ESC Name Rank Total Searching... No names found Try searching for: Emma, Liam, Olivia, Noah... 👧As Girl Name 1915 First Year 2026 Last Year 2012 Peak Year #1774 Peak Rank 3K Total Count 68 Years Active 👦As Boy Name 1976 First Year 2026 Last Year 1989 Peak Year #1706 Peak Rank 1K Total Count 51 Years Active 🌍 ## Meaning & Origin of Josey What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures. Josey is an abbreviated form of the given name Joseph. Notable people with the name include:Josey Garcia, American politician Josey Jewell, American football player Josey Little (1821–1877), British jockey and soldier Josey Montana McCoy, American voice actor Josey Rebelle, British musician Josey Scott, American rock musician, singer-songwriter, and record producer Josey Wales, Jamaican dancehall… Source: [Wikipedia ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Josey) (CC BY-SA 3.0). [Read more → ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Josey) 📖 ## The Story of Josey ### As a girl name Josey first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a girl name in 1915, with 5 babies given the name that year. Its peak popularity came in 2012, when 106 Joseys were born — ranking #1,885 that year. As of 2026, Josey ranks #2,384 for girls with 76 births, gradually falling (-11%). In total, more than 3K Joseys have been born in the U.S. since records began in 1880, spanning the 1910s through the 2020s. ### As a boy name Josey first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a boy name in 1976, with 5 babies given the name that year. Its peak popularity came in 1989, when 42 Joseys were born — ranking #1,793 that year. As of 2026, Josey ranks #4,249 for boys with 25 births, rising sharply (+22% over the past five years). In total, more than 1K Joseys have been born in the U.S. since records began in 1880, spanning the 1970s through the 2020s. ## Popularity Over Time Girls Boys ## Popularity by State 👧 Girls 👦 Boys ME WA MT ND MN WI MI NY VT NH MA OR ID SD IA IL IN OH PA NJ CT RI CA NV WY NE MO KY WV VA MD DE DC UT CO KS AR TN NC SC AK AZ NM OK LA MS AL GA HI TX FL Top 10 11-50 51-100 101-500 500+ No data 🎶 ## Names that sound like Josey Phonetically similar names — useful when Josey is the vibe but a different syllable count or letter feel might suit better. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name. * [Josie](/josie) * [Jozi](/jozi) * [Jazzy](/jazzy) * Juicy * [Joey](/joey) * [Jesse](/jesse) * [Jessie](/jessie) * [Joes](/joes) * [Jessy](/jessy) * [Jessi](/jessi) * [Jaycee](/jaycee) * [Josue](/josue) Source: [Datamuse ](https://www.datamuse.com/api/). Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated. ❓ ## Frequently Asked Questions about Josey What does the name Josey mean? Josey is an abbreviated form of the given name Joseph. Notable people with the name include:Josey Garcia, American politician Josey Jewell, American football player Josey Little (1821–1877), British jockey and soldier Josey Montana McCoy, American voice actor Josey Rebelle, British musician Josey Scott, American rock musician, singer-songwriter, and record producer Josey Wales, Jamaican dancehall… How popular is Josey in 2026? In 2026, Josey ranks #2,384 among girls' names in the U.S., with 76 babies given the name that year. When was Josey most popular? Josey reached its peak popularity in 2012, ranking #1,774 that year with 106 babies given the name. In which U.S. states is Josey most popular? Josey has historically been most popular in Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas. Rankings vary year to year, but these states show the strongest concentration of births named Josey. Is Josey a unisex name? Yes — Josey is used for both girls and boys in U.S. records, with about 76% of Joseys assigned female and 24% assigned male historically. What names go well with Josey? Names that share a similar style or popularity range with Josey include Gabriele, Nirvana, Khali. These pairings are based on rank proximity and naming era in U.S. data. ## Similar Names ### 👧 Similar Girl Names [👧GabrielePeak #1774](/gabriele)[👧NirvanaPeak #1774](/nirvana)[👧KhaliPeak #1774](/khali)[👧JanelyPeak #1774](/janely) ### 👦 Similar Boy Names [👦MordecaiPeak #1706](/mordecai)[👦ChristoPeak #1706](/christo)[👦DonnaldPeak #1706](/donnald)[👦ShonnPeak #1706](/shonn) ## About the name Josey Josey is a unisex baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1915 and has accumulated 3K births in the dataset. Josey's peak popularity came in 2012 when it ranked #1,774\. Use the chart and map above to compare Josey's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices. ### Continue exploring * [ Top names of 2012 → ](/year/2012) * [ Names of the 2010s → ](/decade/2010s) * [ Names starting with "J" → ](/letter/j) * [ Browse all girl names → ](/names/girls) * [ Top names of 2026 → ](/year/2026) * [ Browse unisex names → ](/names/unisex) Data sources * Birth statistics (counts, ranks, years 1880–2026) — U.S. [Social Security Administration ](https://www.ssa.gov/oact/babynames/). Predictions for years not yet released by SSA are computed by Peek a Name from historical trends; we update with official data as soon as it ships. * Etymology, cultural origins, and related forms — [Behind the Name ](https://www.behindthename.com/) (used under their public API terms). * Meaning prose and editorial summary — [Wikipedia ](https://en.wikipedia.org/) article extracts, licensed under [CC BY-SA 3.0 ](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/). * Predicted nationality distribution — [Nationalize.io ](https://nationalize.io/). * Phonetically similar names — [Datamuse ](https://www.datamuse.com/api/). Peek a Name aggregates and presents the above data for informational purposes. Statistical predictions and external attributions are clearly labelled where shown; we make no guarantee of accuracy beyond what each source provides.