The Tennant surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 8,693 people carried this name — #4,085 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 33,900 people counted. That is up 5% from 8,304 in 2000.

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What the name means

The meaning of the Tennant surname

A surname originating as an occupation.

From tenant, an occupational surname.

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Tennant» (English), by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · excerpt, lightly adapted.

As an English and Welsh surname

Bardsley classes it as an occupational name: ‘the tenant’.

An early record he cites: Willelmus Tenaunt, 1379 — Poll Tax, West Riding of Yorkshire.

From Charles W. Bardsley, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with Special American Instances (London: Henry Frowde, 1901), p. 741 · public domain.

In Ireland’s birth registers, 1890

Ireland registered 5 births for the Tennant name in 1890.

Most were registered in Connacht. By the Registrar-General’s own method — births multiplied by 44.38 — that is about 200 people bearing the name in Ireland at the time.

Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.

Where they were born, 1890

Connacht 2
Ulster 2
Leinster 1

Registrar-General for Ireland, «Special Report on Surnames in Ireland» (R. E. Matheson, 1894), births index of 1890 — public domain.

Among the farmers of England and Wales, 1880s

Tennant was found among the farmers of 2 counties.

It was most frequent in Yorkshire, West Riding: 12 in every 10,000 farmers there — about 1 in 833. Guppy counted the farmers listed in each county’s directory and recorded a name only where it reached about 7 in every 10,000; where it does not appear, it was rarer than that, not absent.

Where it concentrates, on the map

Per 10,000 farmers, by county

Yorkshire, West Riding 12
Yorkshire, North and East Ridings 9

H. B. Guppy, «Homes of Family Names in Great Britain» (London, 1890), alphabetical list of English and Welsh names — public domain · farmers in Kelly’s Post Office Directories of the 1880s, per 10,000 farmers in each county.

In Scotland, 1880s

Tennant was 10 in every 10,000 names in Scotland.

That is about 1 in 1,000. Its home there, in Guppy’s words: “South of the Forth and the Clyde.” He counted the more than 20,000 names in Halliburton’s County Directory of Scotland, taking Scotland as a whole, and listed only the names that reached 10 in every 10,000.

H. B. Guppy, «Homes of Family Names in Great Britain» (London, 1890), appendix: alphabetical list of the most frequent Scottish names, p. 594 — public domain · names in Halliburton’s County Directory of Scotland, per 10,000 for the whole country.

In Scotland’s registers today

Tennant was recorded 28 times in Scotland’s registers of births, marriages and deaths in 2025.

That made it the 872nd most common name in those registers, shared with others on the same count. In 1975, the first year of the series, the count was 46. Each birth counts the child’s surname, each marriage both partners’ and each death the surname of the person who died — a yearly count of registrations, not of the people who live in Scotland.

National Records of Scotland, «Most Common Surnames, 2025» (published 26 May 2026): every surname recorded 10 or more times in the 2025 registers, and the series from 1975 · different spellings are counted separately — © Crown copyright 2026. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

In print

Tennant in American newspapers,
1899–1916.

Newspaper page from New-york Tribune carrying the name Tennant
New-york Tribune 1901-03-17
Newspaper page from Daily Kennebec Journal carrying the name Tennant
Daily Kennebec Journal 1916-06-01
Newspaper page from Santa Fe New Mexican carrying the name Tennant
Santa Fe New Mexican 1899-09-02

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 1,603 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Tennant in Australian newspapers,
1820s–1990s.

32,659 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Tennant. The most, 6,296, date from the 1910s. Weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, it stands out most in South Australia, at 3.5 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

South Australia 13,485
New South Wales 7,018
Queensland 4,399
Victoria 4,175
Tasmania 1,919
Western Australia 1,361
ACT (Canberra) 137
Northern Territory 89

Trove, National Library of Australia (trove.nla.gov.au) · articles in its digitised newspapers that name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Tennant.

Who carried it

People named Tennant,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Charles Edmund Tennant d. 1862 · naval officer
  • John Tennant d. 1678
  • Geraldine Tennant d. 1974
  • Laura Grant Tennant d. 1971
  • Charlotte Ann Josephine Tennant d. 1874
  • William Tennant d. 1835

Wikidata (CC0) · 10 lives in all are documented under this name.

In the public record

People named Tennant,
in the records of 7 countries.

Soldiers, farmers, migrants and neighbours who carried the name and left a trace in public archives. Everyone shown here died long ago or was born more than a century ago.

United States875 records

875 records of the Tennant name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 317
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 158
  • Other U.S. records 400
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Kenway A. Tennant

    Born 1914 in Pennsylvania. Enlisted 1942 at Albany, New York; shipping clerk. U.S. Army Air Forces veteran of World War II; died 1998, buried at St Johns Cemetery, Schenectady, New York.

    U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  2. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Barbara Tennant

    Arrived at New York in 1888 aboard the Etruria from Liverpool and Queenstown, aged 20; matron. From Liverpool, Germany; bound for New York.

    U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted)
  3. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record William Allan Tennant

    Born 1948; from Detroit, Michigan. U.S. Army, infantryman; killed in action 1969 in Hua Nghia, South Vietnam.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain)

Showing 3 of 875 records for Tennant in the United States.

