Johney
A masculine name derived from the Hebrew name Johanan meaning "God is gracious".
Name Census estimates that about 592 living Americans carry the first name Johney. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Johney today is around 66 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Johney births was 1919 (45 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Johney. 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.
Key insights
- • The typical person named Johney is about 66 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Johneys were born before 1970.
People living today
592
~ 1 in 578,977 Americans
Peak year
1919
45 babies that year
Average age
66
years old
2006 SSA rank
#4,564
Tracked since 1888
Gender
Gender distribution for Johney
Out of the 1,525 babies given the name Johney since 1880, 99.6% were registered as male. The name sits firmly on the male side of the spectrum, with only a handful of female registrations across the entire dataset.
Johney as a male name
- Ranked #11,291 in 2006
- 6 male births in 2006
- Peak: 1919 (45 births)
Johney as a female name
- Ranked #4,564 in 1926
- 6 female births in 1926
- Peak: 1926 (6 births)
Popularity
Johney: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Johney from the 1880s through to the 2000s, spanning 12 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 301 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1920s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Johney 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 Johney during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Johneys live
The SSA's state-level files cover 10 states and territories. Mississippi, Texas, South Carolina recorded the most babies named Johney, while Louisiana, California, Georgia recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 17 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Johney
The name Johney is an English variant of the Hebrew name John, which is derived from the Hebrew name Yohanan, meaning "Graced by God" or "Yahweh is gracious." The name Johney first appeared in England during the Middle Ages, around the 12th or 13th century.
Johney is a diminutive form of John, which was a popular name among English Christians due to its biblical origins. The name is rooted in the New Testament and is associated with John the Baptist and John the Apostle, two prominent figures in the Christian faith.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Johney can be found in the Domesday Book, a manuscript record of landholdings and properties in England, commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. The name is also mentioned in various medieval texts and records, such as the Pipe Rolls of Henry II from the late 12th century.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Johney. One of the earliest was Johney of Gaunt (c. 1340-1399), an English prince and son of King Edward III. He was a prominent military leader during the Hundred Years' War and played a significant role in the political affairs of England.
Another historical figure named Johney was Johney Wycliffe (c. 1320-1384), an English scholar and theologian who is considered a forerunner of the Protestant Reformation. He advocated for translating the Bible into the vernacular and challenged the authority of the Catholic Church.
In the 16th century, Johney Knox (c. 1514-1572) was a Scottish minister and a leader of the Reformation in Scotland. He played a crucial role in establishing Presbyterianism as the national religion of Scotland and is revered as one of the founders of the Presbyterian Church.
During the English Civil War, Johney Hampden (1594-1643) was a prominent parliamentarian and a leading figure in the opposition against King Charles I. He is remembered for his principled stand against the Ship Money tax and his role in the early stages of the conflict.
In the 18th century, Johney Wesley (1703-1791) was an Anglican cleric and a central figure in the Methodist movement. He founded the Methodist Church and is renowned for his extensive preaching and efforts to spread Christian teachings throughout England and beyond.
People
Johney + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Johney 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
Johney: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Johney?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 592 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Johney 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 578,977 US residents.
Is Johney a common name?
We classify Johney as "Very Rare". It ranks above 86.1% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,525 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Johney most popular?
The single biggest year for Johney was 1919, when 45 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Johney is about 66 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Johney a male name?
Yes, 99.6% of people registered as Johney in the SSA data are male. 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.