Explore the Family Name Tess

The meaning of Tess

German: from a Germanized short form of any of various Slavic personal names with the first element teš ‘to comfort, to console’ (see Tesch and Tessmer).

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

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

Based on the Decennial U.S. Census, the popularity of the surname Tess has seen minor changes over a decade from 2000 to 2010. The rank of this surname has slightly decreased by approximately 4.82%, moving from 36,807 in 2000 to 38,582 in 2010. However, the count of individuals with this surname remained almost constant with a slight increase from 572 in 2000 to 573 in 2010. Consequently, the proportion per 100,000 people with the surname Tess declined by about 9.52%.

20002010Change
Rank#36,807#38,582-4.82%
Count5725730.17%
Proportion per 100k0.210.19-9.52%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Tess

The ethnic identity associated with the surname Tess, derived from the Decennial U.S. Census data, shows some variations between 2000 and 2010. Most notably, there was a significant increase of 140.23% in people identifying as belonging to two or more races. In contrast, the percentage of individuals identifying as White slightly dropped by 1.47%. The Hispanic population with Tess as a surname also saw a decrease of 14.69%, while the Black demographic experienced an increase of 57.38%. No data were available for individuals with Tess as a surname identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander or American Indian and Alaskan Native.

20002010Change
White93.88%92.5%-1.47%
Two or More Races0.87%2.09%140.23%
Hispanic2.45%2.09%-14.69%
Black1.22%1.92%57.38%
Asian/Pacific Islander0%0%0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native0%0%0%