Tate is an English surname from the Old English personal name Tata, whose meaning is uncertain but is usually given as "cheerful". The one-syllable crispness puts it alongside Cole, Reid and Beau, and the Tate galleries in London add a touch of culture. Tate has been in the US top 1000 since 2000, when it ranked number 436; it moved from number 420 in 2015 to number 194 in 2025, its best rank so far.