Tondalaya
A feminine given name of unknown origin and meaning.
Name Census estimates that about 165 living Americans carry the first name Tondalaya. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Tondalaya today is around 50 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Tondalaya births was 1971 (13 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Tondalaya. 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
165
~ 1 in 2,077,299 Americans
Peak year
1971
13 babies that year
Average age
50
years old
1992 SSA rank
#15,448
Tracked since 1955
Census
Tondalaya in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 204 people with the first name Tondalaya, which placed it at #37,948 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
#37,948
National first-name rank
People counted
204
204 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
86.3% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Tondalaya
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Tondalaya is Black at 86.3%. The next largest groups are White (11.3%) and Hispanic (1.5%). 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 Tondalaya 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 Tondalaya at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American86.3% · 176
- White11.3% · 23
- Hispanic or Latino1.5% · 3
- Two or more races1.0% · 2
Popularity
Tondalaya: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Tondalaya from the 1950s through to the 1990s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1970s, with 98 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
Tondalaya 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 Tondalaya 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 Tondalaya
The name Tondalaya is a relatively modern invention, likely created in the late 20th century. It does not appear to have any definitive origins or etymological roots in any particular language or culture. The name seems to be a creative combination of sounds and syllables, potentially inspired by other names or words, but without a clear historical or linguistic foundation.
Despite its lack of ancient roots, Tondalaya has gained some popularity as a given name in recent decades. Some of the earliest recorded instances of individuals bearing this name are from the late 20th century. One notable example is Tondalaya Randle, an American actress and model born in 1984, known for her roles in films such as "Stomp the Yard" and "Step Up 2: The Streets."
Another individual with the name Tondalaya is Tondalaya M. Douglass, an American author and entrepreneur born in the late 20th century. She has written several books on personal development and spiritual growth, including "From Broken to Blissful: A Journey of Healing and Self-Discovery."
While not as widely documented, there are also records of a few other individuals named Tondalaya throughout the late 20th and early 21st centuries. However, due to the relatively recent origins of the name, there is limited historical information or notable figures associated with it before the modern era.
It is worth noting that the name Tondalaya has not been found in any ancient texts, religious scriptures, or historical records from earlier periods. Its usage appears to be a contemporary phenomenon, potentially reflecting modern naming trends and preferences for unique or unconventional names.
As a relatively new name without a well-established historical or cultural background, Tondalaya has yet to accumulate a significant lineage or notable figures throughout history. However, as the name continues to be used, it may develop a more extensive record and establish its own legacy over time.
People
Tondalaya + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Tondalaya 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
Tondalaya: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Tondalaya?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 165 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Tondalaya 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 2,077,299 US residents.
Is Tondalaya a common name?
We classify Tondalaya as "Very Rare". It ranks above 71.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 184 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Tondalaya most popular?
The single biggest year for Tondalaya was 1971, when 13 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Tondalaya is about 50 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Tondalaya in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 204 people with the name Tondalaya, or 0.07 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #37,948 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 Tondalaya 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 Tondalaya?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Tondalaya appears almost entirely female. Of the 207 people counted with this name, 100.0% were female and only a very small share were male. 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 Tondalaya?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Tondalaya is Black at 86.3%. The next largest groups are White (11.3%) and Hispanic (1.5%). 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 Tondalaya most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Tondalaya in the 2020 Census, accounting for 86.3% (176 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 Tondalaya in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Tondalaya a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Tondalaya 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 Tondalaya still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Tondalaya 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 Tondalaya 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 many Americans are named Tondalaya?
You can see how many Americans are named Tondalaya on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.