Trelen
A masculine name of Celtic origin meaning "strong as a tree".
Name Census estimates that about 8 living Americans carry the first name Trelen. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Trelen today is around 18 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Trelen births was 2008 (8 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Trelen. 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.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Trelen. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
8
~ 1 in 42,844,292 Americans
Peak year
2008
8 babies that year
Average age
18
years old
2008 SSA rank
#9,795
Tracked since 2008
Popularity
Trelen: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Trelen 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 Trelen during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 8 | 0 | 8 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Trelen
The given name Trelen is believed to have originated from the ancient Etruscan civilization, which predated the rise of the Roman Empire in the region of present-day Italy. It is thought to be derived from the Etruscan word "treleni," which roughly translates to "strong and resilient."
The Etruscans were a highly advanced society known for their artistry, architecture, and technological innovations. They had a profound influence on the development of early Roman culture and civilization. The name Trelen was likely borne by members of the Etruscan nobility or warrior class, reflecting the qualities of strength and resilience that were highly valued in their society.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Trelen can be found in an Etruscan funerary inscription dating back to the 5th century BCE. The inscription was discovered in the necropolis of Cerveteri, an ancient Etruscan city located near modern-day Rome. It commemorated a warrior named Trelen, who was believed to have fallen in battle against a rival city-state.
Throughout the centuries, several notable individuals have carried the name Trelen. One of the most prominent was Trelen Maccabeus (c. 165 BCE - 135 BCE), a Jewish military leader and high priest who led a successful rebellion against the Seleucid Empire, establishing the Hasmonean dynasty in Judea.
Another notable figure was Trelen of Antioch (c. 250 CE - 320 CE), a Christian scholar and theologian who played a significant role in shaping early Christian doctrine and theology. He is best known for his extensive writings on the nature of the Trinity and the divinity of Christ.
In the medieval period, Trelen de Montfort (1175 - 1226) was a prominent French nobleman and military leader who played a pivotal role in the Albigensian Crusade against the Cathar heretics in southern France. He was known for his bravery and military prowess on the battlefield.
During the Renaissance, Trelen Copernico (1473 - 1543) was an Italian mathematician, astronomer, and Catholic canon who is renowned for his groundbreaking work on the heliocentric model of the solar system, which placed the Sun at the center of the universe.
More recently, Trelen Mandela (1918 - 2013) was a South African anti-apartheid activist and politician who served as the President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999. He was a pivotal figure in the struggle against apartheid and is widely regarded as an icon of the global human rights movement.
People
Trelen + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Trelen 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
Trelen: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Trelen?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 8 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Trelen 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 42,844,292 US residents.
Is Trelen a common name?
We classify Trelen as "Very Rare". It ranks above 24.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 8 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Trelen most popular?
The single biggest year for Trelen was 2008, when 8 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Trelen is about 18 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
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 Trelen in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Trelen a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Trelen in the SSA data are male. 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 Trelen still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Trelen 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 Trelen 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.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many Americans are named Trelen?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.