Tessa

TE-suh

Tessa originated as a short form of Theresa, a name of uncertain etymology that may derive from the Greek island of Thera (modern Santorini) or from the Greek verb “therizein” meaning “to harvest.” The independent use of Tessa as a given name gained

US Rank 2024

No. 303

Births

1,034

Peak Year

2007

traction in English-speaking countries during the 20th century, though it had appeared in Italian and Dutch records centuries earlier as a familiar form of Contessa.

Literary associations helped establish Tessa as a standalone name. Thomas Hardy used it in his 1891 novel Tess of the d’Urbervilles, though the protagonist’s full name was Teresa.

What the name Tessa means

The name carries a crisp, 2-syllable structure that distinguishes it from longer forms like Theresa or Contessa, while retaining a classical European resonance.

In the United States, Tessa reached its highest recorded position at No. 190 in 2007. The name produced 1,034 births in 2024, placing it at No.

303 nationally. Over the past decade, Tessa has moved from the top 210 range down to around 300, reflecting a gradual cooling from its late-2000s peak.

The name appears across several European languages with minimal spelling variation: Tessa in Dutch, English, and Italian.

In the Netherlands, it has ranked among the most popular girls’ names since the 1970s. German-speaking countries occasionally use the form Tesa, though the double-s spelling predominates internationally.

Notable bearers include Canadian ice dancer Tessa Virtue, whose Olympic career brought sustained visibility to the name. American actress Tessa Thompson has further reinforced the name’s modern profile.

Tessa shares etymological ground with Teresa, Tess, and Tessie, all of which trace back to the same root.

Parents selecting Tessa often favor names that sound complete at 2 syllables rather than diminutive, a preference reflected in its independent charting since the 1950s on the SSA records.