Meaning and history
Joseph traces through Latin Ioseph and Greek Ioseph to the Hebrew Yosef, meaning "he will add" from a root meaning "to add" or "increase." In the Old Testament, Jacob and Rachel's first son Joseph is sold into Egypt by his jealous brothers, rises to advise the pharaoh, and later reconciles with them during a famine. The New Testament also names Mary's husband Saint Joseph and Joseph of Arimathea. Long established among Jews, the name spread more widely among Christians as devotion to Saint Joseph grew in the late Middle Ages, becoming popular in Spain and Italy and reaching common use in England after the Protestant Reformation. It has remained among the top 25 American boys' names since 1880 and was borne by rulers of the Holy Roman Empire and Portugal, as well as composer Joseph Haydn (1732–1809), religious founder Joseph Smith (1805–1844), author Joseph Conrad (1857–1924), and Soviet ruler Joseph Stalin (1878–1953).
20062006: 18,471 births, rank #11
2007: 17,364 births, rank #13
2008: 16,599 births, rank #13
2009: 14,952 births, rank #15
2010: 13,851 births, rank #20
20112011: 12,995 births, rank #22
2012: 12,594 births, rank #19
2013: 12,278 births, rank #20
2014: 12,155 births, rank #20
2015: 11,531 births, rank #21
20162016: 10,969 births, rank #20
2017: 10,488 births, rank #18
2018: 9,682 births, rank #23
2019: 9,179 births, rank #24
2020: 8,486 births, rank #26
20212021: 8,166 births, rank #28
2022: 7,839 births, rank #30
2023: 7,279 births, rank #29
2024: 7,261 births, rank #32
20252025: 7,303 births, rank #29
Joseph has unusual staying power. It appears in the US records as early as 1880 and still ranks #29 for boys in 2025. Its highest annual birth count came in 1956, with 32,749 births.