent history, Tisa was the name of a Bulgarian revolutionary who fought for the liberation of Bulgaria from Ottoman rule in the late 19th century. She is celebrated as a national heroine in Bulgaria.
Lastly, Tisa was the name of an influential Peruvian artist and sculptor who lived in the early 20th century. Her works are widely recognized for their unique blend of indigenous Peruvian and modern European influences.
Despite its ancient origins, the name Tisa has endured throughout the centuries and has been embraced by various cultures and societies around the world, each adding their own unique interpretations and associations to its meaning.
People
Tisa + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Tisa 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
Tisa: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Tisa?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,272 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Tisa 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 269,461 US residents.
Is Tisa a common name?
We classify Tisa 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, 1,447 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Tisa most popular?
The single biggest year for Tisa was 1970, when 144 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Tisa is about 51 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Tisa a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Tisa 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.