Tracy first name popularity, history and meaning

Find out how popular the first name Tracy has been for the last 50 years (from 1974 to 2023) and learn more about the meaning and history.

Meaning of Tracy

An English feminine diminutive form of Theresa, meaning "harvester".

Popularity of Tracy by gender

Based on the last 50 years of data, Tracy is more commonly used as a female name, with approximately 86% of people named Tracy being female.

For the most recent data in 2023, there were 75 female babies and 38 male babies born with the name Tracy.

Year Male Count Female Count
2023 38 75
2022 35 75
2021 44 68
2020 52 77
2019 35 73
2018 55 79
2017 50 89
2016 53 93
2015 72 83
2014 46 129
2013 60 122
2012 74 119
2011 71 106
2010 77 126
2009 71 158
2008 77 184
2007 102 222
2006 99 195
2005 87 222
2004 108 254
2003 145 303
2002 118 283
2001 141 297
2000 148 330
1999 189 314
1998 200 346
1997 233 375
1996 227 457
1995 273 557
1994 279 635
1993 296 737
1992 302 1,001
1991 356 994
1990 364 1,266
1989 370 1,465
1988 316 1,632
1987 317 1,990
1986 342 2,424
1985 348 2,653
1984 293 3,051
1983 326 3,158
1982 359 3,282
1981 405 3,869
1980 459 4,969
1979 450 5,389
1978 526 5,629
1977 681 5,756
1976 785 6,823
1975 1,050 8,509
1974 1,494 9,285

The history of the first name Tracy

The name Tracy has its origins in the Old French form of the name Thracius, which derived from the Latin word Thrax meaning "someone from Thrace". Thrace was an ancient region in Southeast Europe, spanning parts of modern-day Greece, Bulgaria, and Turkey. The name likely originated during the time when the Roman Empire controlled this area, between the 1st and 5th centuries AD.

One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Tracy can be found in the Domesday Book, a manuscript record of landowners in England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. It lists several individuals with the surname de Tracey or Tracey, which was likely derived from the given name.

In medieval times, the name Tracy was primarily used as a surname, particularly among Norman nobility in England and France. However, it began to be used as a given name, especially for boys, in the 16th and 17th centuries.

One notable historical figure named Tracy was Sir John Tracy, an English nobleman and soldier who lived from around 1505 to 1569. He served as a Member of Parliament and was involved in the suppression of the Prayer Book Rebellion in 1549.

Another prominent individual with this name was René-Armand Félix, Seigneur de Tracy, a 17th-century French soldier and colonial administrator who served as the Governor General of New France (modern-day Canada) from 1663 to 1665.

In literature, the name Tracy appears in several works, including William Shakespeare's play "The Taming of the Shrew", where a character named Petruchio has a servant named Tracy.

During the 19th century, the name Tracy became increasingly popular as a given name for both boys and girls, particularly in the United States. One notable American named Tracy was Tracy Walworth Peck, a lawyer and politician who served as a U.S. Representative from Connecticut from 1859 to 1863.

Another famous individual named Tracy was Tracy Lord, the main character in the 1939 play "The Philadelphia Story" by Philip Barry, later adapted into a film starring Katharine Hepburn.

Data source

The first name data used on this page comes from the Social Security Administration (SSA). They've been collecting data on baby names since 1880.

The history and meaning of the name Tracy was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Tracy, please contact us.

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"Tracy first name popularity, history and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on October 31, 2024. http://namecensus.com/first-names/tracy-meaning-and-history/.

"Tracy first name popularity, history and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/first-names/tracy-meaning-and-history/. Accessed 31 October, 2024

Tracy first name popularity, history and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/first-names/tracy-meaning-and-history/.

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