girl's name
Juanita
wah-NEE-tuh
- Origin Spanish
- Gender Girl
- Syllables 3
- Letters 7
- Popularity Uncommon
- Births on record 210,172
Ireland
#586
1983 births
Juanita is a girl's name meaning God is gracious, the Spanish diminutive of Juana. It peaked in 1924 — decades before Miguel and Manuel, which rose with later immigration — and has fallen to 2798th in the United States.
- Juanita is a name of Spanish origin.
- Peaked in 1924, when 5,428 babies were given the name.
- It has been falling over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 54,351 babies in the United States is given this name.
- 3 syllables, with the stress on syllable 2.
Juanita over time
Births per decade in the United States, 1880s 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 |
|---|---|
| 1880s | 446 |
| 1890s | 1,392 |
| 1900s | 3,837 |
| 1910s | 20,953 |
| 1920s | 48,749 |
| 1930s | 36,201 |
| 1940s | 30,602 |
| 1950s | 25,742 |
| 1960s | 17,054 |
| 1970s | 10,237 |
| 1980s | 6,593 |
| 1990s | 3,630 |
| 2000s | 1,947 |
| 2010s | 876 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 416 |
What Juanita means
Juanita means God is gracious, carried through Juana from the Hebrew Yochanan. The -ita ending is a Spanish diminutive that adds smallness or affection rather than altering the sense.
Where Juanita comes from
Juanita is the diminutive of Juana, the Spanish feminine of Juan, from the Hebrew Yochanan — God is gracious. Spanish holds one of the largest families of names from that Hebrew source, and the -ita ending that also gives Anita, Margarita and Rosita is unusually productive. Its American use is largely twentieth-century and concentrated in the Southwest, and it peaked considerably earlier than most Spanish-origin names in our data, which generally rose with later immigration.
Juanita in use
Juanita peaked in the United States in 1924, when 5,428 babies were registered, and is falling in our data. It now ranks 2798th in the United States on 61 births, 6550th in France and 7117th in England and Wales, across 210,172 lifetime births in three of the seven markets we track. Its 1924 peak sets it apart from Miguel and Manuel, both written up separately, which peaked in 2005 and 2007 as later immigration arrived.
How popular is Juanita?
In 2025, Juanita was given to 61 babies in the United States. It is used consistently but remains uncommon.
Where Juanita 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 Juanita
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Juanita also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Juanita over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
1 nickname for Juanita
Each one is a name in its own right — the figure underneath is how it is doing today, so you can see which short forms are rising and which have faded.
Juanita 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 Juanita
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Juanita — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Juanita
What does the name Juanita mean?
God is gracious, carried through Juana from the Hebrew Yochanan.
Is Juanita a diminutive?
Yes, of Juana — using the Spanish -ita ending that also gives Anita and Margarita.
When did Juanita peak?
1924, decades before Miguel and Manuel, which rose with later immigration.
How popular is Juanita?
2798th in the United States, down from a 1924 peak of 5,428 births.
Is Juanita a girl's or a boy's name?
Juanita is given almost entirely to girls in birth records.
How many syllables are in Juanita?
Juanita has 3 syllables.
Is Juanita a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Juanita currently ranks #2,798 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.