Djuna
An uncommon feminine name derived from a French surname of uncertain meaning.
Name Census estimates that about 322 living Americans carry the first name Djuna. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Djuna today is around 52 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Djuna births was 1964 (198 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Djuna. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
People living today
322
~ 1 in 1,064,454 Americans
Peak year
1964
198 babies that year
Average age
52
years old
2023 SSA rank
#13,879
Tracked since 1964
Popularity
Djuna: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Djuna from the 1960s through to the 2020s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1960s, with 285 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1960s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Djuna by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Djuna during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Djunas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 16 states and territories. Louisiana, Illinois, California recorded the most babies named Djuna, while Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Georgia recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 10 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Djuna
The name Djuna is believed to be a feminine variation of the Arabic name Juna, which means "refuge" or "shelter." The origins of this name can be traced back to the Middle East and North Africa, where it was likely first used during medieval times.
One of the earliest known references to the name Djuna can be found in the work of the renowned Sufi poet Rumi, who lived in the 13th century. In his poetry, Rumi often used the name Juna as a symbolic representation of the human soul seeking refuge in the divine.
The first recorded use of the spelling "Djuna" is attributed to the American writer and artist Djuna Barnes, who was born in 1892 and lived until 1982. Barnes, who was of English and Irish descent, adopted the spelling "Djuna" as a way to make her name more visually striking and unique.
Another notable figure with the name Djuna was Djuna Evelyn Moser, a German-American artist and sculptor who lived from 1888 to 1970. Moser was known for her abstract sculptures and her work in the Bauhaus movement.
In the realm of literature, Djuna Moss was an American poet and writer who lived from 1944 to 2022. She was known for her experimental poetry and her involvement in the Beat Generation literary movement.
Djuna Barnes, the American writer and artist mentioned earlier, is perhaps the most famous individual with this name. Her novel "Nightwood," published in 1936, is considered a seminal work of modernist literature and has been widely studied and analyzed by literary scholars.
While the name Djuna is not as common as some other names, it has a rich history and has been associated with several prominent figures in the arts and literature over the past century. Its unique spelling and origins make it a distinctive and intriguing name with a sense of mystery and intrigue.
People
Djuna + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Djuna as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with D
Other first names starting with D with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Djuna: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Djuna?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 322 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Djuna going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 1,064,454 US residents.
Is Djuna a common name?
We classify Djuna as "Very Rare". It ranks above 80% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 375 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Djuna most popular?
The single biggest year for Djuna was 1964, when 198 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Djuna is about 52 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Djuna a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Djuna in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.