girl's name
Tina
TEE-nuh
- Origin Latin
- Gender Girl
- Syllables 2
- Letters 4
- Popularity Uncommon
- Births on record 301,727
Northern Ireland
#384
2003 births
Tina is a girl's name that serves as the tail end of several unrelated names — Christina, Martina, Valentina and Bettina — so its meaning depends entirely on which one a family had in mind.
- Tina is a name of Latin origin.
- Peaked in 1968, when 14,819 babies were given the name.
- It has been falling over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 54,351 babies in the United States is given this name.
- 2 syllables, with the stress on syllable 1.
Tina over time
Births per decade in the United States, 1880s to 2020s. The striped bar is the 2020s, still in progress — it covers 2020 to 2025, not a full ten years.
Show the numbers
| Decade | Births |
|---|---|
| 1880s | 278 |
| 1890s | 431 |
| 1900s | 499 |
| 1910s | 1,040 |
| 1920s | 1,367 |
| 1930s | 1,198 |
| 1940s | 3,971 |
| 1950s | 34,058 |
| 1960s | 126,772 |
| 1970s | 85,087 |
| 1980s | 25,957 |
| 1990s | 7,206 |
| 2000s | 3,266 |
| 2010s | 1,466 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 454 |
What Tina means
Tina has no meaning of its own. Through Christina it means a follower of Christ; through Martina, of Mars; through Valentina, strong or healthy. The three are unrelated.
Where Tina comes from
Tina is a suffix that became a name. The Italian and Latin ending -tina appears on a long list of feminine names — Christina, Martina, Valentina, Bettina, Clementina — and English speakers clipped the shared tail rather than the head, the same move that produced Sandra from Alessandra and Rita from Margarita. Because at least four unrelated names end that way, a Tina may descend from a Greek word for Christ, from the Roman god of war, or from a Latin word for strong. It became an independent name in the twentieth century with no parent name at all.
Tina in use
Tina peaked in the United States in 1968, when 14,819 babies were registered, and is falling in our data. It now ranks 655th in France on 65 births, 814th in Ireland, 1962nd in England and Wales on 15 and 2804th in the United States on 61, across 301,727 lifetime births in five of the seven markets we track. France now gives it a considerably stronger position than the United States, where most of its volume was registered.
How popular is Tina?
In 2025, Tina was given to 61 babies in the United States. It is used consistently but remains uncommon.
Where Tina is used
US figures omit any name given to fewer than five babies in a year, so the rarest names are absent from the source rather than absent from use. Data & sources.
Names that peaked alongside Tina
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Tina also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Tina over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
Tina in other languages
The same name as it is spelled elsewhere — not shortenings, and not different names that merely sound alike. Each one has its own record here.
Sibling names for Tina
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Tina — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Tina
What does the name Tina mean?
It depends which name it shortens — Christina, Martina and Valentina all end in -tina and are unrelated.
What is Tina short for?
Most often Christina, but equally Martina, Valentina or Bettina. It is also used as a full name.
Where is Tina most used?
France at 655th, ahead of its 2804th position in the United States.
How popular is Tina?
2804th in the United States, down from a 1968 peak of 14,819 births.
Is Tina a girl's or a boy's name?
Tina is given almost entirely to girls in birth records.
How many syllables are in Tina?
Tina has 2 syllables.
Is Tina a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Tina currently ranks #655 in the United States. It has been falling over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.