boy's name
Josef
- Gender Boy
- Syllables 2
- Letters 5
- Popularity Uncommon
- Births on record 11,556
Northern Ireland
#320
2002 births
Josef is a boy's name with 2 syllables. In 2025 it was given to 44 babies in the United States. It is used consistently but remains uncommon.
- Peaked in 1999, when 220 babies were given the name.
- It has been falling over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 75,352 babies in the United States is given this name.
- First appears in US birth records in 1900.
- 2 syllables, with the stress on syllable 1.
Josef over time
Births per decade in the United States, 1900s to 2020s. The striped bar is the 2020s, still in progress — it covers 2020 to 2025, not a full ten years.
Show the numbers
| Decade | Births |
|---|---|
| 1900s | 43 |
| 1910s | 173 |
| 1920s | 162 |
| 1930s | 135 |
| 1940s | 172 |
| 1950s | 335 |
| 1960s | 554 |
| 1970s | 1,026 |
| 1980s | 1,559 |
| 1990s | 1,789 |
| 2000s | 1,834 |
| 2010s | 1,011 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 365 |
How popular is Josef?
In 2025, Josef was given to 44 babies in the United States. It is used consistently but remains uncommon.
Where Josef is used
US figures omit any name given to fewer than five babies in a year, so the rarest names are absent from the source rather than absent from use. Data & sources.
Names that peaked alongside Josef
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Josef also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Josef over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
Josef in other languages
The same name as it is spelled elsewhere — not shortenings, and not different names that merely sound alike. Each one has its own record here.
Sibling names for Josef
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Josef — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Josef
How popular is the name Josef?
In 2025, Josef was given to 44 babies in the United States. It is used consistently but remains uncommon.
Is Josef a girl's or a boy's name?
Josef is given almost entirely to boys in birth records.
How many syllables are in Josef?
Josef has 2 syllables.
When was Josef most popular?
Josef peaked in 1999, when 220 babies were given the name. It has been falling over the past decade.
Is Josef a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Josef currently ranks #1,881 in the United States. It has been falling over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.