Theresa

Meaning & origin

Theresa is a name with deep historical roots, though its exact meaning remains uncertain. In the United States, the name saw its peak popularity in 1961, when it ranked higher than any other year. However, its trajectory since 1985 has been one of steady decline, and by 2025, the name had fallen to a rank of 1548, meaning that only about 1 in every 11,818 baby girls born that year received the name. Despite its falling numbers nationally, Theresa still maintains pockets of relative popularity in certain states: in Minnesota, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey, it is used more frequently than in other parts of the country. For those seeking a classic name with a long history of use, Theresa offers a quiet dignity, though its modern usage remains modest compared to its mid-century heyday.

Theresa is a name of uncertain origin, with the most widely accepted theory tracing it to the Greek island of Thera (now Santorini). Another hypothesis connects it to the Greek verb therizein, meaning 'to harvest,' though this is speculative. The name rose to prominence through Saint Teresa of Ávila, the 16th-century Spanish mystic and reformer of the Carmelite order, and later Saint Thérèse of Lisieux, the French Carmelite known as 'The Little Flower.' By the 20th century, Theresa became widely used across the English-speaking world, often alongside the alternative spelling Teresa.