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.