Tyisha
An African American name of unknown meaning, likely a creative spelling variation.
Name Census estimates that about 1,731 living Americans carry the first name Tyisha. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Tyisha today is around 39 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Tyisha births was 1979 (105 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Tyisha. 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
1.7K
~ 1 in 198,009 Americans
Peak year
1979
105 babies that year
Average age
39
years old
2011 SSA rank
#16,625
Tracked since 1972
Popularity
Tyisha: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Tyisha from the 1970s through to the 2010s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1980s, with 755 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
Tyisha 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 Tyisha during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Tyishas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 20 states and territories. New York, New Jersey, Illinois recorded the most babies named Tyisha, while Tennessee, Louisiana, Connecticut recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 43 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Tyisha
Tyisha is a given name with roots tracing back to ancient Africa. The name is derived from the Swahili word "taisha," which means "to live" or "to dwell." This connection suggests that the name may have origins in the Bantu languages of East and Central Africa, where Swahili is primarily spoken.
The earliest recorded instances of the name Tyisha appear in historical documents from the 16th century, during the height of the African slave trade. It is possible that the name was brought to the Americas and other parts of the world by enslaved Africans during this period, as many sought to preserve their cultural identities and naming traditions.
In the 18th century, Tyisha appears in records of free and enslaved African Americans in the United States. One notable figure from this time was Tyisha Belshaw (1742-1805), a freed slave who became a successful businesswoman and landowner in Virginia.
In the 19th century, Tyisha gained popularity among African American communities, particularly in the South. This may have been influenced by the rise of the abolitionist movement and the desire to reclaim and celebrate African heritage.
One significant figure from this era was Tyisha Bethune (1855-1923), an educator and activist who co-founded the Bethune-Cookman University in Florida, a historically black college.
In the 20th century, the name Tyisha continued to be widely used within African American communities. Tyisha Barnes (1914-1997) was a prominent civil rights activist and organizer for the NAACP in Alabama.
Another notable figure was Tyisha Hemphill (1937-2015), an influential jazz singer and songwriter known for her contributions to the Chicago blues scene.
Tyisha Abdul-Ghaffar (1950-2022) was a respected author and scholar who wrote extensively on African American history and culture.
While Tyisha has maintained its roots in African American communities, it has also been embraced by people of diverse backgrounds and cultures around the world, reflecting the name's enduring appeal and the richness of its heritage.
People
Tyisha + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Tyisha 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
Tyisha: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Tyisha?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,731 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Tyisha 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 198,009 US residents.
Is Tyisha a common name?
We classify Tyisha as "Rare". It ranks above 93.1% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,829 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Tyisha most popular?
The single biggest year for Tyisha was 1979, when 105 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Tyisha is about 39 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Tyisha a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Tyisha 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.