Masterpiece Generator Name Generator
How popular is the name Jonathan?
Births per year, rank history and how many Jonathans are alive today.
Jonathan (male), once a common boys' name, is now an uncommon choice for new babies in England and Wales, ranked 296th in 2025 with 153 given the name. This spelling of the name peaked in 1984, when around 5,700 babies were given the name, the 18th most popular that year. It was almost as popular in 1964, with around 5,000 babies given the name that year. It has declined since 1984; the 2025 figure is roughly 3% of its peak. Numbers have been stable in recent years. At least 200,000 babies have been named Jonathan in England and Wales since 1954. Figures before 1996 are estimates. Jonathan is one spelling of a name also recorded as Johnathan and Jonathon; the combined figures below cover every spelling. Common short forms of Jonathan include Jon and Jonny.
Across all spellings of the name, the Jonathan you are most likely to meet is around 43 years old. Half of all Jonathans born in England and Wales are between 39 and 59, and there are at least 200,000 of them alive today. If you walk into a room of 100 males, there's roughly a 48% chance that at least one of them will be called Jonathan.
How many babies are named Jonathan each year?
Includes all spellings: Jonathan, Johnathan, Jonathon. Figures before 1996 are estimates.
Where does the Jonathan spelling rank?
Where does the Johnathan spelling rank?
Where does the Jonathon spelling rank?
Where this data comes from
Figures from 1996 onwards are the Office for National Statistics' annual baby-name registrations for England and Wales, which record every name given to three or more babies in a year. Figures before 1996 are estimates: the ONS published only top-100 rankings at ten-year intervals back to 1904, so counts for those years are modelled from the rankings, calibrated against Douglas Galbi's long-run research into English name frequencies, and shown with an uncertainty band. Estimates of living bearers combine these birth figures with national life tables and ONS mid-year population estimates.
One limit worth naming: these figures count names as registered at birth. Anyone who changes their name later in life - including trans people, and anyone who adopts a different name by deed poll or simply by use - is not reflected here. Birth registrations record where a name began, not the name a person lives with.
Common questions
When was the name Jonathan most popular?
Jonathan peaked in 1984, when around 5,700 babies in England and Wales were given the name across all spellings.
How many people are called Jonathan?
At least 200,000 people named Jonathan in any spelling born in England and Wales are alive today.
How old is the typical Jonathan?
Most living Jonathans are between 39 and 59; the most common age is about 43.
Is Jonathan becoming more or less popular?
Well past its peak: today's figures are a fraction of the 1984 peak, though numbers have levelled off in recent years.