Josephine

#53 for girls in 2025, 4,126 births · Last seen for boys in 2023 at #12,239
Given to girls 99.7% of the time

Showing
Show data for
Peak · girls
1917 · 8,326 births
Debut · girls
544 births
In top 100 · girls
71 yrs
of 146 years
Total births · girls
331,467
since 1880

Josephine over time

girls

Rank among girls' names. Click any year to open it.

#1#10#100rank188019001920194019601980200020201931peak #21, 1917girls
Hover or use arrow keys to read values by year; click or press Enter to open that year.

Gaps mean fewer than 5 babies received the name that year, so the SSA doesn't publish it.

Show data table
Yeargirlsboys
rankbirthsrankbirths
2025#534,126—
2024#563,765—
2023#643,371#12,2395
2022#703,266—
2021#723,391—
2020#873,057—
2019#903,123—
2018#913,050—
2017#1072,823—
2016#1142,797—
2015#1312,505—
2014#1472,286—
2013#1602,012—
2012#1601,957—
2011#1811,730—
2010#1851,677—
2009#2011,628—
2008#2081,635—
2007#2231,562—
2006#2211,548—
2005#2291,490—
2004#2421,337—
2003#2581,257—
2002#2641,198—
2001#2751,153—
2000#2871,116—
1999#312989—
1998#347840—
1997#353784—
1996#371725—
1995#375700—
1994#390648—
1993#418596—
1992#427591—
1991#421607—
1990#435579—
1989#459527#5,1659
1988#451503#7,2705
1987#497436—
1986#470456—
1985#485423—
1984#471437—
1983#438480—
1982#440491—
1981#451477—
1980#430502—
1979#462437—
1978#438457—
1977#451442—
1976#449431—
1975#433456#4,7976
1974#389536—
1973#383535—
1972#372580—
1971#381603—
1970#363677—
1969#338699—
1968#332693—
1967#319744—
1966#306838—
1965#309863#3,2447
1964#297962#2,8549
1963#2811,054#3,6466
1962#2691,103#4,0335
1961#2581,204#3,3567
1960#2631,157#3,3377
1959#2571,177—
1958#2391,274#3,9445
1957#2211,442—
1956#2101,485#2,7989
1955#1991,595#3,5056
1954#1861,719#3,1767
1953#1721,799#2,9058
1952#1691,862#3,3736
1951#1571,966#2,6629
1950#1462,093—
1949#1432,163—
1948#1342,230#3,0107
1947#1332,351—
1946#1272,228#3,1736
1945#1202,146#2,24210
1944#1152,324#1,98813
1943#1082,664#1,91015
1942#1002,748#1,73017
1941#922,726#1,53220
1940#892,744#2,08112
1939#842,837#1,42522
1938#832,978#1,36424
1937#822,942#1,31326
1936#773,141#1,32625
1935#753,262#1,39024
1934#603,742#1,55120
1933#623,569#1,54020
1932#574,095#1,11037
1931#514,497#1,12836
1930#494,988#1,23533
1929#455,298#1,41326
1928#425,671#1,32330
1927#396,108#1,29332
1926#376,410#1,84618
1925#366,810#1,49325
1924#347,274#1,96417
1923#307,560#2,12315
1922#277,864#1,59123
1921#288,135#1,70321
1920#288,093#2,23114
1919#268,104#1,69520
1918#248,682#1,37327
1917#218,326#1,75518
1916#218,127#1,94915
1915#227,606#1,78216
1914#235,896#1,49217
1913#244,822#1,49713
1912#283,980#1,61910
1911#293,011#89614
1910#302,801#1,1938
1909#312,416#89311
1908#282,389#1,0218
1907#332,156#9998
1906#381,900#9278
1905#371,894#1,0027
1904#401,701—
1903#401,587#65612
1902#421,565#9337
1901#431,434#7798
1900#471,743#1,1626
1899#441,388#9286
1898#461,425—
1897#471,267#8527
1896#501,256#9007
1895#471,334—
1894#481,256—
1893#501,178—
1892#491,210#9566
1891#491,031#9635
1890#491,118#8846
1889#491,047#8786
1888#491,001#1,0315
1887#50815—
1886#47844—
1885#47783#8366
1884#45800—
1883#46697—
1882#49638—
1881#48563—
1880#50544—
First appearance
1880

In the first year the SSA published name data, Josephine was already there! It came in at #50, and was given to 544 baby girls.


