Total births
9,918
Girls' name · since 1885
Tera
9,918 babies named Tera in U.S. Social Security records since 1885, with the highest year being 1984. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.
- #11145
- among girls today
- 9,918
- born since 1885
- 1970s
- peak decade
- 37%
- more common than other girls
9,918 babies have been named Tera since 1885, making it today's #11145 girls' name.
Tera has 9,918 recorded births among girls since 1885, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, ranked #11145 as of the latest data, more common than 37% of girls, busiest in the 1970s -- see the year-by-year trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution below, all drawn directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1885 to 2024.
- #11145 among girls today
- 9,918 born since 1885
- 1970s peak decade
- 37% more common than other girls
Data updated Jun 2026
The verdict
Tera is currently the #11145 girls' name in America, more common than 37% of girls - 9,918 born since 1885, peaking in the 1970s.
- #11145
- among girls today
- 9,918
- born since 1885
- 1970s
- peak decade
- 37%
- more common than other girls
Tera vs. every other girls name in current SSA rankings
#11145
of 17,726 girls in use
More common than 37% of names given to girls today.
1970s
Peak decade
36% of everyone ever named Tera was born in this single decade.
1984
Single peak year
416 babies were named Tera in 1984 - its busiest year on record.
How Tera compares
9,918 Top 9% higher than 91% 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
Tera's all-time total is 26x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Tera | Median girls name (Emerly) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 9,918 | 382 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 416 | 48 | 19,840 |
Tera's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Splitting Tera's full recorded timeline at 1963, 93% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 7% in the earlier half -- usage has skewed toward the present, not a one-decade spike. Its quietest year on record was 1885, with just 5 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 1984 peak of 416 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.
Tera at a glance
Outside the top 1,000Peak year
1984
Current rank
#11,145
Active since
1885
Tera popularity over time
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1885–2024
- Peak year (1984)
- 416
- Annual births at peak, across 140 years of records
Tera by decade
Total births in each ten-year window, peak vs trough at a glance
1970s was Tera's strongest decade.
3,574 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 36% of all-time use.
Tera births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 5
1880s
5 births
- 1890s 34
1890s
34 births
- 1900s 54
1900s
54 births
- 1910s 74
1910s
74 births
- 1920s 97
1920s
97 births
- 1930s 41
1930s
41 births
- 1940s 91
1940s
91 births
- 1950s 130
1950s
130 births
- 1960s 505
1960s
505 births
- 1970s
1970s
3,574 births
- 1980s
1980s
3,279 births
- 1990s 1,246
1990s
1,246 births
- 2000s 550
2000s
550 births
- 2010s 180
2010s
180 births
- 2020s 58
2020s
58 births
What this shows Peak: 1970s at 3,574 births (36% of all-time use).
How Tera 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 Tera's total volume
Tera vs 15 similarly-sized girls names
Tera by state
Where Tera concentrates geographically, total births since 1885
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | California | | 867 | 8.7% |
| #2 | Texas | | 601 | 6.1% |
| #3 | Ohio | | 520 | 5.2% |
| #4 | Illinois | | 384 | 3.9% |
| #5 | Michigan | | 373 | 3.8% |
| #6 | Florida | | 267 | 2.7% |
| #7 | Washington | | 263 | 2.7% |
| #8 | Pennsylvania | | 223 | 2.2% |
California share of Tera's total US births 8.7%
Even split
867 of 9,918 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 41 reporting states.
Tera appears in 41 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Tera? ▼
Tera has been given to 9,918 babies in the U.S. since 1885, according to SSA data. Among girls, it ranks #11145 as of the latest data. 416 babies were born in 1984, its single highest year.
When was Tera most popular? ▼
Tera was most popular in the 1970s decade with 3,574 total births. The single peak year was 1984.
Where is Tera most popular? ▼
The top states for the name Tera are California (867 births), Texas (601 births), Ohio (520 births).
How long has the name Tera been used? ▼
Tera has been recorded in Social Security data since 1885, spanning 140 years of data through 2024.
What names are similar to Tera? ▼
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Teresa, Terri, Terry, Teri, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for girls.
What to do with Tera's data
- Tera's decade-level peak was the 1970s (3,574 total births); usage has since declined to 58 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- California records the most Teras (867 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. California 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 Tera
Nearby Names Like Tera
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Tera
Teresa Girl
#860 416,044 births
Terri Girl
#5039 146,113 births
Terry Girl
#9578 96,955 births
Teri Girl
#10364 43,957 births
Terrie Girl
19,729 births
Compare Tera side by side: Tera vs Teresa Tera vs Terri Tera vs Terry
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Tera
Isadore #11144
195 births · Peak 1917
Lu #11146
4,046 births · Peak 1954
Dulcie #11143
1,647 births · Peak 1968
Petronila #11147
69 births · Peak 2020
Eulalie #11142
763 births · Peak 1926
Benita #11148
13,669 births · Peak 1961
Myrna #11141
31,700 births · Peak 1938
Jack #11149
2,734 births · Peak 1928
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, 1885–2024 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames).
State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names, State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip).
Cite this page
NameAlmanac Editorial. "Tera: #11145 Girls' Name - 9,918 Births, Peak 1984." NameAlmanac. Accessed via https://namealmanac.com/name/tera. 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 Tera 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.