US rank #1237 Girls' name Peak 1932 481,016 births

Joan — #1237 US girls' name

481,016 babies named Joan in U.S. Social Security records since 1880, with the highest year being 1932. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.

1880s1211890s2671900s8631910s70211920s453511930s1734391940s1177081950s851791960s366761970s64801980s33001990s18582000s10032010s9412020s809
#1237
of 17,661 girls in use

More common than 93% of names given to girls today.

1930s
Peak decade

36% of everyone ever named Joan was born in this single decade.

1932
Single peak year

21,044 babies were named Joan in 1932 — its busiest year on record.

What the Data Says About Joan

The Social Security Administration has registered 481,016 babies named Joan between 1880 and 2024, spanning 145 consecutive years of U.S. birth records. As a girl's name, Joan currently holds the #1237 rank among girls for 2024. The name reached its historical peak in 1932, when 21,044 babies received it in a single year.

Decade-level aggregation shows that Joan performed strongest in the 1930s, accumulating 173,439 births during that ten-year window. Across the 15 decades of recorded activity, Joan shows a clear decline from its mid-century high. Geographically, the name is most concentrated in New York, which accounts for 81,539 births — the largest state-level total in the dataset — followed by Pennsylvania and Illinois. In total, SSA state-level files list Joan in 51 of the 51 U.S. reporting jurisdictions.

No etymological entry is currently available for Joan in our reference dataset. These figures derive from SSA's annual national and state-level name files, which include any name appearing at least five times in a given year or state-year; names below that threshold are suppressed for privacy and therefore excluded from the totals shown here. The 481,016 total represents a lower bound — actual usage may be higher in years or states where the count fell below the disclosure floor. This page is provided for informational and research purposes only and does not constitute personal, legal, or naming advice.

Joan at a glance

Outside the top 1,000

Total births

481,016

Since 1880

145 years of records

Peak year

1932

21,044 births that year

Strongest decade: 1930s

Current rank

#1,237

Among girls

As of 2024

Active since

1880

Recorded for 145 years

Last year on file: 2024

Joan popularity over time — girls

Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 2024–1880

Outside the top 1,000
Peak year (1932)
21,044
Annual births at peak — across 145 years of records
-5,00005,00010,00015,00020,00025,000 202420051986196719481929191018911880 12

Joan popularity over time — boys

7,469 total births recorded since 1903 (Joan as boys' name)

Unisex variant — 7,469 births
-50050100150200250 202420091994197919641949193419191903 5

Joan by decade

Total births in each ten-year window — peak vs trough at a glance

Peak: 1930s
Peak decade
1930s
173,439 births that decade — 36% of Joan's all-time total
1880s1211890s2671900s8631910s70211920s453511930s1734391940s1177081950s851791960s366761970s64801980s33001990s18582000s10032010s9412020s809

Joan by state

Where Joan concentrates geographically — total births since 1880

Geographically diffuse
Top 8 states by recorded births for the name Joan
Rank State Visual share Births Share of total
#1 New York
81,539 17.0%
#2 Pennsylvania
47,972 10.0%
#3 Illinois
31,015 6.4%
#4 New Jersey
27,580 5.7%
#5 Massachusetts
25,293 5.3%
#6 California
24,138 5.0%
#7 Ohio
23,830 5.0%
#8 Michigan
21,990 4.6%
New York share of Joan's total US births 17.0%
Even split

81,539 of 481,016 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 51 reporting states.

Joan appears in 51 states. Explore state details →

Frequently Asked Questions

How popular is the name Joan?
481,016 babies have been named Joan since 1880. It currently ranks #1237 among girls. The peak year was 1932 with 21,044 births.
When was Joan most popular?
Joan was most popular in the 1930s decade with 173,439 total births. The single peak year was 1932.
Where is Joan most popular?
The top states for the name Joan are New York (81,539 births), Pennsylvania (47,972 births), Illinois (31,015 births).
How long has the name Joan been used?
Joan has been recorded in Social Security data since 1880, spanning 145 years of data through 2024.
What names are similar to Joan?
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Joanne, Joann, Joanna, Joana, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for girls.

Keep exploring Joan

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Data Sources

Data as of 2024. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).

Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications — National Data, 1880–2024 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames). National-level data includes all names with 5 or more occurrences in a given year.

State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names — State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip). Includes all names with 5 or more occurrences per state per year; rarer names are excluded for privacy.