Given name & surname · also German

Tab

“a brilliant man”·“a drummer”

Tab is used as a given name and a surname. Interpretations include “a brilliant man” and “a drummer”. These belong to different or overlapping naming contexts.

Meaning & origin

What it means

Interpretations include “a brilliant man” and “a drummer”. These belong to different or overlapping naming contexts.

Where it comes from

This spelling has been associated with German and English naming traditions.

The story

Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1953. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.

From dated birth records

Tab through the years

Babies since 1880
1,110
1,110 boys · 0 girls
Most popular year
1957
120 babies
2025
0
Outside the ranked list
2021–25 vs 2016–20
—
Too few births to compare
02040601960198020002025Highest share 19570.0
Tab in U.S. Social Security birth records, 1953–2025, per million boys born. Years with fewer than five births for a sex are not published and appear as zero. Use the arrow keys to step through years.

By the numbers

The most recent published U.S. birth count for boys is 5 in 2015. Later missing counts do not mean the name went unused. Its largest published annual count for boys was 120 in 1957. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 1,041 as a first name in 2020.

From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.

Tab’s family of names

Tab has a related form in Tabb.

Walk Tab’s family in the name graph

TabTabb

The ring: nicknames and forms.

Hover or tab through the constellation to see how each name is related. Bigger dots are names more people in the U.S. share.

Nicknames & forms 1

Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.

People named Tab

Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.

Appears in

Similar names

If you love Tab, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.

English · Literary

Ted

“a gift from God” · “having heart”

29RareEasing

>99% boys

English

Al

“one who counsels the elves” · “one who is noble and bright”

17Very rareCooling

>99% boys

English

Jac

Jac is a masculine given name from English. It is used in Welsh.

20RareSteady

>99% boys

English

Vyron

Vyron is a masculine given name from Greek, ultimately from English.

0Not recently recorded

>99% boys

English

Gale

“a foreigner” · “one who is cheerful”

18Very rareEasing

85% boys · 15% girls

English

Waymond

Waymond is a masculine given name.

0Not recently recorded

>99% boys

English · Royal

Hal

“the ruler of the house” · “home”

29RareRising

>99% boys

English

Kemp

“the champion”

22RareSteady

>99% boys

Sibling ideas

Names that share Tab’s feel without repeating its first letter or rhyming with it.

A brother for Tab

A sister for Tab