Girl's name
Tessa
Say it TES-uh
Greek origin 2 syllables
Where Tessa is loved, common and rare
Rare in four German cities, the Netherlands, Canada and nine more places. Common in Rostock.
1 in 919 girls born in Ireland in 2025
The Netherlands 134thBritish Columbia 171stOntario 172nd
LovedCommonRare
Every place
In 18 of the 40 official lists, among them the Netherlands (134th), British Columbia (171st) and Ontario (172nd).
Show all 18 placesShow less
| Place | Rank | Girls | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Netherlands | 134th 2025 | 111 | about 1 in 550 |
| British Columbia province | 171st 2023 | 18 | about 1 in 664 |
| Ontario province | 172nd 2024 | 64 | about 1 in 851 |
| Ireland | 189th 2025 | 23 | 1 in 919 |
| Northern Ireland | 231st 2025 | 7 | 1 in 1,041 |
| Cologne city | 258th 2023 | 4 | about 1 in 1,536 |
| Italy | 279th 2024 | 61 | 1 in 2,937 |
| France | 290th 2025 | 190 | 1 in 1,509 |
| Austria | 326th 2025 | 16 | 1 in 2,233 |
| Berlin city | 339th 2023 | 9 | about 1 in 1,612 |
| Quebec province | 467th 2025 | 10 | about 1 in 2,600 |
| Scotland | 539th 2025 | 5 | 1 in 3,578 |
| Poland | 583rd 2025 | 3 | 1 in 39,929 |
| Switzerland | 665th 2025 | 9 | 1 in 3,777 |
| England and Wales | 667th 2025 | 56 | 1 in 4,523 |
| Rostock city | 92nd 2025 | 2 | about 1 in 492 |
| Bonn city | 119th 2025 | 5 | about 1 in 603 |
| Leipzig city | 156th 2025 | 3 | about 1 in 875 |
Rare, below the listed names: New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, New Zealand, Munich, Norway, Sweden, Spain, Catalonia, Hungary, Slovenia and Israel.
Not in a short top list, so no figure: Nova Scotia (top 21), Denmark (top 50), Finland (top 50), Iceland (top 10), Estonia (top 25), Moscow (top 61), Turkey (top 30), Argentina (top 20) and Croatia (top 50).
Germany publishes no national statistics on first names. German figures here are city lists (Berlin, Munich, Cologne, Bonn, Leipzig, Rostock), never the country.
Sources: Sociale Verzekeringsbank (SVB) (the Netherlands); BC Vital Statistics Agency (BC Data Catalogue) (British Columbia); Ontario Office of the Registrar General (Ontario Data Catalogue) (Ontario); Central Statistics Office (CSO) (Ireland); NISRA (Northern Ireland); Stadt Köln, Standesamt (offenedaten-koeln.de) (Cologne); ISTAT, Contanomi (Italy); INSEE, Fichier des prénoms (édition 2025) (France); Statistik Austria (OGDEXT_VORNAMEN_1) (Austria); BerlinOnline GmbH; Landesamt für Bürger- und Ordnungsangelegenheiten (LABO) / Standesämter (Berlin); Retraite Québec (Banque de prénoms, Données Québec) (Quebec); National Records of Scotland (Scotland); Ministerstwo Cyfryzacji, rejestr PESEL (dane.gov.pl) (Poland); Bundesamt für Statistik (BFS) / Office fédéral de la statistique (OFS) (Switzerland); Office for National Statistics (England and Wales); Hanse- und Universitätsstadt Rostock (opendata-hro.de) (Rostock); Bundesstadt Bonn, Standesamt (opendata.bonn.de) (Bonn); Stadt Leipzig, Standesamt (opendata.leipzig.de) (Leipzig). How we count, and every source
About the name
Tessa is a contraction of Teresa. No separate meaning is recorded, so it is best understood as a short, lively form of that older name.
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Two syllables, said TES-uh, with the stress on the first. Tess is an even shorter form. Teresa is the full name behind it.
It is used in about eighteen regions. Its best positions are in British Columbia, Ontario and Ireland, and it is also used in the Netherlands, Italy and France. French records show a peak around 2020, but it is now falling in twice as many regions as it is rising, so it may have passed its highest point. It remains a familiar name that is easy to spell and pronounce across languages.
Meaning, origin, pronunciation
- Pronounced
- TES-uh, 2 syllables
- Origin
- Greek
- Other spellings
- Teresa
Over time
Over five years: rising in 4 of 17 regions, falling in 8.
