Josephine
Josephine was the 53rd most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 4,126 babies. Its best year was 1916, when it ranked 21st; the most babies were born in 1918 (8,682). Over the last ten years it has moved up 78 places. More babies were named Josephine in the 1920s than in any other decade.
Meaning feminine of Joseph: God will add · French, Hebrew
Say it JOH-suh-feen /ˈdʒoʊsəfin/
- Rank in 2025
- #53 girls, up 34 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 4,126girls
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a girl’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 19188,682 babies
- Total since 1880
- 332,458babies recorded
What does the name Josephine mean?
Josephine is the French Joséphine, a diminutive of Josèphe, the feminine of Joseph. Joseph comes from Hebrew Yosef, which DMNES glosses 'God will increase'; in Genesis 30:24 Rachel names her son hoping God will add another son. Wiktionary credits Joséphine de Beauharnais, the first wife of Napoleon and Empress of the French, with making the name popular in English. Jo and Josie are common short forms.
Joséphine (French, “feminine diminutive of Joseph”)יוֹסֵף (Biblical Hebrew, “Yosef, he will add”)
How sure is this? Well established.
Related names: Josie, Jo, Josefina, Joséphine, Joseph, Fifi.
See also: Hebrew names, names that mean God.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Josephine', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation); facts restated, no text reused
- Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources, ed. S. L. Uckelman, Edition 2023 no. 1, s.v. 'Joseph', Durham University / The DMNES Editors
- Hebrew Bible, Genesis 30:24, JPS translation with notes (via Sefaria), Sefaria; verse reference and facts only, not quoted
Nicknames for Josephine
The usual nicknames for Josephine are Josie, Jo and Jojo. Some parents skip the long form: for every 100 girls named Josephine in the last five years, 72 were named Josie, against 81 twenty years earlier.
| Nickname | Kind | Rank 2025 | Girls, 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Josie | Traditional | #82 | 12,978 |
| Jo · also for Josie, Joanna, Jocelyn | Traditional | #4,028 | 195 |
| Jojo · also for Joseph, Joanna | Modern | — | — |
Nicknames reviewed by our editors; counts are girls given the nickname as their legal first name. Nobody records how many Josephines go by each one.
Josephine popularity since 1880
A few boys are given the name too: 991 since 1885.
| Year | Rank (girls) | Babies (girls) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #53 | 4,126 |
| 2020 | #87 | 3,057 |
| 2010 | #185 | 1,677 |
| 2000 | #288 | 1,116 |
| 1990 | #435 | 579 |
| 1980 | #430 | 502 |
| 1970 | #363 | 677 |
| 1960 | #263 | 1,157 |
| 1950 | #146 | 2,093 |
| 1940 | #89 | 2,744 |
| 1930 | #49 | 4,988 |
| 1920 | #28 | 8,093 |
| 1910 | #30 | 2,801 |
| 1900 | #47 | 1,743 |
| 1890 | #49 | 1,118 |
| 1880 | #50 | 544 |
How popular is Josephine, counting every spelling?
Josephine is the most common spelling of a name family that ranked #66 for girls in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #53 for Josephine on its own. Together these spellings went to 4,141 girls in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Josephine | 4,126 | #53 | 17,919 |
| Josefine | 15 | #7,287 | 101 |
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 Josephine?
4,126 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Josephine (1.14 per 1,000 births). For a girl named Josephine born in 2025, the chance that another child with the same name is in a class of 20 children the same age is about 1 in 46. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 2 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Josephine.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Josephine?
About 117,300 people born in the US named Josephine are alive today, with a median age of 27; half are between 9 and 71. That makes Josephine mostly worn by children and young adults. The wide spread shows a name popular in two different eras.
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.
Josephine by state
How common Josephine was among girls born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in Vermont (5.1×), District of Columbia (3.6×), Maine (3.4×), Alaska (3.2×), New Hampshire (3.0×). It is least common, relative to the national rate, in Texas, California, Florida.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Josephine: their share of US girls followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Josephine, they share its era and feel.
Questions about the name Josephine
What does Josephine mean?
Josephine means “feminine of Joseph: God will add” (French, Hebrew origin). Certainty: well established.
How popular is the name Josephine?
Josephine was the 53rd most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 4,126 babies. Its best year was 1916, when it ranked 21st; the most babies were born in 1918 (8,682). Over the last ten years it has moved up 78 places. More babies were named Josephine in the 1920s than in any other decade.
Is Josephine a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a girl’s name given the name Josephine in the US.
Where is Josephine most popular?
In 2021–2025, Josephine was most common in Vermont (11.35 per 1,000 girls), followed by District of Columbia and Maine.