January
About January
Cooler than the older month names like April and May, and a highly unusual and eye-catching choice. The most famous real-life January is female – January Jones – but the month is named for the Roman god Janus, who presided over doors and new beginnings.
For those after a literary reference in their child's name, January (or sometimes Januarie) was used by Chaucer in The Canterbury Tales for one of the main knights in "The Merchant's Tale. It also featured in Jacqueline Susann's novel Once is Not Enough which pushed it into the US charts in the 70s.
More recently, January was used for a male character in the 2024 novel The Mars House by Natasha Pulley.
Pronounced JAN-yoo-er-ee.
Editor: Sophie Kihm
Sources: US popularity data is from the Social Security Administration. Meanings and origins are from Nameberry's name references.
Popularity & trends
Similar names
These 20 names were selected by our users looking for other names like January.
- Free
- Trust
- Axis
- Sincere
- Koi
- Baja
- Golden
- Explorer
- Eagle
- Majesty
- Freedom
- Mesa
- Psalm
- Dynamo
- Beach
- Warrior
- Blues
- Bravo
- Calm
- Experience
January on lists
Famous Januarys
- January Suchodolski
Polish painter and Army officer
January in pop culture
- January
character from the game "OFF"