Jawanna
Feminine name derived from the Hebrew word "yawnah" meaning "dove".
Name Census estimates that about 285 living Americans carry the first name Jawanna. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Jawanna today is around 43 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Jawanna births was 1978 (24 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Jawanna. 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
285
~ 1 in 1,202,647 Americans
Peak year
1978
24 babies that year
Average age
43
years old
1999 SSA rank
#15,408
Tracked since 1963
Popularity
Jawanna: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Jawanna from the 1960s through to the 1990s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1980s, with 114 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1980s peak, Jawanna remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Jawanna 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 Jawanna during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Jawannas live
Origin
Meaning and history of Jawanna
The name Jawanna is of African American origin, derived from the combination of the names Joan and Anna. Its roots can be traced back to the early 20th century in the United States, particularly among African American communities.
The name Joan has its origins in the Hebrew name Yohanan, meaning "God is gracious." Anna, on the other hand, is derived from the Hebrew name Hannah, which means "grace" or "favor." The blending of these two names gave rise to the unique and melodic name Jawanna.
While there are no direct historical references or mentions in ancient texts, the name Jawanna emerged as a popular choice among African American families during the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s. It was a time when African Americans sought to embrace their cultural identity and celebrate their heritage through the use of distinctive and meaningful names.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Jawanna dates back to the 1950s. However, it gained widespread popularity in the following decades. Notable individuals who have borne the name Jawanna throughout history include:
1. Jawanna King (born 1964), an American former professional basketball player who played in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA).
2. Jawanna Mays (born 1967), an American former professional basketball player who played in the WNBA and won a gold medal with the United States women's national basketball team at the 1988 Summer Olympics.
3. Jawanna Patrice Green (born 1971), an American former professional basketball player who played in the WNBA and won a gold medal with the United States women's national basketball team at the 1996 Summer Olympics.
4. Jawanna Oldacre (born 1971), an American actress and model known for her roles in television series such as "The Steve Harvey Show" and "The Parkers."
5. Jawanna Newborne (born 1972), an American former professional basketball player who played in the WNBA and won a gold medal with the United States women's national basketball team at the 2000 Summer Olympics.
While the name Jawanna may have originated within the African American community, it has gained popularity across various cultures and backgrounds, becoming a symbol of individuality and personal identity.
People
Jawanna + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Jawanna 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
Jawanna: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Jawanna?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 285 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Jawanna 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 1,202,647 US residents.
Is Jawanna a common name?
We classify Jawanna as "Very Rare". It ranks above 78.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 306 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Jawanna most popular?
The single biggest year for Jawanna was 1978, when 24 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Jawanna is about 43 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Jawanna a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Jawanna 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.