boy's name
Tyson
TY-sun
- Origin English
- Gender Boy
- Syllables 2
- Letters 5
- Popularity Top 1000 (US)
- Births on record 60,078
the United States
#531
2025 births
Tyson means son of the firebrand, and it began as an insult — the Old French tison named a hot-tempered man, so the surname records a reputation the family did not choose. Mallory, meaning unlucky, survived the same way.
- Tyson is a name of English origin.
- Peaked in 2009, when 1,491 babies were given the name.
- It has been falling over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 5,868 babies in the United States is given this name.
- First appears in US birth records in 1912.
- 2 syllables, with the stress on syllable 1.
Tyson over time
Births per decade in the United States, 1910s 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 |
|---|---|
| 1910s | 65 |
| 1920s | 91 |
| 1930s | 48 |
| 1940s | 111 |
| 1950s | 174 |
| 1960s | 559 |
| 1970s | 5,493 |
| 1980s | 8,980 |
| 1990s | 5,169 |
| 2000s | 11,425 |
| 2010s | 11,952 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 4,646 |
What Tyson means
Tyson means son of a firebrand, or son of a hot-tempered man. The byname behind it was uncomplimentary, describing temper rather than any quality worth boasting of.
Where Tyson comes from
Tyson is a Norman surname from the Old French tison, a firebrand or burning stick, applied as a byname to someone quick to anger. A second line derives it from tisun, meaning a son of Dye, a pet form of Dionisia. Uncomplimentary bynames were ordinary and most died out; this one survived by becoming hereditary, which is the same route that preserved Mallory, meaning unlucky, elsewhere on this site.
Tyson in use
Tyson peaked in the United States in 2009, when 1,491 babies were registered, and is falling in our data. It now ranks 531st in the United States on 565 births, 1107th in England and Wales on 27 and 5732nd in France on 5, across 60,078 lifetime births in four of the seven markets we track. England and Wales ran its own peak of 59 births in 2020, eleven years after the American one.
How popular is Tyson?
In 2025, Tyson was given to 565 babies in the United States, ranking #531 that year. It is a well-established, commonly used name.
Where Tyson 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 Tyson
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Tyson also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Tyson over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
1 nickname for Tyson
Each one is a name in its own right — the figure underneath is how it is doing today, so you can see which short forms are rising and which have faded.
Tyson 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 Tyson
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Tyson — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Tyson
What does the name Tyson mean?
Son of a firebrand — the Old French tison, applied to a hot-tempered man.
Was it an insult?
Yes. Uncomplimentary bynames were ordinary; this one survived by becoming hereditary.
Is there a second origin?
A line from Dye, a pet form of Dionisia, is also proposed.
How popular is Tyson?
531st in the United States, down from a 2009 peak of 1,491 births.
Is Tyson a girl's or a boy's name?
Tyson is given almost entirely to boys in birth records.
How many syllables are in Tyson?
Tyson has 2 syllables.
What are the nicknames for Tyson?
Tyson is usually shortened to Ty.
Is Tyson a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Tyson currently ranks #237 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.