January
The feminine name of Latin origin referring to the month of January.
Name Census estimates that about 2,015 living Americans carry the first name January. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named January today is around 39 years old, and the year with the single highest number of January births was 1978 (257 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for January. 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
2.0K
~ 1 in 170,101 Americans
Peak year
1978
257 babies that year
Average age
39
years old
2024 SSA rank
#9,165
Tracked since 1951
Popularity
January: popularity over time
The SSA tracks January from the 1950s through to the 2020s, spanning 8 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1970s, with 1,000 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1970s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
January 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 January during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Januarys live
The SSA's state-level files cover 27 states and territories. California, Texas, New York recorded the most babies named January, while Iowa, Arkansas, Massachusetts recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 31 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of January
The given name January has its origins in the Latin language and is derived from the name of the first month of the year in the Gregorian calendar. The Latin word "Ianuarius" is believed to be named after the Roman god Janus, who was the god of beginnings, gates, transitions, time, duality, and endings.
In ancient Roman culture, the month of January was considered a significant time of new beginnings and fresh starts. It marked the start of the new year and was a time for reflection, renewal, and setting intentions for the upcoming months. The name January was likely chosen as a symbol of this new beginning and the cycle of time.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name January can be found in the writings of the Roman historian Pliny the Elder, who lived from 23 to 79 AD. He mentioned the name in his work "Naturalis Historia," which explored various aspects of the natural world and the Roman calendar.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name January. One of the earliest recorded was January Bogdanovich (c. 1500-1551), a Belarusian nobleman and military leader who played a significant role in the Livonian War between the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Livonian Confederation.
Another prominent figure with the name January was January van der Noot (1539-1595), a Flemish lawyer and politician who was a leading figure in the Dutch Revolt against Spanish rule. He was instrumental in drafting the Union of Arras, which sought to maintain a unified Netherlands under Spanish control.
In the realm of literature, January Weitz (1892-1966) was a German writer and poet who was part of the literary movement known as the "Neue Sachlichkeit" (New Objectivity). His works often explored themes of urban life and societal changes during the interwar period.
In more recent history, January Jones (born in 1978) is an American actress best known for her roles in television series such as "Mad Men" and "The Last Man on Earth." She has also appeared in several films, including "X-Men: First Class" and "Unknown."
Another notable individual with the name January is January Grika (born in 1987), an Albanian singer and songwriter who has achieved significant success in her home country and throughout the Balkans region. She has released several albums and has been recognized with numerous music awards.
People
January + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with January 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
January: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named January?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 2,015 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for January 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 170,101 US residents.
Is January a common name?
We classify January as "Rare". It ranks above 93.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 2,160 babies have been registered with this name.
When was January most popular?
The single biggest year for January was 1978, when 257 babies received the name. The fact that the average living January is about 39 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is January a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as January 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.