Girl · Italian (Tuscan); English use from Teresa
Tessa
Say it: TES-sah
Meaning
In medieval Tuscany a short form of Contessa; the English Tessa is usually a short form of Teresa instead.
Likelythe main view, with some doubt.
Boccaccio gives the name to Monna Tessa, the sharp-tongued wife of Calandrino in the Decameron.
Its wave through time
Popular now
In the United States
- 50,816 babies given this name since 1891
- At its height in 2007, about 1 in 1,100 girls
- 1,123 babies in 2020
Through the ages
Used by
Names worth a look
Where this comes from
- Well-known works of literature
- Medieval and Renaissance Italian records, such as the Florentine tax survey of 1427
- United States Social Security birth records, 1880 to today source
Meanings and histories are compiled from the study of names and their languages and checked by a second review.
Meanings and histories are drawn from the study of names and their languages, each with a confidence rating; popularity figures come from official birth records. Name histories are a living field: if you know of a correction, we would be glad to hear it.