Janet

Did you know?

A few things about Janet you might not know, from US birth records and Wikipedia. Handy for convincing a partner, or a grandparent.

⭐ Famous Janet

Janet Jackson

American singer, songwriter, dancer and actress (born 1966)

Choose Janet and your child shares a first name with Janet Jackson, an American singer, songwriter, dancer and actress. A ready-made answer when someone asks “Janet, like who?” Janet Jackson's Wikipedia article is available in 103 languages, a good sign of just how widely known they are.

Read about Janet Jackson on Wikipedia ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Photo: Rich Esteban, CC BY-SA 4.0 (opens in a new tab), via Wikimedia Commons

• 👶How commonAbout 1 in every 26,316 baby girls born in the US in 2025 was named Janet, 61 babies in all. In a typical school of 500 kids, your Janet would very likely be the only one.
• 📜HistoryJanet has been in use since at least 1880, the first year US birth records were kept. That's 145 years of Janets, and counting.
• 🏆Best yearIt was far more popular in 1938, when it ranked #16. Today it's #2,778, so it could be due a comeback.
• 📉Then vs nowJanet was 9.9× more common in 2000 than it is today. In 2000 it was given to about 1 in 2,648 baby girls; in 2025, about 1 in 26,316.
• 🍂TrendJanet has slipped 773 places over the last five years and now sits at #2,778. Good news if you want a familiar name that fewer kids will share.
• 💬MeaningJanet is a Scottish form of Jane, which means “God is gracious”. Our records link it to English, Hebrew and Scottish roots.

About the name Janet

Janet is a girl name of English, Hebrew and Scottish origin meaning “God is gracious”. It has 5 letters and 2 syllables, starting with J and ending in “-net”. US birth records list Janet for girls from 1880 to 2025, in 146 of those 146 years. Its best year was 1938, when it ranked #16 among girl names. In 2025 it ranked #2,778, with 61 babies.

Origin:English namesHebrew namesScottish names