Head to head · Girls' names
Juliana vs Juliet
#256 vs #274 in 2025
Juliana is a whisker ahead (#256 vs #274 in 2025), but the curves point different ways: Juliana is stepping back from its peak, Juliet is holding its place on the charts. On momentum, Juliet has the edge.
Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
The tale of the tape
On the charts, Juliana leads 4 measures of 6; Juliet leads 2.
Ranks, counts and years are measured in the official US birth record; the classroom and living figures are estimates computed from it. The dot marks the side each measure favours on the charts — more common, not better.
What the records say
146 years of US births, drawn on one scale
Two curves, one scale
Who owned which decade
- 1880s: Juliana #901, Juliet #672 — Juliet higher
- 1890s: Juliana #1148, Juliet #822 — Juliet higher
- 1900s: Juliana #1118, Juliet #787 — Juliet higher
- 1910s: Juliana #961, Juliet #750 — Juliet higher
- 1920s: Juliana #953, Juliet #822 — Juliet higher
- 1930s: Juliana #937, Juliet #940 — Juliana higher
- 1940s: Juliana #820, Juliet #882 — Juliana higher
- 1950s: Juliana #768, Juliet #894 — Juliana higher
- 1960s: Juliana #730, Juliet #702 — Juliet higher
- 1970s: Juliana #846, Juliet #727 — Juliet higher
- 1980s: Juliana #536, Juliet #971 — Juliana higher
- 1990s: Juliana #367, Juliet #908 — Juliana higher
- 2000s: Juliana #170, Juliet #550 — Juliana higher
- 2010s: Juliana #155, Juliet #249 — Juliana higher
- 2020s: Juliana #229, Juliet #291 — Juliana higher
Juliana stood higher in 8 of 15 decades; Juliana has held the lead since the 1980s.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Juliana | Juliet |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | #901 | #672 |
| 1890s | #1148 | #822 |
| 1900s | #1118 | #787 |
| 1910s | #961 | #750 |
| 1920s | #953 | #822 |
| 1930s | #937 | #940 |
| 1940s | #820 | #882 |
| 1950s | #768 | #894 |
| 1960s | #730 | #702 |
| 1970s | #846 | #727 |
| 1980s | #536 | #971 |
| 1990s | #367 | #908 |
| 2000s | #170 | #550 |
| 2010s | #155 | #249 |
| 2020s | #229 | #291 |
Average national rank across each decade. A dash means the name sat outside the recorded top of that decade.
The names themselves
Meaning, roots, sound and the people who carried each
Where each name comes from
Juliana
Feminine form of Julianus, 'of the family of Julius'
That Juliana comes from the Roman family name Julius is not in doubt. What Julius itself meant is: one long-standing reading connects it to Greek ioulos, 'downy-bearded' or 'youthful', another ties the family name to Jupiter/Jove. Baby-name books often print 'youthful' as settled; it is really the better-liked of two guesses.
Iulius → Iulianus → Iuliana → Juliana → Gillian
How it traveled
Iulius was one of the great Roman family names; Iulianus was formed from it, and Iuliana was its feminine. The name spread through the early church with Saint Juliana of Nicomedia, an early-fourth-century martyr whose cult reached far into western Europe, and by the Middle Ages Juliana was common enough in England to wear down into Gillian and Jill.
Juliet
From the Roman family name Julius, whose own meaning is not settled
The Julii of Rome traced their name to Iulus, son of Aeneas in Roman legend. A long-running alternative connects Julius to Latin iuvenis, 'youthful' — the gloss most name books print. Both are old proposals and neither has closed the question; what is certain is the Roman clan name itself.
Julius → Julia → Julie → Juliette → Juliet
How it traveled
The root is Julius, one of the great Roman family names, which gave Latin Julia and then French Julie and its diminutive Juliette. Italian storytellers of the sixteenth century — Luigi da Porto and later Matteo Bandello — told a tale of feuding Verona families with a heroine called Giulietta; a French version reached England as Arthur Brooke's poem 'The Tragicall Historye of Romeus and Juliet' in 1562.
Where a reading is contested the note says so — this page does not turn a guess into a fact. The chain is each name's recorded forms, oldest first; the story is its opening, told in full on the name's own page.
Out loud, and in short
Juliana
joo-lee-AH-na
English speakers also say joo-lee-AN-a, with a flat middle vowel, and both are accepted. In Spanish and Portuguese the initial J takes a throatier sound: hoo-lee-AH-na.
- Julia — The most common short form, and a fully established given name in its own right.
- Julie — Long used as an independent name too, and strongly represented among older generations.
- Jules — Informal and unisex; also a standalone name for men in French.
- Ana — Drawn from the second half; standard in Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking families, and a given name on its own.
- Also Juju, Lia.
Juliet
JOO-lee-et
Stress on the first syllable in American English. British speakers often soften the ending to JOO-lee-uht. The stressed-last version joo-lee-ET follows the French Juliette and is heard occasionally.
