Joan
Girl nameJoan has been given to 488,939 babies in the U.S. since 1880. It peaked in 1932 and currently ranks #987 for boys (2025).
Meaning & origin /d͡ʒoʊn/
A clipped or hypochoristic form of Joanna, from Latin Joanna, from Koine Greek Ἰωάννα (Iōánna), from Hebrew יוֹחָנָה (Yôḥānāh, literally “God is gracious”), the feminized form of יְהוֹחָנָן (Yəhōḥānān) which produced John and its many doublets. As a placeholder name, cf. similar use of John and Jack. Doublet of Ivana, Jana, Jane, Janice, Janis, Jean, Jeanne, Jen, Joanna, Joanne, Johanna, Juana, Shavonne, Sian, Siobhan, Shane, Shaun, Shauna, and Sheena.
Origin: French
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Popularity over time births per year, 1880–2025
Total babies
488,939
Peak year
1932 (21,132 babies)
Rank in 2025
#987 for boys
First recorded
1880
10-year trend
▲ +69%
Gender split
98% girls / 2% boys
Famous people named Joan
Joan Miró
Spanish painter, sculptor, and ceramicist (1893–1983)
Lauren Bacall
American actress (1924–2014)
Joan Baez
American contemporary folk musician (born 1941)
Joan Crawford
American actress (1908–1977)
Notability data from Wikidata (CC0).
Names with a similar vibe
Same primary gender, peaked around the same years, and roughly as common as Joan.
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