Janis

Did you know?

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

⭐ Famous Janis

Janis Joplin

American singer (1943–1970)

Choose Janis and your child shares a first name with Janis Joplin, an American singer. A ready-made answer when someone asks “Janis, like who?” Janis Joplin's Wikipedia article is available in 100 languages, a good sign of just how widely known they are.

Read about Janis Joplin on Wikipedia ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Photo: Grossman Glotzer Management Corporation, Public domain (opens in a new tab), via Wikimedia Commons

• 👶How commonAbout 1 in every 161,290 baby girls born in the US in 2025 was named Janis, 10 babies in all. In a typical school of 500 kids, your Janis would very likely be the only one.
• 📜HistoryJanis first shows up in US birth records in 1909, the first year at least 5 babies got it. It has been in use for 116 years since.
• 🏆Best yearIt was far more popular in 1947, when it ranked #108. Today it's #9,457, so it could be due a comeback.
• 📉Then vs nowJanis was 3.2× more common in 2000 than it is today. In 2000 it was given to about 1 in 50,505 baby girls; in 2025, about 1 in 161,290.
• 🚀TrendJanis has climbed 793 places in the US rankings over the last five years and now sits at #9,457. Fast risers like this often keep climbing, so expect to hear it more.
• 💬MeaningJanis is an English form of Janice, which means “God is gracious”. Our records link it to English, Hebrew and Latvian roots.
• 🌍OriginJanis is the #4 most popular Latvian girl name in the US. That's out of 15 Latvian girl and unisex names in our list.

About the name Janis

Janis is a girl name of English, Hebrew and Latvian origin meaning “God is gracious”. It has 5 letters and 2 syllables, starting with J and ending in “-nis”. US birth records list Janis for girls from 1909 to 2025, in 117 of those 117 years. Its best year was 1947, when it ranked #108 among girl names. In 2025 it ranked #9,457, with 10 babies.

Origin:English namesHebrew namesLatvian names