Names/J

January

girls’ nameFadedCompare

January is outside the top 1,000 in 2024, with 11 births. Its best rank was 638th, in 1978.

Rank in 2024
outside the top 1,000
Births in 2024
110.00% of girls
Peak year
1978257 births
Best rank
#638in 1978
Since 1951
2,160people given the name
Babies named January, by year of birthgirls
012525037550018801900192019401960198020002020

The story in the numbers

2,160 girls have been named January in the United States since 1951, according to Social Security records. The busiest single year was 1978, with 257 births.

The name has all but left use: 11 births in 2024, against 257 at the peak.

Half of everyone given the name was born by 1979, and the 1970s alone account for 46%. It has spent 4 of 145 years in the top 1,000.

Rank among girls, year by year

Higher on the chart = more popularrank (gaps = outside the top 1,000)
#1#250#500#750#100018801900192019401960198020002020

By decade

Decadegirls named January
1950s17
1960s75
1970s1,000
1980s517
1990s116
2000s115
2010s239
2020s81

In 1978, its biggest year

January was the 638th most given girl’s name that year. The top five girls’ names of 1978 were Jennifer, Melissa, Jessica, Amy and Heather. See all of 1978.

Names that rose and fell with January

Same sex, most similar popularity curve over 145 years, in five-year steps — the shape of the line, not the size.

What this page does not tell you. The Social Security data records how many babies were given a name, not what the name means or where it comes from — so neither do we. Counts cover people with a Social Security number; names given to fewer than five babies in a year are withheld. More on the data.