Meaning & origin
Where it comes from
Tawney is a variant of Tawny. The English given name comes from the color word tawny. Tawny’s older forms include Anglo-Norman tauné and Old French tané, “tanned.”
Explained through its name family
How it developed
Tawney is a variant of Tawny. The shared background comes through Tawny: As an English given name, Tawny develops from a word used to describe color, including hair color. Tawny follows the broader pattern seen in color-related choices such as Ginger and Sandy.
Explained through its name family
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1948. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin. Tawney is a variant of Tawny. The history of Tawny gives this family its wider story. Tawny belongs to a modern English tradition of turning descriptive vocabulary into given names.
Combines direct and name-family evidence
Tawney through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 575
- 0 boys · 575 girls
- Most popular year
- 1988
- 43 babies
- 2025
- 0
- Outside the ranked list
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- —
- Too few births to compare
By the numbers
The most recent published U.S. birth count for girls is 8 in 2005. Later missing counts do not mean the name went unused. Its largest published annual count for girls was 43 in 1988. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 574 as a first name in 2020; 1,528 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Tawney’s family of names
Tawney has a related form in Tawny. In English usage, Tawney as a surname has a related form in Taney. In English usage, Tawney as a surname has a related form in Taney.
The ring: nicknames and forms.
Nicknames & forms 3
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Similar names
If you love Tawney, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Taryn
“of the thunder” · “from the high, rocky hill”
7% boys · 93% girls
Tania
“queen of the fairies”
>99% girls
Britney
“a woman from Great Britain”
>99% girls
Alyse
“noble” · “kind”
>99% girls
Ashley
“ash” · “wood”
1% boys · 99% girls
Hayley
“from the field of hay”
>99% girls
Whitney
“from the white island”
4% boys · 96% girls
Tiara
“one who is crowned”
>99% girls