Towanda
A feminine Native American name from the Choctaw language meaning "town rangers".
Name Census estimates that about 1,856 living Americans carry the first name Towanda. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Towanda today is around 55 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Towanda births was 1971 (131 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Towanda. 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
1.9K
~ 1 in 184,674 Americans
Peak year
1971
131 babies that year
Average age
55
years old
1993 SSA rank
#15,653
Tracked since 1948
Popularity
Towanda: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Towanda from the 1940s through to the 1990s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1970s, with 976 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
Towanda 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 Towanda during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Towandas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 16 states and territories. Maryland, Pennsylvania, North Carolina recorded the most babies named Towanda, while Missouri, Tennessee, Michigan recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 77 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Towanda
The name Towanda is believed to have originated from the Iroquoian languages spoken by various Native American tribes in parts of what is now the northeastern United States and parts of Canada. Specifically, it is thought to be derived from the Cayuga and Seneca words meaning "the waters that are never still" or "the stream that flows among the hills."
In the 17th century, the name was recorded as being used by the Cayuga and Seneca tribes who inhabited areas around present-day New York state. It was likely used as a descriptive name for a person or place near a constantly flowing stream or river.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Towanda is from the Cayuga village of the same name, located in what is now Bradford County, Pennsylvania. This village was established in the late 17th century along the banks of the Towanda Creek, which flows into the Susquehanna River.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals named Towanda. In the late 18th century, Towanda was the name of a Seneca leader who played a role in negotiating treaties with the United States government during the Revolutionary War era.
Another prominent figure was Towanda Tilly, a Cherokee woman born in 1861 who was a noted basket weaver and cultural preservationist. She helped keep traditional Cherokee basket weaving techniques alive and passed down her knowledge to future generations.
In the early 20th century, Towanda Bradshaw was a Choctaw artist and potter known for her intricate pottery designs. She was born in 1886 and her works are now featured in several museum collections across the United States.
During the mid-20th century, Towanda Caulker was a Liberian activist who fought for women's rights and education. She founded several schools and organizations aimed at empowering women in her country and was born in 1914.
Another notable figure named Towanda was Dr. Towanda Harris, an African American physician and civil rights activist born in 1925. She was instrumental in desegregating hospitals and medical facilities in her home state of Arkansas during the 1950s and 1960s.
People
Towanda + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Towanda 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
Towanda: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Towanda?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,856 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Towanda 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 184,674 US residents.
Is Towanda a common name?
We classify Towanda as "Rare". It ranks above 93.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 2,140 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Towanda most popular?
The single biggest year for Towanda was 1971, when 131 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Towanda is about 55 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Towanda a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Towanda 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.