Given name & surname
Tou
“error”·“erroneous cause of action”
Tou is used as a given name and a surname.
Original Hebrewתעי
Meaning & origin
What it means
As a biblical name, Tou means “error” or “erroneous cause of action.”
From biblical name research
Where it comes from
Tou is a biblical name from Hebrew.
From biblical name research
How it developed
From the Hebrew verb ta'a (תעה), “to wander or stray.”
From biblical name research
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1980. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
In the Bible
In the Bible, the name Tou appears in 1 Chronicles 18:9-10.
From biblical name research
Tou through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 1,254
- 1,254 boys · 0 girls
- Most popular year
- 1990
- 82 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 boys is 6 in 2015. Later missing counts do not mean the name went unused. Its largest published annual count for boys was 82 in 1990. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 2,131 as a first name in 2020; 341 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.
Tou’s family of names
In Greek usage, Tou is a transliteration of Του.
Inner ring: spellings · outer: nicknames and forms.
Nicknames & forms 1
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 1
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Similar names
If you love Tou, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Tiras
“but perhaps desire” · “fragmentizer or moisturizer”
>99% boys
Shaphan
“coney” · “shy”
>99% boys
Tobijah
“Yahweh is good” · “yah(u) is my good”
>99% boys
Nahshon
“serpent” · “bronze”
>99% boys
Tahan
“encampment”
>99% boys
Zephon
“gaze” · “cover”
>99% boys
Jarib
“he contends”
>99% boys
Ophir
“coast of riches” · “gathering Mark of wealth”
>99% boys