Tress as a Baby Name. Meaning and Origin of Tress

What is the meaning of the name Tress ?

The baby name Tress is a Female name , 1 syllables long and is pronounced /trɛs/ (rhymes with 'dress').

Tress is English in Origin.

Tress is an English given name with a sleek, surname-like feel, drawn from the noun tress, “a lock of hair.” The word entered Middle English via Old French tresse “braid,” ultimately tracing to Latin trichia and Greek thrix, trikhos “hair.” This root lends Tress an image-rich sense tied to beauty, braids, and flowing hair.

Beyond the word-name route, Tress also serves as a short form of Cornish Tressa (interpreted as “third”) and of Teresa/Theresa (of debated origin, often linked to “harvest” or the Aegean island Therasia). In U.S. records, Tress - and especially the vintage diminutive Tressie - surfaces from the late 19th to early 20th century; today it feels rare, crisp, and potentially unisex. Variants and related forms include Tressa, Tressie, Tres, Tess, and Tessa. Meanings therefore range from “lock of hair” to “third” to Teresa’s traditional associations of industriousness and the legacies of Saints Teresa/Thérèse.

⚙ Tress is seldom given. We count 52 recorded uses of it across 25 countries.