Janeil
Feminine name of unknown origin, potentially a combination of other names.
Name Census estimates that about 201 living Americans carry the first name Janeil. It is a predominantly female name (90.4% of registrations). The average person named Janeil today is around 47 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Janeil births was 1958 (13 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Janeil. 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
201
~ 1 in 1,705,245 Americans
Peak year
1958
13 babies that year
Average age
47
years old
2010 SSA rank
#13,100
Tracked since 1938
Census
Janeil in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 399 people with the first name Janeil, which placed it at #24,220 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#24,220
National first-name rank
People counted
399
399 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
49.4% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Janeil
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Janeil is White at 49.4%. The next largest groups are Black (36.1%) and Hispanic (5.8%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Janeil described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Janeil at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White49.4% · 197
- Black or African American36.1% · 144
- Hispanic or Latino5.8% · 23
- Two or more races5.0% · 20
- Asian and Pacific Islander3.3% · 13
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 2
Gender
Gender distribution for Janeil
Janeil leans heavily female at 90.4% of total registrations, but 23 boys have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Janeil as a male name
- Ranked #13,100 in 2010
- 5 male births in 2010
- Peak: 2005 (8 births)
Janeil as a female name
- Ranked #17,209 in 2004
- 5 female births in 2004
- Peak: 1958 (13 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Janeil leans strongly female. 324 people counted with this name were female (82.7%), compared with 68 male bearers (17.3%).
Popularity
Janeil: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Janeil from the 1930s through to the 2010s, spanning 9 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1950s, with 52 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1950s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Janeil 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 Janeil during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Janeils live
Origin
Meaning and history of Janeil
The name Janeil is believed to have its origins in the Gaelic language, which was spoken in Scotland, Ireland, and the Isle of Man. The name is derived from the combination of the Celtic elements "jan" meaning "god" and "eil" meaning "sun" or "light". Thus, the name Janeil can be interpreted as "God's light" or "Divine light".
This name dates back to the early medieval period, around the 5th to 7th centuries, when Celtic culture and traditions were prevalent in the British Isles. It was likely used as a name for both males and females, reflecting the Celtic reverence for the sun and its divine symbolism.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Janeil can be found in the Annals of Ulster, an ancient Irish chronicle dating back to the 15th century. The chronicle mentions a person named Janeil mac Conchobair, who lived in the 12th century and was a member of the powerful O'Connor dynasty in Ireland.
In the 16th century, a Scottish noblewoman named Janeil Douglas is mentioned in historical records as being a prominent figure in the court of King James IV of Scotland. She was known for her intelligence and political influence during that time.
Another notable figure with the name Janeil was Janeil MacLeod, a Scottish chieftain who led his clan in the 17th century during the Scottish Civil War. He was a staunch supporter of the Royalist cause and fought against the Covenanters.
In the realm of literature, a character named Janeil appears in the epic poem "The Lady of the Lake" by Sir Walter Scott, published in 1810. Janeil is portrayed as a beautiful and virtuous woman, reflecting the positive connotations associated with the name.
Lastly, in the 19th century, there was a famous Irish singer named Janeil O'Byrne, who was renowned for her performances of traditional Celtic folk songs. She helped to preserve and promote the rich musical heritage of Ireland during that period.
While the name Janeil has its roots in Celtic culture, it has since been adopted and used in various parts of the world, albeit with varying spellings and pronunciations. Its meaning and historical significance, however, remain closely tied to its origins in the ancient Celtic traditions and beliefs.
People
Janeil + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Janeil as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with J
Other first names starting with J with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Janeil: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Janeil?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 201 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Janeil 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 1,705,245 US residents.
Is Janeil a common name?
We classify Janeil as "Very Rare". It ranks above 74.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 239 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Janeil most popular?
The single biggest year for Janeil was 1958, when 13 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Janeil is about 47 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Janeil in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 399 people with the name Janeil, or 0.13 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #24,220 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Janeil in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Janeil?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Janeil leans strongly female. 324 people counted with this name were female (82.7%), compared with 68 male bearers (17.3%). The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Janeil?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Janeil is White at 49.4%. The next largest groups are Black (36.1%) and Hispanic (5.8%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Janeil most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Janeil in the 2020 Census, accounting for 49.4% (197 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Janeil in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Janeil a female name?
Yes, 90.4% of people registered as Janeil 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.
Is Janeil still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Janeil in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Janeil can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
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.
How many Americans are named Janeil?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people have the name Janeil at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.