Given name
Janita
“God is gracious”
In Finnish use, Janita is a feminine form of Jani. In Finnish use, Jani carries the interpretation “God is gracious.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
In Finnish use, Janita is a feminine form of Jani. In Finnish use, Jani carries the interpretation “God is gracious.”
Explained through its name family
How it developed
In Finnish usage, Janita is a feminine form of Jani.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1915. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Janita through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 1,837
- 0 boys · 1,837 girls
- Most popular year
- 1963
- 57 babies
- 2025
- 6
- #13,918 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +100%
- Rising fast
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 6 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 13,918 among girls’ names. The recent annual counts are too incomplete to establish a ten-year comparison. Its largest published annual count for girls was 57 in 1963. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 1,686 as a first name in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Janita’s family of names
In Finnish usage, Janita is a feminine form of Jani. Janita has a related form in Juana. In Finnish usage, Janita has a related form in Johanna.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 5
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 1
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 4
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
People named Janita
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Janita, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Johnna
“God is gracious”
>99% girls
Sarita
“princess”
>99% girls
Janine
“God is gracious”
>99% girls
Adelita
“of the nobility; serene; of good humor”
>99% girls
Anita
“a woman graced with God's favor”
>99% girls
Jeanna
“God is gracious”
>99% girls
Rosita
“horse” · “fame”
>99% girls
Jolynn
“God will add”
>99% girls