Janet
A Scottish diminutive of Jane, so a form of John.
Popularity, 1880–2025
Janet appears in the national records from the very first year, 1880. It has ranked among the top 100 names for American girls in every year from 1928 to 1970. Its biggest year was 1954, when 18,477 newborn girls received the name, ranking it No. 19 nationally. Its best ranking came in 1938, at No. 16. All told, 558,291 Americans have been given the name since 1880.
Related names
Other spellings on record: Janette (32,214), Jannette (5,219), Janett (3,542), Jannet (2,319), Jannat (1,466), Jannett (1,026) (total births since 1880)
Other names that share a story: John, Jane, Jessie
Explore Janet interactively →By the decade
| Decade | Births | Best rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | 461 | No. 270 |
| 1890s | 898 | No. 267 |
| 1900s | 1,541 | No. 226 |
| 1910s | 10,713 | No. 126 |
| 1920s | 23,973 | No. 82 |
| 1930s | 76,038 | No. 16 |
| 1940s | 130,755 | No. 18 |
| 1950s | 167,520 | No. 18 |
| 1960s | 89,315 | No. 32 |
| 1970s | 24,454 | No. 96 |
| 1980s | 13,520 | No. 172 |
| 1990s | 9,660 | No. 223 |
| 2000s | 5,501 | No. 412 |
| 2010s | 1,906 | No. 889 |
| 2020s | 521 | No. 1918 |
Births and rank shown for girls, the sex more often given the name. The Social Security Administration omits name–year combinations with fewer than five births.
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Data: U.S. Social Security Administration national baby-name file, 1880–2025.