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Rank in each place since 1996; higher on the chart is more popular.
Ten years of ranks
Her rank each year, English-speaking regions first. A blank means no published rank for her that year.
| Region | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| England and Wales | 630 | 855 | 710 | 703 | 589 | 640 | 624 | 657 | 708 | 667 |
| Scotland | 356 | 409 | 680 | 650 | 399 | 558 | 625 | 540 | 638 | 539 |
| Northern Ireland | 353 | 273 | 213 | 212 | 305 | 407 | 231 | |||
| Ireland | 335 | 249 | 196 | 162 | 173 | 198 | 237 | 212 | 191 | 189 |
| Ontario | 87 | 92 | 88 | 84 | 86 | 122 | 114 | 131 | 172 | |
| British Columbia | 108 | 110 | 117 | 157 | 137 | 276 | 134 | 171 | ||
| South Australia | 174 | 272 | ||||||||
| Quebec | 301 | 294 | 206 | 233 | 289 | 204 | 291 | 170 | 259 | 467 |
| France | 160 | 162 | 230 | 208 | 109 | 117 | 135 | 149 | 185 | 290 |
| The Netherlands | 86 | 83 | 95 | 94 | 106 | 150 | 126 | 124 | 134 | |
| Austria | 321 | 312 | 332 | 350 | 363 | 265 | 326 | 385 | 218 | 326 |
| Switzerland | 388 | 316 | 286 | 362 | 280 | 223 | 444 | 304 | 387 | 665 |
| Berlin | 193 | 213 | 184 | 360 | 210 | 255 | 260 | 339 | ||
| Munich | 160 | 232 | 194 | 196 | ||||||
| Cologne | 615 | 288 | 254 | 174 | 160 | 322 | 213 | 258 | ||
| Bonn | 143 | 222 | 134 | 221 | 168 | 264 | 181 | 236 | 168 | 119 |
| Leipzig | 253 | 74 | 263 | 131 | 191 | 132 | 186 | 163 | 92 | 156 |
| Rostock | 75 | 107 | 134 | 97 | 202 | 102 | 82 | 174 | 158 | 92 |
| Sweden | 792 | |||||||||
| Catalonia | 626 | 620 | 611 | 522 | ||||||
| Italy | 307 | 261 | 233 | 263 | 272 | 221 | 272 | 231 | 279 | |
| Poland | 569 | 437 | 449 | 531 | 612 | 600 | 583 | |||
| Slovenia | 227 |
England and Wales, 1996 to 2025
| Year | Rank | Girls | per 100,000 girls |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 667 | 56 | 22.1 |
| 2024 | 708 | 53 | 20.5 |
| 2023 | 657 | 55 | 21.4 |
| 2022 | 624 | 61 | 23.1 |
| 2021 | 640 | 60 | 21.9 |
| 2020 | 589 | 66 | 24.6 |
| 2019 | 703 | 55 | 19.6 |
| 2018 | 710 | 56 | 19.4 |
| 2017 | 855 | 45 | 15.0 |
| 2016 | 630 | 67 | 21.8 |
| 2015 | 656 | 62 | 20.1 |
| 2014 | 597 | 69 | 22.5 |
| 2013 | 652 | 62 | 20.1 |
| 2012 | 546 | 77 | 23.9 |
| 2011 | 665 | 59 | 18.4 |
| 2010 | 576 | 69 | 21.5 |
| 2009 | 701 | 52 | 16.6 |
| 2008 | 602 | 62 | 19.6 |
| 2007 | 559 | 65 | 21.2 |
| 2006 | 594 | 57 | 19.0 |
| 2005 | 615 | 51 | 17.7 |
| 2004 | 736 | 38 | 13.3 |
| 2003 | 545 | 56 | 20.1 |
| 2002 | 585 | 48 | 18.0 |
| 2001 | 540 | 52 | 19.4 |
| 2000 | 502 | 58 | 21.2 |
| 1999 | 539 | 52 | 18.5 |
| 1998 | 431 | 71 | 24.6 |
| 1997 | 422 | 72 | 24.6 |
| 1996 | 410 | 78 | 26.4 |
Sources: Office for National Statistics (1996-2025), OGL v3.
France since 1925
Half of the babies named Tessa in France since 1925 were born in or after 2012. First recorded in 1957. Her peak year there: 2020, at 160.7 per 100,000 girls.
