Junkai
A Japanese name meaning "obedient" or "respectful".
Name Census estimates that about 11 living Americans carry the first name Junkai. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Junkai today is around 7 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Junkai births was 2019 (6 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Junkai. 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.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Junkai with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Junkai. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
11
~ 1 in 31,159,485 Americans
Peak year
2019
6 babies that year
Average age
7
years old
2020 SSA rank
#13,019
Tracked since 2019
Popularity
Junkai: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Junkai from the 2010s through to the 2020s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 6 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Junkai 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 Junkai during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Junkai
The given name Junkai has its origins in the Japanese language. It is a combination of two Japanese words, "jun" meaning obedient or pure, and "kai" meaning ocean or sea. This name dates back to the Heian period in Japan, which spanned the late 8th to the late 12th century.
Junkai was a relatively common name among the Japanese nobility during this period, with several notable figures bearing this name. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name is found in the Genji Monogatari, a classic work of Japanese literature written in the early 11th century by the court lady Murasaki Shikibu.
In the 13th century, there was a notable Buddhist monk named Junkai Shuren who was a prominent figure in the Rinzai school of Zen Buddhism. He was known for his teachings and his efforts in spreading Zen teachings throughout Japan.
During the Edo period (1603-1867), a samurai named Junkai Hoshina served as a retainer to the powerful Tokugawa shogunate. He was known for his loyalty and bravery in battle.
In the 19th century, a Japanese artist and calligrapher named Junkai Sakamoto gained recognition for his beautiful ink paintings and calligraphic works. He was highly regarded for his mastery of traditional Japanese art forms.
Another notable figure with the name Junkai was a Japanese diplomat and statesman, Junkai Nishi, who lived in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He played a crucial role in the negotiations that led to the Treaty of Portsmouth, which ended the Russo-Japanese War in 1905.
These are just a few examples of notable individuals throughout history who bore the given name Junkai. The name's roots in Japanese culture and its association with concepts of purity, obedience, and the ocean have made it a enduring and meaningful name in Japanese tradition.
People
Junkai + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Junkai 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
Junkai: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Junkai?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 11 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Junkai 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 31,159,485 US residents.
Is Junkai a common name?
We classify Junkai as "Very Rare". It ranks above 30.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 11 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Junkai most popular?
The single biggest year for Junkai was 2019, when 6 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Junkai is about 7 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
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 Junkai in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Junkai a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Junkai 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.
Is Junkai still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Junkai 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 Junkai 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.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many Americans are named Junkai?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.