Thirty years of Jonah
Jonah in numbers
Jonah has risen from 78 boys in 1996 to 363 in 2025, though it is below its peak of 428 in 2022. Its biggest three-year rise came between 2008 and 2011, from 189 to 342. On average it was given to 86 boys a year in the late 1990s, 146 in the 2000s, 347 in the 2010s and 393 in the 2020s so far.
† Shapes, averages and turning points are Baby Data calculations from the ONS counts.
Milestones
First year in each bandChange
- On last year-1%365 to 363
- 5 years-3%375 to 363
- 10 years-1%368 to 363
- 20 years+205%119 to 363
- Since 1996×578 to 363
- Total, 1996 to 20257,630boys
† All changes and totals are Baby Data calculations from ONS counts. A total adds only the published years.
Across the three nations, 2025
Each from its own statistics office, never added togetherRank 147 · ONS · 365 in 2024
Rank 137 · NRS · 20 in 2024
Rank 64 · NISRA · 47 in 2024
England and Wales (ONS) count births in the calendar year; Scotland (NRS) and Northern Ireland (NISRA) count births registered in the year. Each comes from its own statistics office and they are never added together.
Year by year, 1996 to 2025 Show all 30 yearsHide the table
| Year | Rank | Babies | Change† | 1 in X† |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | =147 | 363 | -1% | 1 in 828 |
| 2024 | =145 | 365 | -10% | 1 in 836 |
| 2023 | =134 | 406 | -5% | 1 in 746 |
| 2022 | 133 | 428 | +2% | 1 in 726 |
| 2021 | =136 | 419 | +12% | 1 in 764 |
| 2020 | 147 | 375 | -4% | 1 in 839 |
| 2019 | 144 | 391 | +1% | 1 in 842 |
| 2018 | 144 | 387 | +8% | 1 in 872 |
| 2017 | =159 | 358 | -5% | 1 in 972 |
| 2016 * | 157 | 378 | +3% | 1 in 942 |
| 2015 | =158 | 368 | -1% | 1 in 973 |
| 2014 | =149 | 373 | +13% | 1 in 956 |
| 2013 | 171 | 329 | +2% | 1 in 1,089 |
| 2012 | 180 | 324 | -5% | 1 in 1,155 |
| 2011 | =168 | 342 | +53% | 1 in 1,085 |
| 2010 | 216 | 223 | +4% | 1 in 1,663 |
| 2009 | =212 | 215 | +14% | 1 in 1,684 |
| 2008 | =236 | 189 | +6% | 1 in 1,920 |
| 2007 | 238 | 178 | +23% | 1 in 1,991 |
| 2006 | =255 | 145 | +22% | 1 in 2,361 |
| 2005 | =273 | 119 | -2% | 1 in 2,778 |
| 2004 | 268 | 122 | -5% | 1 in 2,691 |
| 2003 | =246 | 129 | +2% | 1 in 2,468 |
| 2002 | =235 | 126 | +14% | 1 in 2,429 |
| 2001 | =254 | 111 | -10% | 1 in 2,744 |
| 2000 | =239 | 124 | +49% | 1 in 2,497 |
| 1999 | =318 | 83 | -10% | 1 in 3,846 |
| 1998 | =282 | 92 | +2% | 1 in 3,542 |
| 1997 | =293 | 90 | +15% | 1 in 3,662 |
| 1996 | =312 | 78 | 1 in 4,275 |
* ONS’s boys’ 2016 file repeats the October total as September, so the 2016 births total is about 932 too low and 1 in X for 2016 is slightly too low. Rank follows ONS: names with the same count share a rank (shown with =). “Under 3” means the name was given to fewer than 3 babies that year, so ONS did not publish it.
Compare Jonah
Draws the second name on the chart above, on a shared scale.
Share and download
Jonah is in the free dataset (CSV and JSON), with the method and how to cite it.
Source: Office for National Statistics, Baby names in England and Wales, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0; National Records of Scotland; NISRA. Exact spellings are counted separately and names given to fewer than 3 babies are not published. Figures marked † are Baby Data calculations. How we calculate