Babies named Tessa per 100,000 girls born in France, by five-year period. Her 2020 peak is averaged into its five-year period, so the line sits below it.
Sources: INSEE, Fichier des prénoms (édition 2025) (1900-2025), Licence Ouverte / Etalab 2.0.
Sister names for Tessa
1 in 1,118 in Scotland
Rose and fell with Tessa.
1 in 1,625 in Ireland
Rose and fell with Tessa.
1 in 2,556 in Scotland
Rose and fell with Tessa. Same first letter as Tessa.
1 in 1,041 in Northern Ireland
Rose and fell with Tessa.
1 in 488 in England and Wales
Rose and fell with Tessa.
1 in 1,415 in England and Wales
1 in 1,625 in Ireland
Rose and fell with Tessa.
1 in 1,583 in England and Wales
Rose and fell with Tessa.
1 in 3,725 in England and Wales
Rose and fell with Tessa.
1 in 606 in England and Wales
Rose and fell with Tessa.
Middle names for Tessa
1 in 57 in Northern Ireland
Tessa Grace
2-1 beats · initials TG
Changes the beat after Tessa: 2 syllables, then 1 syllable.
1 in 71 in Scotland
Tessa Olivia
2-4 beats · initials TO · Tessa slides into Olivia: vowel meets vowel.
Changes the beat after Tessa: 2 syllables, then 4 syllables. Tessa slides into Olivia: vowel meets vowel.
1 in 99 in Scotland
Tessa Sophia
2-3 beats · initials TS
Changes the beat after Tessa: 2 syllables, then 3 syllables.
1 in 311 in Ireland
Tessa Maria
2-3 beats · initials TM
Changes the beat after Tessa: 2 syllables, then 3 syllables.
1 in 214 in Northern Ireland
Tessa Rose
2-1 beats · initials TR
Changes the beat after Tessa: 2 syllables, then 1 syllable.
1 in 78 in Northern Ireland
Tessa Emily
2-3 beats · initials TE · Tessa slides into Emily: vowel meets vowel.
Changes the beat after Tessa: 2 syllables, then 3 syllables. Tessa slides into Emily: vowel meets vowel.
1 in 491 in Ireland
Tessa Julia
2-3 beats · initials TJ
Changes the beat after Tessa: 2 syllables, then 3 syllables.
1 in 1,286 in England and Wales
Tessa Miriam
2-3 beats · initials TM
Changes the beat after Tessa: 2 syllables, then 3 syllables.
Same style as Tessa
Names whose popularity rose and fell with hers across regions and decades.
1 in 1,625 in Ireland
96% alike: moves with Tessa across countries and decades.
1 in 1,625 in Ireland
95% alike: moves with Tessa across countries and decades.
1 in 1,822 in Northern Ireland
95% alike: moves with Tessa across countries and decades.
1 in 1,583 in England and Wales
94% alike: moves with Tessa across countries and decades.
1 in 1,921 in Ireland
94% alike: moves with Tessa across countries and decades.
1 in 1,214 in Northern Ireland
94% alike: moves with Tessa across countries and decades.
1 in 2,429 in Northern Ireland
94% alike: moves with Tessa across countries and decades.
1 in 2,347 in Ireland
93% alike: moves with Tessa across countries and decades.
Famous people named Tessa
Tessa Thompson, Tessa Virtue, Tessa Sanderson, Tessa Jowell, Tessa Worley, Tessa Wullaert, Tessa Khan and Tessa Blanchard.
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American actress born 1983
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Canadian ice dancer born 1989
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British javelin thrower (born 1956)
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British politician (1947–2018)
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French alpine skier born 1989
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Belgian footballer born 1993
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Environmental lawyer
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American professional wrestler born 1995
People: Wikidata (CC0), linked to Wikipedia in this page's language when an article exists.
Questions about Tessa
4 questions, on how popular she is, how to say it, whether she is rising and sister names.
Show all 4 questionsShow less
How popular is Tessa?
Her best rank is No. 134 in the Netherlands in 2025, about 1 in 550 girls. She is in the published lists of 18 of our 40 regions.
How do you pronounce Tessa?
TES-uh, with 2 syllables.
Is Tessa getting more popular?
Over five years: rising in 4 of 17 regions, falling in 8.
Which sister names go with Tessa?
The deck's top five sisters for Tessa: Arianna, Selena, Thalia, Anastasia and Athena. Each is scored on style, era, popularity and origin, with sound clashes flagged.