Jana
Jana was the 1247th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 181 babies. Its best year was 1961, when it ranked 226th with 1,456 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 238 places. More babies were named Jana in the 1960s than in any other decade.
Meaning form of Jane/Joanna; "God is gracious" · Czech, Slavic, Hebrew
Say it JAN-uh /ˈdʒænə/
- Rank in 2025
- #1,247 girls, down 185 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 181girls
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a girl’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 19611,456 babies
- Total since 1880
- 46,223babies recorded
What does the name Jana mean?
Jana is the Czech, Slovak and Slavic feminine of Jan (John), and is common in Central Europe. Like Jane and Joanna, it goes back through Greek to the Hebrew Yohanan, "God is gracious". Wikipedia notes that the same spelling is used for unrelated names in other languages, including an Arabic name meaning "harvest". In the US, Jana was most popular in the 1970s, often pronounced JAN-uh.
Ἰωάννα (Koine Greek, “Iōanna”)יוֹחָנָה (Hebrew, “Yohanah, "God is gracious"”)
How sure is this? Probable. Several unrelated names are spelled Jana; the Slavic feminine of John is the usual one in the US.
Related names: Jane, Joanna, Janna, Jan, Johanna.
See also: Hebrew names, names that mean God, names that mean grace.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Jana', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation)
- Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources, ed. S. L. Uckelman, Edition 2023 no. 1, s.v. 'Joan', DMNES (Durham University)
- Wikipedia, 'Jana (given name)', Wikipedia (Wikimedia Foundation)
Jana popularity since 1880
A few boys are given the name too: 38 since 1963.
| Year | Rank (girls) | Babies (girls) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #1,247 | 181 |
| 2020 | #1,062 | 234 |
| 2010 | #1,032 | 242 |
| 2000 | #938 | 229 |
| 1990 | #546 | 433 |
| 1980 | #246 | 1,046 |
| 1970 | #286 | 1,025 |
| 1960 | #295 | 980 |
| 1950 | #465 | 307 |
| 1940 | #1,109 | 43 |
| 1930 | — | — |
| 1920 | — | — |
| 1910 | — | — |
| 1900 | — | — |
| 1890 | — | — |
| 1880 | — | — |
How popular is Jana, counting every spelling?
Jana is the most common spelling of a name family that ranked #680 for girls in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #1,247 for Jana on its own. Together these spellings went to 418 girls in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jana | 181 | #1,247 | 994 |
| Jannah | 140 | #1,520 | 575 |
| Janna | 84 | #2,203 | 390 |
| Janah | 5 | #15,899 | 28 |
| Jaana | 8 | #11,315 | 28 |
Spellings count together when they sound the same in American English and are used for the same sex; nicknames and forms that sound different (such as Theo and Theodore) are kept apart. How we group spellings.
How many kids will share the name Jana?
181 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Jana (0.05 per 1,000 births). For a girl named Jana born in 2025, the chance that another child with the same name is in a class of 20 children the same age is under 1 in 50. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 46 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Jana.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Jana?
About 41,500 people born in the US named Jana are alive today, with a median age of 52; half are between 39 and 63. That makes Jana mostly worn by adults in their thirties to fifties.
Babies given the name each year (SSA) times the share of that birth year still alive (SSA life tables). Counts people born in the US only. Method.
Jana by state
How common Jana was among girls born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in Michigan (3.3×), New York (2.0×), Virginia (1.9×), Illinois (1.8×). In 32 states fewer than five girls a year got the name, too few for SSA to publish, so those states show as zero.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Jana: their share of US girls followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Jana, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Jana · Sibling names for Jana
Questions about the name Jana
What does Jana mean?
Jana means “form of Jane/Joanna; "God is gracious"” (Czech, Slavic, Hebrew origin). Certainty: probable.
How popular is the name Jana?
Jana was the 1247th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 181 babies. Its best year was 1961, when it ranked 226th with 1,456 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 238 places. More babies were named Jana in the 1960s than in any other decade.
Is Jana a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a girl’s name given the name Jana in the US.
Where is Jana most popular?
In 2021–2025, Jana was most common in Michigan (0.40 per 1,000 girls), followed by New York and Virginia.