The earliest we see it in English is 1823. Then, The New York Times quoted someone using it as a farewell in 1889. But “ta-ta” caught on in Great Britain in the 1940s. A character on a popular radio play would say “ta-ta,” or “TTFN” (ta-ta for now).

Where did the term TTFN originate?

TTFN is an initialism for a colloquial valediction, "ta ta for now", based on "ta ta", an informal "goodbye". The expression came to prominence in the UK during the Second World War. ... Tim Horton, the deceased professional hockey player and founder of the Tim Horton's Doughnut chain, has "TTFN" on his grave stone.

When did Tigger start saying TTFN?

In Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day—a 1968 Disney animated film based on the book Winnie-the-Pooh by the English author A. A. Milne—the character Tigger uses TTFN to say goodbye.