Counts: U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted) · U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · NYC Department of Records & Information Services, Historical Vital Records (NYC Open Data) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · U.S. National Archives, Famine Irish Passenger Records (public domain) · City of Asheville (public domain, PDDL) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain) · Ramsey County, Minnesota (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: U.S. Selective Service registration card, 1942 (public domain); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain); Vietnam Veterans Memorial, photo by U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Carden, 2009 (public domain).

Australia688 records

688 records of the Tennant name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 374
  • Tasmanian Names Index 150
  • Other Australian records 164
  1. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Susan Tennant

    Died 1911 in Launceston, Tasmania. Will registered in Tasmania in 1911.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record George Tennant

    Applied for permission to marry in Van Diemen's Land in 1848. Married 1848 in Hobart, Tasmania, aged 35.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  3. An 1829 etching of convicts being rowed out to the prison ship York in Portsmouth Harbour
    Pictured: convicts going on board a prison ship, 1829
    Transportation record Henry Tennant

    Transported to New South Wales aboard the Countess of Harcourt, arriving 1824; ticket of leave 1832. Native of Wakefield.

    Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY)

Showing 3 of 688 records for Tennant in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0) · Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0) · Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY) · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · State Library of Western Australia (CC BY 4.0) · ACT Government, Transport Canberra and City Services (CC BY 4.0) · City of Ballarat, Avenue of Honour Plaques (CC BY 3.0 AU). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Petition to the probate court, St. Louis, 1848, Missouri Historical Society (public domain); Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain); Prison-ship in Portsmouth Harbour, with the convicts going on board, etching by Edward William Cooke, 1829, Royal Museums Greenwich (public domain).

Canada80 records

80 records of the Tennant name in Canada
  • Canadian Virtual War Memorial 17
  • City of Winnipeg cemetery records 16
  • Other Canadian records 47
  1. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Herbert Arthur Tennant

    Buried in 1964 at Burnsland Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta, aged 71.

    City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary.
  2. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Harold Frederick Tennant

    Died 1940 in Amherst, Cumberland, Nova Scotia.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.
  3. A Canadian First World War grave register card for a soldier who died of wounds in 1917
    Example: Canadian war grave register, 1917
    War record James Craig Tennant

    Died in service in 1916.

    Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada.

Showing 3 of 80 records for Tennant in Canada.

Counts: Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada. · City of Winnipeg. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Winnipeg. · City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. · City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary. · Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, photo by Edgar El (CC BY 3.0); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0); Canadian First World War circumstances-of-death register (scan by Scottgraham87 via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0).

United Kingdom59 records

59 records of the Tennant name in the United Kingdom
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 28
  • Stirling Council burial records 18
  • Other British records 13
  1. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record William Tennant

    Born 1892 at Lhanbryd; weaver. Served in the First World War. Named in the Morayshire roll of honour (1921).

    National Library of Scotland, Rolls of Honour (public domain)
  2. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Agnes Tennant

    Buried in 1925 at Strathblane Cemetery, Stirling, Scotland, aged 82.

    Stirling Council. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
  3. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Sarah Tennant

    Will proved in 1866; of Bangor, Carnarvon.

    National Library of Wales, Wills Index Cards (CC0)

Showing 3 of 59 records for Tennant in the United Kingdom.

Counts: National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · Stirling Council. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. · National Library of Scotland, Rolls of Honour (public domain) · MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. · National Library of Wales, Wills Index Cards (CC0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: C. & E. Morton Ltd roll of honour, 1914–1919, photo by Adrian S Pye via Geograph (CC BY-SA 2.0); Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0); Petition to the probate court, St. Louis, 1848, Missouri Historical Society (public domain).

Netherlands5 records

5 records of the Tennant name in the Netherlands
  • Dutch civil registers (births, marriages, deaths) 2
  • Dutch church registers before 1811 2
  • Dutch population registers 1
  1. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Margaretha Tennant

    Died 1829 in 's-Gravenhage, aged 70.

    Open Archives, Haags Gemeentearchief (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record John Tennant

    Married in 1652 in Rotterdam.

    Open Archives, Stadsarchief Rotterdam (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Isobel Tennant

    Married in 1678 in Rotterdam.

    Open Archives, Stadsarchief Rotterdam (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 5 records for Tennant in the Netherlands.

Counts: Open Archives (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0); Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain).

New Zealand4 records

4 records of the Tennant name in New Zealand
  • Christchurch City cemetery records 3
  • Thames-Coromandel District cemetery records 1
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Alice Tennant

    Died 1957, aged 69; buried at Bromley Cemetery, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Deidre Margaret Tennant

    Buried in 1952 at Totara Memorial Park Cemetery, Thames-Coromandel District, Waikato.

    Thames-Coromandel District Council (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record James Tennant

    Died 1909, aged 62; buried at Sydenham Cemetery, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 4 records for Tennant in New Zealand.

Counts: Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0) · Thames-Coromandel District Council (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0).

France1 record

1 record of the Tennant name in France France's national death register, 1970–2001
  1. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Marie Josephine Tennant

    Born 1910 in Curepipe - District de Plaines (Ile Maurice); died 1996 in Pau (Pyrénées-Atlantiques).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)

Counts: Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Death register of Nice, 1930, Archives départementales des Alpes-Maritimes (public domain).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Tennant.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Tennant is.
A volume says what happened to it.

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