Quietest stretch: 1971–1993, when fewer than 610 girls a year got the name.

Where Josephine is popular in 1931

  • Rank in state
  • Top 10
  • 11–50
  • 51–100
  • 101–500
  • 501+
  • Not published
Alaska: fewer than 5 girls named Josephine, so not publishedAKMaine: #87 for girls · 18 births · 1 in 354 girlsMEVermont: #71 for girls · 10 births · 1 in 257 girlsVTNew Hampshire: #120 for girls · 5 births · 1 in 586 girlsNHWashington: #93 for girls · 23 births · 1 in 379 girlsWAIdaho: #77 for girls · 12 births · 1 in 290 girlsIDMontana: #80 for girls · 12 births · 1 in 285 girlsMTNorth Dakota: #85 for girls · 20 births · 1 in 296 girlsNDMinnesota: #110 for girls · 38 births · 1 in 516 girlsMNIllinois: #68 for girls · 198 births · 1 in 266 girlsILWisconsin: #79 for girls · 66 births · 1 in 350 girlsWIMichigan: #53 for girls · 177 births · 1 in 218 girlsMINew York: #24 for girls · 910 births · 1 in 100 girlsNYMassachusetts: #51 for girls · 173 births · 1 in 173 girlsMARhode Island: #39 for girls · 34 births · 1 in 132 girlsRIOregon: #113 for girls · 10 births · 1 in 506 girlsORNevada: fewer than 5 girls named Josephine, so not publishedNVWyoming: #44 for girls · 10 births · 1 in 149 girlsWYSouth Dakota: #136 for girls · 9 births · 1 in 610 girlsSDIowa: #122 for girls · 29 births · 1 in 631 girlsIAIndiana: #104 for girls · 49 births · 1 in 483 girlsINOhio: #63 for girls · 176 births · 1 in 268 girlsOHPennsylvania: #44 for girls · 453 births · 1 in 171 girlsPANew Jersey: #24 for girls · 273 births · 1 in 101 girlsNJConnecticut: #35 for girls · 95 births · 1 in 109 girlsCTCalifornia: #32 for girls · 222 births · 1 in 158 girlsCAUtah: #127 for girls · 9 births · 1 in 483 girlsUTColorado: #28 for girls · 61 births · 1 in 133 girlsCONebraska: #101 for girls · 23 births · 1 in 466 girlsNEMissouri: #92 for girls · 66 births · 1 in 409 girlsMOKentucky: #83 for girls · 74 births · 1 in 351 girlsKYWest Virginia: #56 for girls · 69 births · 1 in 249 girlsWVVirginia: #70 for girls · 84 births · 1 in 269 girlsVAMaryland: #80 for girls · 36 births · 1 in 328 girlsMDDelaware: #37 for girls · 10 births · 1 in 143 girlsDEArizona: #18 for girls · 36 births · 1 in 108 girlsAZNew Mexico: #16 for girls · 41 births · 1 in 110 girlsNMKansas: #89 for girls · 36 births · 1 in 390 girlsKSArkansas: #106 for girls · 42 births · 1 in 419 girlsARTennessee: #112 for girls · 55 births · 1 in 478 girlsTNNorth Carolina: #82 for girls · 111 births · 1 in 304 girlsNCSouth Carolina: #61 for girls · 78 births · 1 in 237 girlsSCDistrict of Columbia: #60 for girls · 16 births · 1 in 223 girlsDCOklahoma: #153 for girls · 32 births · 1 in 686 girlsOKLouisiana: #53 for girls · 91 births · 1 in 222 girlsLAMississippi: #73 for girls · 70 births · 1 in 287 girlsMSAlabama: #95 for girls · 73 births · 1 in 390 girlsALGeorgia: #86 for girls · 82 births · 1 in 361 girlsGAHawaii: #17 for girls · 39 births · 1 in 85 girlsHITexas: #62 for girls · 179 births · 1 in 314 girlsTXFlorida: #47 for girls · 57 births · 1 in 206 girlsFL

