Fun Facts About the Name Tallulah
- More than 4 thousand babies named Tallulah: U.S. records list 4,095 babies given the name Tallulah from 1880 through 2025.
What Does the Name Tallulah Mean?
Tallulah is usually explained as meaning "leaping water" and is generally described as coming from a Native American language, with Choctaw named most often. The name reached English by way of a place: the Tallulah River and Tallulah Falls in the mountains of northeast Georgia. The customary reading of the word is that it refers to rushing or leaping water at the falls, and that is the sense that has stuck to the name as a given name.
The derivation is not settled, though. No securely documented Choctaw word matching the English form is widely agreed on, and some accounts attach the name to other southeastern Native languages instead of Choctaw. The literal source word and the exact language behind the Georgia place name remain uncertain, so the familiar meaning "leaping water" is best understood as a long-standing traditional explanation rather than a firmly established translation. Variant spellings such as Talula and Tallula exist but are much less common.
Tallulah Name History & Origins
Tallulah enters the written record first as a place name in the southern United States. The Tallulah River, Tallulah Falls, and Tallulah Gorge in Rabun and Habersham counties in northeast Georgia carry the name, and the dramatic falls made the word familiar to visitors and readers well before it was widely used for people. From this place name, Tallulah passed into use as a girl's given name in the United States.
The best-known bearer is the American actress Tallulah Bankhead (1902 - 1968), whose stage and film career kept the name in public view through the middle of the twentieth century. The name has stayed uncommon but recognizable in the United States, and it is also the name of a town in Madison Parish, Louisiana.
How Popular is the Name Tallulah?
Tallulah recorded its highest annual U.S. birth count in 2023. Its best rank was #814 in 2023.
U.S. name popularity from 1880-2025, based on SSA data. Rank shows how the name compares with other names - lower numbers mean greater popularity. Births shows how many babies received the name each year.
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #940 | 276 | 0.0172% |
| 2024 | #815 | 339 | 0.0210% |
| 2023 | #814 | 342 | 0.0213% |
| 2022 | #1,000 | 262 | 0.0160% |
| 2021 | #1,022 | 249 | 0.0152% |
| 2020 | #1,130 | 213 | 0.0132% |
| 2019 | #1,242 | 189 | 0.0113% |
| 2018 | #1,275 | 181 | 0.0106% |
| 2017 | #1,279 | 185 | 0.0107% |
| 2016 | #1,482 | 155 | 0.0087% |
| 2015 | #1,453 | 159 | 0.0089% |
| 2014 | #1,561 | 140 | 0.0078% |
| 2013 | #1,500 | 148 | 0.0084% |
| 2012 | #1,672 | 128 | 0.0073% |
| 2011 | #1,632 | 133 | 0.0076% |
| 2010 | #1,719 | 122 | 0.0069% |
| 2009 | #1,900 | 111 | 0.0060% |
| 2008 | #2,101 | 97 | 0.0051% |
| 2007 | #2,197 | 91 | 0.0047% |
| 2006 | #2,347 | 81 | 0.0043% |
| 2005 | #3,400 | 45 | 0.0024% |
| 2004 | #2,992 | 53 | 0.0029% |
| 2003 | #3,650 | 39 | 0.0021% |
| 2002 | #3,800 | 35 | 0.0019% |
| 2001 | #4,554 | 27 | 0.0015% |
| 2000 | #4,390 | 28 | 0.0015% |
| 1999 | #4,431 | 26 | 0.0015% |
| 1998 | #13,927 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1997 | #8,278 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 1996 | #11,673 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1995 | #15,507 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1991 | #12,964 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1987 | #11,144 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1986 | #12,618 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1985 | #8,243 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1983 | #11,852 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1982 | #10,366 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1981 | #8,974 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1980 | #10,235 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1979 | #10,063 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1956 | #5,885 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1955 | #5,757 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1953 | #5,602 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1952 | #6,307 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1951 | #4,343 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1949 | #5,194 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1947 | #4,724 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1946 | #5,622 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1943 | #4,158 | 7 | 0.0005% |
| 1942 | #3,704 | 8 | 0.0006% |
| 1941 | #3,011 | 10 | 0.0008% |
| 1939 | #3,120 | 9 | 0.0008% |
| 1938 | #2,911 | 10 | 0.0009% |
| 1937 | #3,761 | 7 | 0.0007% |
| 1934 | #3,764 | 7 | 0.0007% |
| 1933 | #3,377 | 8 | 0.0008% |
| 1932 | #3,026 | 10 | 0.0009% |
| 1931 | #2,952 | 10 | 0.0009% |
| 1925 | #5,688 | 5 | 0.0004% |
| 1921 | #5,032 | 6 | 0.0005% |
| 1918 | #5,496 | 5 | 0.0004% |
| 1917 | #4,531 | 6 | 0.0006% |
Name popularity over more than a century, based on Social Security Administration data. Gaps in the chart indicate years when the name does not appear in the published records.
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How the Name Tallulah Shapes Your Personality and Life?
You like to control everyone within your influence, to shape things to your own liking. If positive, you develop high spirituality, as you have a God's protection. You are sensitive, affectionate, imaginative and cooperative, spiritually aware and prone to self-sacrifice. You can keep secrets and are a good diplomat. You may have healing and psychic powers. You are bold, independent, inquisitive and interested in research. You know what you want and why you want it.
You find the best contentment in life when you own your own home and provide well for your family and loved ones. You have a great sense of responsibility and duty. You are comforting, appreciative and affectionate. Your obligation in life is to hold justice and truth, and if you follow the Law, you can find the great happiness and satisfaction.
✦ Tallulah's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Tallulah's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.