Joscelyn
A feminine name of French origin meaning "where plenty abounds".
Name Census estimates that about 2,044 living Americans carry the first name Joscelyn. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Joscelyn today is around 25 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Joscelyn births was 2007 (117 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Joscelyn. 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 167,688 Americans
Peak year
2007
117 babies that year
Average age
25
years old
2024 SSA rank
#9,836
Tracked since 1924
Popularity
Joscelyn: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Joscelyn from the 1920s through to the 2020s, spanning 9 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 807 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Joscelyn 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 Joscelyn during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Joscelyns live
The SSA's state-level files cover 13 states and territories. California, Texas, Florida recorded the most babies named Joscelyn, while Oklahoma, Iowa, Wisconsin recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 46 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Joscelyn
The name Joscelyn has its origins in the medieval French language, derived from the Norman French variant "Joscelin" or "Goscelin." This name can be traced back to the Old German name "Gaudissalinus," which combines the elements "gaud" (joy or gladness) and "sal" (room or hall). It was initially popularized in England following the Norman Conquest in 1066.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Joscelyn appears in the 11th century, when Joscelin de Courtenay (c. 1060-1131) was a notable crusader and the Count of Edessa during the First Crusade. Another prominent figure bearing this name was Joscelin III of Edessa (c. 1134-1200), who ruled the County of Edessa in the 12th century.
During the Middle Ages, the name Joscelyn was particularly prevalent among members of the nobility and clergy. Joscelin de Brakelonde (c. 1180-1230) was a chronicler and monk at the Abbey of Bury St Edmunds in England. Joscelin de Vaux (fl. 1200-1238) was an English nobleman and served as Sheriff of Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire.
In the 13th century, Joscelin of Trent (c. 1210-1268) was a renowned English philosopher and theologian. He was a member of the Franciscan Order and wrote extensively on metaphysics and logic.
Moving into the early modern period, Sir Josceline Percy (1644-1670) was an English aristocrat and member of the House of Percy, one of the most powerful families in northern England during the 16th and 17th centuries.
While the name Joscelyn was historically more common among men, it has gained popularity as a feminine name in more recent times. However, it is important to note that historical records and references to notable individuals with this name primarily date back to the Middle Ages and the early modern era.
People
Joscelyn + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Joscelyn 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
Joscelyn: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Joscelyn?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 2,044 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Joscelyn 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 167,688 US residents.
Is Joscelyn a common name?
We classify Joscelyn as "Rare". It ranks above 93.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 2,114 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Joscelyn most popular?
The single biggest year for Joscelyn was 2007, when 117 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Joscelyn is about 25 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Joscelyn a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Joscelyn 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.