- Jules — The most common short form; informal, and also used for men named Julian or Julius.
- Julie — A long-established given name in its own right, which makes it a full-strength alternative rather than only a pet form.
- Etta — Drawn from the end of the name; stands alone as a given name with its own history.
- Jet — A clipped, informal family nickname rather than anything used on paper.
- Also Juju.
One short form, two names
- Juliana and Juliet both shorten to Jules.
- Juliana and Juliet both shorten to Julie.
- Juliana and Juliet both shorten to Juju.
Short forms as recorded on each name’s own page. This is here so it is a decision rather than a discovery.
Is it right for you
The differences that decide it, laid out by what you want
Choose by what you want
Choose Juliana if you want…
- a name most people already know#256 in 2025, 1,203 babies that year
- a name past its most crowded yearsJuliana is stepping back from its peak
- a name with more sound in itJuliana runs 4 syllables, Juliet 3
- a newer arrivalJuliana entered the US charts in 1881
Choose Juliet if you want…
- a name fewer children share#274 in 2025 — juliet will almost certainly be the only one in school
- a name on the way upup 32 places on the charts in five years
- a name with fewer syllablesJuliet is 3 syllables to Juliana's 4
- a long American recordJuliet was already in use when US records began in 1880
Each line is a measured difference between the two names — a rank, a count, a recorded form — never a judgement of either. Save the one that answers your question; it lands on your shortlist.
The trade-offs, name by name
Juliana
Strengths
- Spelled identically in Spanish, Portuguese and Dutch, so it crosses borders without being reissued in a new form.
- Comes with several ready-made short forms — Julia, Julie, Jules, Ana — each of which also works as a full name.
- An unbroken record from Roman times through the medieval church to the present, with no gap needing explanation.
To consider
- The Juli- family is crowded: Julia, Julie, Juliet, Julianna, Julianne and Juliane all sit close by, and Juliana will be misheard or respelled as one of them fairly often.
- Two pronunciations circulate in English — the AH middle and the flatter AN middle — so expect to correct people, or to accept both.
- Because the built-in short forms are so strong, a Juliana may spend much of her life being called Julia or Julie. That is easy to live with, but worth deciding how you feel about it now.
Juliet
Strengths
- Instantly recognizable spelling in English, thanks to four centuries of the play being read in schools — few people need it repeated.
- Travels intact: Juliette, Giulietta, Julieta and Julia are the same name in French, Italian, Spanish and Polish.
- Several established short forms — Jules, Julie, Etta — so the name can be formal or casual without effort.
To consider
- The Shakespeare link is permanent. Expect balcony jokes and 'wherefore art thou' from strangers, and expect the play's ending to be mentioned by someone who thinks they are the first.
- Juliet, Juliette and Julieta all circulate, so the spelling will need confirming on forms even though the name itself is well known.
- Spoken quickly, it sits close to Julie, Julia and Juliana, and gets swapped for them now and then.
Documented properties of each name — how it spells, travels and shortens — not opinions about the child.
With your last name
Say both in full. The notes are facts about letters and sound — a rhyme, a shared initial, the monogram — not a verdict on either name.
Type a last name to hear Juliana and Juliet in full.
Weighing the whole shortlist? Run the full comparison — up to eight names with your last name, initials, classroom projections and a printable report.
Decide together
Nobody names a baby alone
Still torn between Juliana and Juliet?
Put both to the vote.
One link to your partner, your parents, your sister. Each of them gets the two names, a one-tap answer and room to say why — and every reply lands in one place.
Free to start · no account needed · everyone you invite votes in one tap
More than two in the running? Settle it with a bracket or run the full comparison with your last name.
More head-to-heads
Same measures, different pair. Sixty more are dealt daily in the arena.
Lists these names appear on
- Four-syllable names that carry
- Latin American and Caribbean names
- Names ending in -ana
- Names ending in -na
- all guides
Where Juliana and Juliet each sit in the library — alternatives in the same style, ranked by the same records.
Juliana or Juliet — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Juliana or Juliet?
- Juliana, in 2025: Juliana ranked #256 with 1,203 babies; Juliet ranked #274 with 1,136 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Juliana or Juliet?
- Juliet. Over the last five years Juliana moved down 67 places; Juliet moved up 32 places.
- Which is the older name, Juliana or Juliet?
- Juliana entered the US charts in 1881; Juliet was already in use when US records began in 1880. On the American record, Juliet is the older name.
- How many people are named Juliana and Juliet?
- About 64,500 people named Juliana are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 34,500 people named Juliet are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Do Juliana and Juliet share a nickname?
- Yes — both shorten to Jules, Julie and Juju, so in a house with both names the short form would not say which child is meant.
US figures from the Social Security Administration, 1880–2025. Votes are battle voters on this site, not the birth record. Data & methodology
Keep playing
Sixty more head-to-heads are dealt in the arena every day — or line up Juliana, Juliet and the rest of your shortlist with your last name in one printable report.
Free to start · no account needed · everyone you invite votes in one tap