Juanita
Juanita was the 2794th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 61 babies. Its best year was 1924, when it ranked 48th with 5,404 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 726 places. More babies were named Juanita in the 1920s than in any other decade.
Meaning pet form of Juana (Joan) · Spanish, Hebrew
Say it wah-NEE-tuh /wɑˈnitə/
- Rank in 2025
- #2,794 girls, down 433 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 61girls
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a girl’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 19245,404 babies
- Total since 1880
- 208,675babies recorded
What does the name Juanita mean?
Juanita is the Spanish diminutive of Juana, formed with -ita, as Wiktionary notes. Juana is the Spanish form of Joanna, the feminine of John, from Hebrew Yoḥanan 'YHWH is gracious'. Juanita was very common in the southwestern US in the early 20th century and was popularized more widely by the 19th-century song Juanita.
Juana (Spanish, “Joan”)יוֹחָנָן (Yoḥanan) (Biblical Hebrew, “YHWH is gracious”)
How sure is this? Well established.
Related names: Juana, Joan, Janet, Nita.
See also: Hebrew names, names that mean God, names that mean grace.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Juanita', Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0; facts restated, no text reused)
- Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources, ed. S. L. Uckelman, Edition 2023 no. 1, s.v. 'Joan', DMNES (Durham University)
Nicknames for Juanita
The usual nicknames for Juanita are Nita.
| Nickname | Kind | Rank 2025 | Girls, 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nita · also for Anita | Traditional | #12,827 | 42 |
Nicknames reviewed by our editors; counts are girls given the nickname as their legal first name. Nobody records how many Juanitas go by each one.
Juanita popularity since 1880
A few boys are given the name too: 991 since 1910.
| Year | Rank (girls) | Babies (girls) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #2,794 | 61 |
| 2020 | #2,361 | 75 |
| 2010 | #1,826 | 112 |
| 2000 | #836 | 268 |
| 1990 | #534 | 446 |
| 1980 | #304 | 810 |
| 1970 | #247 | 1,261 |
| 1960 | #184 | 2,095 |
| 1950 | #115 | 3,028 |
| 1940 | #78 | 3,174 |
| 1930 | #57 | 4,512 |
| 1920 | #61 | 4,238 |
| 1910 | #115 | 732 |
| 1900 | #189 | 273 |
| 1890 | #265 | 89 |
| 1880 | #336 | 23 |
How popular is Juanita, counting every spelling?
Juanita has no other common spelling that sounds the same.
How many kids will share the name Juanita?
61 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Juanita (0.02 per 1,000 births). For a girl named Juanita 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 138 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Juanita.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Juanita?
About 82,700 people born in the US named Juanita are alive today, with a median age of 69; half are between 55 and 79. That makes Juanita a name most people associate with older generations.
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.
Juanita by state
How common Juanita was among girls born in each state in 2021–2025. In 45 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 Juanita: their share of US girls followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Juanita, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Juanita · Sibling names for Juanita
Questions about the name Juanita
What does Juanita mean?
Juanita means “pet form of Juana (Joan)” (Spanish, Hebrew origin). Certainty: well established.
How popular is the name Juanita?
Juanita was the 2794th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 61 babies. Its best year was 1924, when it ranked 48th with 5,404 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 726 places. More babies were named Juanita in the 1920s than in any other decade.
Is Juanita a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a girl’s name given the name Juanita in the US.
Where is Juanita most popular?
In 2021–2025, Juanita was most common in Alabama (0.06 per 1,000 girls), followed by Florida and Texas.