Minjoon
A masculine Korean name with meanings like gentle, humble, or peaceful.
Name Census estimates that about 5 living Americans carry the first name Minjoon. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Minjoon today is around 12 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Minjoon births was 2014 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Minjoon. 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
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Minjoon. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
5
~ 1 in 68,550,868 Americans
Peak year
2014
5 babies that year
Average age
12
years old
2014 SSA rank
#13,391
Tracked since 2014
Popularity
Minjoon: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Minjoon 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 Minjoon during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 5 | 0 | 5 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Minjoon
The name Minjoon is a Korean given name with roots dating back to the ancient kingdoms of the Korean peninsula. It is derived from the combination of two Sino-Korean words, "min" meaning "bright" or "intelligent" and "jun" meaning "respected" or "virtuous." The name has been recorded in historical documents and literature from as early as the Silla kingdom, which ruled parts of the Korean peninsula from the 7th to the 9th centuries.
One of the earliest known mentions of the name Minjoon can be found in the "Samguk Yusa," a historical text compiled in the 13th century during the Goryeo dynasty. This work chronicles the lives of notable figures and events from the Three Kingdoms period of ancient Korea. The name appears in reference to a scholar and official who served during the reign of King Jinheung of Silla in the 6th century.
In the Joseon dynasty, which ruled Korea from the 14th to the early 20th century, the name Minjoon was particularly popular among the yangban class, the aristocratic ruling class of scholars and bureaucrats. Several prominent historical figures bore this name, including Minjoon Yi (1586-1642), a renowned Neo-Confucian scholar and writer who served as a high-ranking official in the Joseon court.
Another notable bearer of the name was Minjoon Park (1635-1703), a highly respected Confucian scholar and calligrapher during the latter part of the Joseon dynasty. His works and teachings on Confucian philosophy and ethics had a significant influence on the intellectual and cultural landscape of his time.
In more recent history, Minjoon Kim (1900-1962) was a prominent Korean educator and independence activist who played a crucial role in the establishment of the modern Korean education system. He dedicated his life to promoting education and fighting for Korea's independence from Japanese colonial rule.
Minjoon Seo (1918-1983) was a renowned Korean painter and art educator who helped shape the modern art movement in Korea. His works, which often depicted traditional Korean landscapes and scenes from daily life, are celebrated for their unique style and contribution to preserving Korean cultural heritage through art.
While the name Minjoon has deep historical roots and cultural significance in Korea, it has also been adopted by individuals in other parts of the world, particularly among the Korean diaspora communities. However, the name's origins and connections to Korean history and culture remain an integral part of its identity and meaning.
People
Minjoon + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Minjoon as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with M
Other first names starting with M with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Minjoon: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Minjoon?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 5 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Minjoon 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 68,550,868 US residents.
Is Minjoon a common name?
We classify Minjoon as "Very Rare". It ranks above 18.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 5 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Minjoon most popular?
The single biggest year for Minjoon was 2014, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Minjoon is about 12 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 Minjoon in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Minjoon a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Minjoon 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 Minjoon still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Minjoon 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 Minjoon 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 people have Minjoon as a first name?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.