Truc
A Vietnamese unisex name meaning "pearl" or "precious."
Name Census estimates that about 234 living Americans carry the first name Truc. It is a predominantly female name (93.0% of registrations). The average person named Truc today is around 32 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Truc births was 1985 (14 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Truc. 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
234
~ 1 in 1,464,762 Americans
Peak year
1985
14 babies that year
Average age
32
years old
2001 SSA rank
#12,193
Tracked since 1980
Gender
Gender distribution for Truc
Truc leans heavily female at 93.0% of total registrations, but 17 boys have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Truc as a male name
- Ranked #12,193 in 2001
- 5 male births in 2001
- Peak: 1985 (7 births)
Truc as a female name
- Ranked #19,642 in 2010
- 5 female births in 2010
- Peak: 1999 (12 births)
Popularity
Truc: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Truc from the 1980s through to the 2010s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1980s, with 89 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1980s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Truc 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 Truc during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Trucs live
Origin
Meaning and history of Truc
The name Truc has its origins in the Vietnamese language and culture. It is derived from the Vietnamese word "truc," which means "bamboo." The name is believed to have been first used during the medieval period in Vietnam, possibly as early as the 12th century.
In Vietnamese culture, bamboo is a symbol of strength, resilience, and flexibility. It is a highly valued plant, and the name Truc was likely given to children in the hopes that they would embody these qualities. The name was popular among both men and women in Vietnam, although it was more commonly used for males.
There are no known references to the name Truc in ancient texts or religious scriptures, but it is mentioned in various historical records and documents from Vietnam. The earliest recorded instance of the name dates back to the 13th century, when a man named Truc Lam was a prominent Buddhist monk and founder of the Truc Lam Zen sect.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals who bore the name Truc. One of the most famous was Truc Khanh, a 15th-century Vietnamese poet and calligrapher who was renowned for his literary works and artistic skills. Another notable figure was Truc Lam, the aforementioned Buddhist monk who lived in the 13th century and established the Truc Lam Zen tradition.
In the 19th century, there was a Vietnamese military leader named Truc Phi, who played a significant role in the resistance against French colonialism. He was born in 1811 and died in 1868.
In more recent times, Truc Ngo (born 1939) is a well-known Vietnamese writer and novelist who has published several acclaimed works, including "The Sorrow of War" and "The Novice."
Another notable individual was Truc Quyen (1923-2005), a Vietnamese Buddhist nun and activist who advocated for human rights and democracy in Vietnam. She spent many years in exile and was a vocal critic of the communist regime in her home country.
People
Truc + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Truc 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
Truc: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Truc?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 234 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Truc 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 1,464,762 US residents.
Is Truc a common name?
We classify Truc as "Very Rare". It ranks above 76.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 243 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Truc most popular?
The single biggest year for Truc was 1985, when 14 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Truc is about 32 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Truc a female name?
Yes, 93.0% of people registered as Truc 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.