Fun Facts About the Name Tea
- More than 2 thousand babies named Tea: U.S. records list 2,493 babies given the name Tea from 1880 through 2025.
What Does the Name Tea Mean?
Tea is a feminine given name usually understood to mean "gift of God." It has no independent root of its own in the languages where it is used; it is a short form of longer names. In Scandinavia, Finland, Estonia, and Croatia, it shortens Dorothea or Theodora, which join the Greek elements dōron, "gift," and theos, "god." In Italian it also shortens Mattea, the feminine of Matteo (Matthew), from Hebrew Mattityahu, "gift of Yahweh." Both routes give the same general sense, which is why the name is glossed with a single phrase.
A second explanation treats Tea as a form of Thea, a name sometimes derived from the Greek thea, "goddess" - a different word from theos - and sometimes explained as another shortening of Dorothea or Theodora. Sources do not agree on which explanation applies in which country. The personal name is not related to the English word tea for the drink, which came into English by way of Dutch thee from a Chinese word.
Tea Name History & Origins
Tea comes from the widespread European habit of shortening a child's baptismal name in everyday speech. In Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish use it is a familiar form of Dorothea or Theodora, and Finnish and Estonian usage follows the same pattern. In Croatian, Serbian, and Slovenian naming it is common as a standing given name, again from Dorotea or Teodora, and it is also used in Albania. In Italy, Tea appears as a short form of both Dorotea and Mattea.
The Italian form is often written with an accent, Téa, and that spelling and pronunciation are the ones best known in the English-speaking world, as in the actress Téa Leoni. Tea is likewise a familiar female given name in Georgia, though how it entered Georgian naming is not well documented.
How Popular is the Name Tea?
Tea recorded its highest annual U.S. birth count in 1998. Its best rank was #749 in 1998.
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 | #10,042 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 2024 | #7,534 | 15 | 0.0009% |
| 2023 | #6,645 | 18 | 0.0011% |
| 2022 | #5,156 | 26 | 0.0016% |
| 2021 | #6,145 | 20 | 0.0012% |
| 2020 | #6,608 | 18 | 0.0011% |
| 2019 | #6,159 | 20 | 0.0012% |
| 2018 | #5,771 | 22 | 0.0013% |
| 2017 | #5,174 | 26 | 0.0015% |
| 2016 | #4,830 | 29 | 0.0016% |
| 2015 | #3,982 | 38 | 0.0021% |
| 2014 | #4,648 | 31 | 0.0017% |
| 2013 | #3,512 | 45 | 0.0026% |
| 2012 | #3,164 | 53 | 0.0030% |
| 2011 | #2,509 | 73 | 0.0042% |
| 2010 | #2,724 | 66 | 0.0037% |
| 2009 | #2,484 | 77 | 0.0042% |
| 2008 | #2,154 | 94 | 0.0050% |
| 2007 | #2,326 | 83 | 0.0043% |
| 2006 | #1,787 | 117 | 0.0062% |
| 2005 | #1,739 | 114 | 0.0062% |
| 2004 | #1,997 | 93 | 0.0051% |
| 2003 | #1,421 | 140 | 0.0077% |
| 2002 | #1,072 | 199 | 0.0111% |
| 2001 | #1,383 | 138 | 0.0077% |
| 2000 | #1,687 | 105 | 0.0058% |
| 1999 | #1,167 | 167 | 0.0094% |
| 1998 | #749 | 290 | 0.0164% |
| 1997 | #796 | 261 | 0.0150% |
| 1996 | #3,499 | 33 | 0.0019% |
| 1995 | #8,697 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 1994 | #8,739 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 1993 | #5,188 | 19 | 0.0011% |
| 1992 | #10,394 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1982 | #9,144 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1981 | #9,000 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1980 | #11,995 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1976 | #9,157 | 6 | 0.0004% |
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 Tea 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 have an eventful, exciting life. You are versatile and have the ability to learn easily.
Position and social status is very important for you and you are always looking for way to improve your position in society. You have power and ability to chose your own destiny and achieve anything you want in life. You can expand in any direction according to your will and the set of values. You have passion for justice and belong to the position of authority. You have an inherent courage and endurance to accomplish "The Impossible Dream". With the power comes responsibility. You hold keys to the material world, but with this gift comes high spiritual responsibility to be fair and true to others. You are philosophical and mature, determined and intense with a desire to endure, often religious.
✦ Tea's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Tea's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.