Boys' name · peaked in 2017
Josiah name popularity since 1925
148,589 babies born in the US from 1925 to 2025 were named Josiah. Half of them were born in 2014 or earlier, so the typical Josiah is about 12 years old in 2026. Josiah peaked in 2017 as the #51 name for boys, and it ranked #54 in 2025.
Key facts
- US babies since 1925
- 148,589
- Named Josiah, 1925–2025
- In 2025
- #54
- for boys in 2025 (5,509 babies)
- Girls / boys
- 99.7% boys
- 462 girls · 148,127 boys
- Most popular in
- New Mexico
- 2.67× its national share
Peak year is the year Josiah made up the largest share of US boys, in records going back to 1880. Typical age is based on births from 1925 on, not on who is living today.
Josiah births per year, 1925–2025
2017 was the biggest year for Josiah both by count and as a share of all babies.
- Fastest rise: Between 1978 and 1983, Josiah became 2.3× more common, from 1 in 10,300 baby boys to 1 in 4,430.
Shaded on the chart. This compares Josiah's share of all US boys five years apart, counting only years with at least 100 babies named Josiah.
Decade by decade
Babies named Josiah in each decade, and its rank among boys' names in the middle year of the decade (1935, 1945 … 2025).
| Decade | Girls | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1925–29 | 0 | 133 | – |
| 1930s | 0 | 206 | #1,626 |
| 1940s | 0 | 164 | #1,892 |
| 1950s | 0 | 195 | #1,933 |
| 1960s | 0 | 173 | #2,315 |
| 1970s | 0 | 945 | #893 |
| 1980s | 27 | 4,406 | #371 |
| 1990s | 67 | 10,916 | #273 |
| 2000s | 153 | 33,258 | #125 |
| 2010s | 150 | 63,132 | #57 |
| 2020–25 | 65 | 34,599 | #54 |
Ranks count every name given to at least 5 boys that year, so they can go past 1,000.
Generation fingerprint
55.1% of babies named Josiah from 1925 to 2025 were born in the Gen Alpha years (2013–2025). The full split by generation:
Where Josiah is most popular
The index compares Josiah's share of babies in each state with its share nationwide, 1925–2025 (1.50× = 50% more common). States with at least 300 babies named Josiah.
| State | Index | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| New Mexico | 2.67× | 2,180 |
| Alaska | 2.18× | 478 |
| Nevada | 2.07× | 1,093 |
| Hawaii | 1.98× | 914 |
| Florida | 1.84× | 9,839 |
Other spellings
Spellings that sound like Josiah and were given to at least 1,000 boys from 1925 to 2025, with the year each one was most popular.
| Spelling | Boys | Peak year |
|---|---|---|
| Josiah (this page) | 148,127 | 2017 |
| Joziah | 5,364 | 2021 |
Names with a similar story
Of the other 499 names on this site, these six had the share of babies closest in shape to Josiah's from 1925 to 2025, however common each one got. Each line is scaled to its own high; the dashed line is Josiah.
Names from the same era
Other common names that peaked within two years of Josiah (2017).
Source: U.S. Social Security Administration national and state baby-name data, which covers names given to at least 5 babies of one sex in a year. About the data