Given name
Tristen
“one who is sorrowful”
Tristen is a variant of Trista. In English use, Trista carries the interpretation “one who is sorrowful.” Tristen is a variant of Tristan. One Celtic interpretation is “a sorrowful man; in Arthurian legend, a knight of the Round Table.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
Tristen is a variant of Trista. In English use, Trista carries the interpretation “one who is sorrowful.” Tristen is a variant of Tristan. One Celtic interpretation is “a sorrowful man; in Arthurian legend, a knight of the Round Table.”
Explained through its name family
Where it comes from
Tristen is a variant of Tristan. An origin associated with Tristan is Celtic.
Explained through its name family
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1968. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin. Tristen is a variant of Tristan. The history of Tristan gives this family its wider story. Tristan’s literary history includes the stories of King Arthur and his knights.
Combines direct and name-family evidence
Tristen through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 25,554
- 21,372 boys · 4,182 girls
- Most popular year
- 1996
- 1,478 babies
- 2025
- 121
- #1,512 for boys · #17,071 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −56%
- Cooling
Boys, girls and both
The balance of boys and girls given this name has shifted over time. Recent births are 96% boys.
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 116 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 1,512 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 55.0% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 1,188 in 1996. It also appeared in 5 birth records for girls in 2025. In 2025, Texas had the largest reported state-level birth count for boys with this name (13). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 20,670 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.
Tristen’s family of names
Tristen has a related form in Tristan. Tristen has a related form in Trista.
Inner ring: spellings · outer: nicknames and forms.
Nicknames & forms 4
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 2
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
People named Tristen
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Tristen, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
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