Explore the Family Name Tenny

The meaning of Tenny

1. Possibly an Americanized form of Jewish Tennenbaum. 2. English: variant of Tenney. This form of the surname is rare in Britain and Ireland.

Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.

How common is the last name Tenny in the United States?

According to data from the Decennial U.S. Census, the popularity of the surname Tenny has seen a slight decrease between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, the surname ranked 31,592 in popularity with 692 instances per 100,000 people. However, by 2010, the rank had slipped to 34,707, with only 651 instances per 100,000, marking a change of -5.92%.

20002010Change
Rank#31,592#34,707-9.86%
Count692651-5.92%
Proportion per 100k0.260.22-15.38%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Tenny

When it comes to ethnic identity, data from the Decennial U.S. Census shows some shifts for those carrying the Tenny surname from 2000 to 2010. The percentage of Asian/Pacific Islanders and Hispanics with this surname more than doubled, jumping from 1.45% to 2.92%. Black individuals carrying the Tenny surname also increased from 11.42% to 13.36%. However, while the proportion of whites with the Tenny surname was highest at 84.54% in 2000, it did see a decrease to 78.34% in 2010. There were no recorded changes for those identifying as two or more races or American Indian and Alaskan Native.

20002010Change
White84.54%78.34%-7.33%
Black11.42%13.36%16.99%
Asian/Pacific Islander1.45%2.92%101.38%
Hispanic1.45%2.92%101.38%
Two or More Races0%0%0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native0%0%0%