Hover or tap a state for its numbers.

Top states · girls
  1. New Mexico#16 · 1 in 110
  2. Hawaii#17 · 1 in 85
  3. Arizona#18 · 1 in 108
  4. New York#24 · 1 in 100
  5. New Jersey#24 · 1 in 101

Best ever in a state: #2 in Nevada, 1912.

Show every state
StateRankBirthsShare
New Mexico#16411 in 110
Hawaii#17391 in 85
Arizona#18361 in 108
New Jersey#242731 in 101
New York#249101 in 100
Colorado#28611 in 133
California#322221 in 158
Connecticut#35951 in 109
Delaware#37101 in 143
Rhode Island#39341 in 132
Pennsylvania#444531 in 171
Wyoming#44101 in 149
Florida#47571 in 206
Massachusetts#511731 in 173
Louisiana#53911 in 222
Michigan#531771 in 218
West Virginia#56691 in 249
District of Columbia#60161 in 223
South Carolina#61781 in 237
Texas#621791 in 314
Ohio#631761 in 268
Illinois#681981 in 266
Virginia#70841 in 269
Vermont#71101 in 257
Mississippi#73701 in 287
Idaho#77121 in 290
Wisconsin#79661 in 350
Maryland#80361 in 328
Montana#80121 in 285
North Carolina#821111 in 304
Kentucky#83741 in 351
North Dakota#85201 in 296
Georgia#86821 in 361
Maine#87181 in 354
Kansas#89361 in 390
Missouri#92661 in 409
Washington#93231 in 379
Alabama#95731 in 390
Nebraska#101231 in 466
Indiana#104491 in 483
Arkansas#106421 in 419
Minnesota#110381 in 516
Tennessee#112551 in 478
Oregon#113101 in 506
New Hampshire#12051 in 586
Iowa#122291 in 631
Utah#12791 in 483
South Dakota#13691 in 610
Oklahoma#153321 in 686
Alaska———
Nevada———

Ranks are within each state; “1 in N” is out of the girls born there that year. The SSA only publishes a name in a state when 5 or more babies of one sex got it.

See more about Josephine
Momentum · girls
Rising
  • 3 spots since 2024 (#56 → #53)
  • 34 spots since 2020 (#87 → #53)
  • 78 spots since 2015 (#131 → #53)
  • Biggest jump: 46 spots in 1988 (#497 → #451)
  • Biggest drop: 44 spots in 1975 (#389 → #433)
Rise & fade · girls
37 yrs to peak
  • Debuted 1880
  • Peaked 1917 at #21 (8,326 births)
  • Births halved by 1932, 15 yrs later
Top of the charts · girls
Top 100 for 71 yrs
  • Top 10: never
  • Top 100: 71 yrs · run 1880–1942
  • Top 1,000: 146 yrs · run 1880–2025
Share of babies · girls
1 in 129
  • Highest: 1 in 129 girls born in 1916 were named Josephine (0.78%)
  • Latest: 1 in 390 girls born in 2025 (0.26%)
  • Its best rank, #21 in 1917, was only 1 in 130 (0.77%) — a smaller share of a much bigger birth year
Era · girls
The 1920s
  • 20.9% of all girls named Josephine (69,223) were born in this decade
  • Comeback: #21 (1917) → #497 (1987) → #53 (2025)
Show by decade
DecadeBirthsBest rankAvg rank
1880s7,732#45 (1884)#48
1890s12,463#44 (1899)#48
1900s18,785#28 (1908)#38
1910s61,355#21 (1917)#25
1920s69,223#27 (1922)#35
1930s36,051#49 (1930)#68
1940s24,324#89 (1940)#116
1950s16,412#146 (1950)#196
1960s9,317#258 (1961)#297
1970s5,154#363 (1970)#412
1980s4,732#430 (1980)#459
1990s7,059#312 (1999)#385
2000s13,924#201 (2009)#241
2010s23,960#90 (2019)#137
2020s20,976#53 (2025)#67

