Total births
19,340
Girls' name · since 1967
Tanisha
19,340 babies named Tanisha in U.S. Social Security records since 1967, with the highest year being 1982. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.
- #5048
- among girls today
- 19,340
- born since 1967
- 1980s
- peak decade
- 72%
- more common than other girls
Yes -- Tanisha is the #5048 most popular girls' name in the U.S. today, with 19,340 recorded since 1967.
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Tanisha has been recorded 19,340 times among girls since 1967, currently ranked #5048 nationally and more common than 72% of girls, with its heaviest use in the 1980s. This profile covers year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution, all derived directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1967 to 2025.
- #5048 among girls today
- 19,340 born since 1967
- 1980s peak decade
- 72% more common than other girls
Data updated Jun 2026
The verdict
Tanisha is currently the #5048 girls' name in America, more common than 72% of girls - 19,340 born since 1967, peaking in the 1980s.
- #5048
- among girls today
- 19,340
- born since 1967
- 1980s
- peak decade
- 72%
- more common than other girls
Tanisha vs. every other girls name in current SSA rankings
#5048
of 17,726 girls in use
More common than 72% of names given to girls today.
1980s
Peak decade
35% of everyone ever named Tanisha was born in this single decade.
1982
Single peak year
758 babies were named Tanisha in 1982 - its busiest year on record.
How Tanisha compares
19,340 Top 6% higher than 94% of 17,726 names currently given to girls
Based on all-time total births among currently-ranked girls names. Names with fewer occurrences are grouped into wider buckets on the right.
Source U.S. Social Security Administration, national baby name data
How the numbers stack up
Tanisha's all-time total is 51x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Tanisha | Median girls name (Emerly) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 19,340 | 382 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 758 | 48 | 19,840 |
Tanisha's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Splitting Tanisha's full recorded timeline at 1996, 17% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 83% in the earlier half -- the name was more prevalent in its earlier era than it is today. Its quietest year on record was 1967, with just 5 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 1982 peak of 758 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.
Tanisha at a glance
Outside the top 1,000Peak year
1982
Current rank
#5,048
Active since
1967
Tanisha popularity over time - girls
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1967–2025
- Peak year (1982)
- 758
- Annual births at peak, across 59 years of records
Tanisha popularity over time - boys
21 total births recorded since 1977 (Tanisha as boys' name)
Tanisha by decade
Total births in each ten-year window, peak vs trough at a glance
1980s was Tanisha's strongest decade.
6,811 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 35% of all-time use.
Tanisha births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1960s 44
1960s
44 births
- 1970s
1970s
5,628 births
- 1980s
1980s
6,811 births
- 1990s
1990s
4,771 births
- 2000s 1,366
2000s
1,366 births
- 2010s 593
2010s
593 births
- 2020s 127
2020s
127 births
What this shows Peak: 1980s at 6,811 births (35% of all-time use).
How Tanisha compares to similarly-sized names
Years in SSA records vs. share of all-time use concentrated in the single peak year, among 15 girls names closest to Tanisha's total volume
Tanisha vs 15 similarly-sized girls names
Tanisha by state
Where Tanisha concentrates geographically, total births since 1967
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | New York | | 2,158 | 11.2% |
| #2 | California | | 1,990 | 10.3% |
| #3 | Illinois | | 1,159 | 6.0% |
| #4 | Michigan | | 1,154 | 6.0% |
| #5 | Texas | | 952 | 4.9% |
| #6 | New Jersey | | 931 | 4.8% |
| #7 | Florida | | 852 | 4.4% |
| #8 | Ohio | | 783 | 4.0% |
New York share of Tanisha's total US births 11.2%
Even split
2,158 of 19,340 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 45 reporting states.
Tanisha appears in 45 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Tanisha? ▼
19,340 babies have been named Tanisha since 1967. It currently ranks #5048 among girls. The peak year was 1982 with 758 births.
When was Tanisha most popular? ▼
Tanisha was most popular in the 1980s decade with 6,811 total births. The single peak year was 1982.
Where is Tanisha most popular? ▼
The top states for the name Tanisha are New York (2,158 births), California (1,990 births), Illinois (1,159 births).
How long has the name Tanisha been used? ▼
Tanisha has been recorded in Social Security data since 1967, spanning 59 years of data through 2025.
What names are similar to Tanisha? ▼
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Tanya, Tania, Tana, Tanesha, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for girls.
What to do with Tanisha's data
- Tanisha's decade-level peak was the 1980s (6,811 total births); usage has since declined to 127 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- New York records the most Tanishas (2,158 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. New York names
- Weighing it against an alternative? Put two names side by side. Compare names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Tanisha
Nearby Names Like Tanisha
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Tanisha
Tanya Girl
#3406 116,855 births
Tania Girl
#1929 28,891 births
Tana Girl
#8032 9,274 births
Tanesha Girl
5,307 births
Taniya Girl
#7351 5,101 births
Compare Tanisha side by side: Tanisha vs Tanya Tanisha vs Tania Tanisha vs Tana
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Tanisha
Nisa #5047
1,736 births · Peak 1991
Alexi #5049
4,220 births · Peak 2002
Allura #5046
923 births · Peak 2022
Alyssia #5050
4,929 births · Peak 1998
Cristy #5045
8,200 births · Peak 1978
Ayelet #5051
979 births · Peak 2025
Michaella #5044
2,309 births · Peak 1997
Parisa #5052
1,102 births · Peak 1991
Data Sources
Data as of June 2026. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).
According to the Social Security Administration, this profile draws directly from the agency's public-use baby-name files (updated June 2026). See our methodology for the full extraction, aggregation, and privacy-suppression rules.
Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications, National Data, 1967–2025 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames).
State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names, State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip).
Cite this page
NameAlmanac Editorial. "Tanisha: #5048 Girls' Name - 19,340 Births, Peak 1982." NameAlmanac. Accessed via https://namealmanac.com/name/tanisha. Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Name Almanac is rendered directly from the Social Security Administration's public baby-name files, no number is typed in by an editor. This profile for Tanisha draws directly on SSA national and state-level files, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of June 2026.