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The short answer
Tatum comes from an English surname originally derived from a place name meaning "Tata's homestead" in Old English. Behind the Name notes child actress Tatum O'Neal brought the name to public attention in the 1970s, though it did not catch on then; it gained modest popularity after 1996, when a character in the film Scream carried the name. It is pronounced TAY-təm. In the United States, db/list-batch.mjs's SSA 2025 figures place Tatum at #202 among boys' names and #189 among girls' names.
Meaning and etymology
Behind the Name gives Tatum as coming "from an English surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning 'Tata's homestead' in Old English." The entry traces its modern use to actress Tatum O'Neal (born 1963) in the 1970s and to a character in the 1996 film Scream, which the entry credits for the name's subsequent modest rise.
Editorial confidence: established
Linguistic roots
| Language | Form | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Old English | Tata + hām | Tata's homestead |
Popularity
According to db/list-batch.mjs's SSA 2025 figures, Tatum ranked #202 among boys' names and #189 among girls' names in the United States in 2025. The cached Behind the Name facts for Tatum carry no numeric rank to cross-check against.
| Region | Year | Rank | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States (boys) | 2025 | #202 | ssa-2025 |
| United States (girls) | 2025 | #189 | ssa-2025 |
United States, 2025: #189 (Social Security Administration)
Nicknames, variants, and related names
Nicknames: None documented.
Variants: Taytum
Related names: Tate, Weston, Sutton
What the name feels like
Tatum shares its surname-name shape and modern, screen-driven popularity story with names like Weston and Sutton, and its use for both boys and girls fits the broader current trend toward unisex surname names.
Style tags: surname name, unisex, modern, pop-culture influenced
Editorial interpretation: This style read is editorial opinion. Behind the Name records the word origin and pop-culture history, not a style classification.
If you like this name
Other unisex English surname names, or names connected to Tatum's pop-culture history.
Similar by sound
Similar by style
Frequently asked questions
What does the name Tatum mean?
Tatum means "Tata's homestead." It comes from an English surname derived from an Old English place name.
Is Tatum a boy's name or a girl's name?
Both. Behind the Name lists Tatum as used for both genders; in the United States it ranked #202 among boys and #189 among girls in 2025, according to Social Security Administration data.
Where did the name Tatum become popular?
Behind the Name notes it was first brought to attention by child actress Tatum O'Neal in the 1970s, though it only gained modest popularity after a character in the 1996 film Scream carried the name.
Sources
- Behind the Name: Meaning, origin and history of the name Tatum — supports etymology, pronunciation, history.
- U.S. Social Security Administration: Popular Baby Names — national data, year of birth 2025 — supports popularity.