All figures count published births only (names given to at least 5 girls in a year). Registrations before 1937 are incomplete, so early shares and totals run low.

Josephine in 1931

girls
#51
4,497 births · 1 in 237 girls
boys
#1,128
36 births · 1 in 28,880 boys

Top girls' names in 1931

  1. #1Mary60,299
  2. #2Betty36,105
  3. #3Dorothy26,524
  4. #4Barbara21,804
  5. #5Joan19,119
  6. #6Helen17,664
  7. #7Margaret17,332
  8. #8Patricia16,469
  9. #9Shirley14,405
  10. #10Doris13,629
  11. #51Josephine4,497

Top boys' names in 1931

  1. #1Robert60,519
  2. #2James51,212
  3. #3John48,423
  4. #4William43,280
  5. #5Richard31,822
  6. #6Charles29,934
  7. #7Donald29,100
  8. #8George20,685
  9. #9Joseph19,326
  10. #10Thomas16,847
  11. #1,128Josephine36
More about 1931

girls

1,064,728 girls got a published name in 1931; 1 in 237 of them was named Josephine, which outranked 99.0% of the 4,979 girls' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 22.9% of girls (24.6% in 1880, 7.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Josephine
  1. #48Rita4,613
  2. #49Lorraine4,588
  3. #50Jane4,532
  4. #51Josephine4,497
  5. #52Edna4,461
  6. #53Thelma4,440
  7. #54Wanda4,395
Biggest movers since 1930
Risers
  1. ↑ 857Joretta#1,320 → #463
  2. ↑ 519Joetta#1,460 → #941
  3. ↑ 483Sondra#1,031 → #548
  4. ↑ 465Celine#1,460 → #995
  5. ↑ 343Lynne#1,274 → #931
Fallers
  1. ↓ 377Margo#937 → #1,314
  2. ↓ 349Rachael#894 → #1,243
  3. ↓ 317Evelyne#926 → #1,243
  4. ↓ 287Vivien#971 → #1,258
  5. ↓ 283Ardeth#629 → #912

Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.

boys

1,039,665 boys got a published name in 1931; 1 in 28,880 of them was named Josephine, which outranked 73.9% of the 4,321 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 33.8% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Josephine
  1. #1,111Porfirio37
  2. #1,111Rolf37
  3. #1,111Thelma37
  4. #1,128Josephine36
  5. #1,128Alfonzo36
  6. #1,128Arlon36
  7. #1,128Arlyn36
  8. #1,145Arne35
  9. #1,145Ashley35
  10. #1,145Author35

Tied with 16 names at #1,128; 3 shown. Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1930
Risers
  1. ↑ 794Kenton#1,753 → #959
  2. ↑ 420Wyman#1,330 → #910
  3. ↑ 408Jan#1,330 → #922
  4. ↑ 402Leopold#1,399 → #997
  5. ↑ 398Odie#1,299 → #901
Fallers
  1. ↓ 513Artie#976 → #1,489
  2. ↓ 469Arnulfo#892 → #1,361
  3. ↓ 385Rose#832 → #1,217
  4. ↓ 357Ransom#976 → #1,333
  5. ↓ 343Jodie#990 → #1,333

Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.

See the top 100 for 1931 →