Baby Name of the Day: June

The baby name June is summery and sweet, a name full of promise for a daughter born in any season.

Thanks to Leitia for requesting June as our Baby Name of the Day.

WHAT DOES THE NAME JUNE MEAN?

The baby name June comes from Juno, the Roman goddess of marriage and childbirth. 

Her name comes from the Latin word iuvenis, meaning young. 

June is the sixth month of the year, and among the more popular months-as-names, though April, May, and August are also familiar, and nearly every month has seen at least some use as a first name.

As the official start of summer in the United States, naming a baby June suggests sunshine and warmth. 

FAMOUS WOMEN NAMED JUNE

There’s also a sweetly old-fashioned energy to June. Think of celebrities like:

• Jazz singer June Christy 
• 1940s actress June Allyson
• June Lockhart had a long television career, appearing in Lassie and Petticoat Junction
• Author Henry Miller’s wife was also named June. Her affair with fellow author AnaïsNin is recorded in Nin’s writing.

And then there’s June Carter Cash, the wife of musician Johnny and his collaborator on many a creative project. Reese Witherspoon won a Best Actress Oscar for her portrayal of June in the 2005 biopic Walk the Line. The name’s return to popularity followed the film’s release, just as Cash rose for boys.

JUNE IN FICTION

If the real life women named June are a fascinating bunch, then the fictional ones are even more interesting.

There’s television mom extraordinaire June Cleaver from iconic 1950s television series Leave it to Beaver. Barbara Billingsley played the role, parenting in pearls, filmed in black-and-white.

First published in the 1990s, Junie B. Jones was the heroine of a long-running series of children’s books. In her case, it’s short for Juniper Beatrice.

Disney’s animated series The Little Einstein sent Leo, Quincy, Annie,and June on adventures in a red rocket, complete with classical music and art. 

In 2001, Sue Monk Kid published a novel titled The Secret Life of Bees. It became a 2008 movie starring Queen Latifah as beekeeper August Boatwright. August has sisters named May and June. Alicia Keys played June. 

More recently, June Colburn is the sweet, unsuspecting, and surprising tough roommate to devious Chloe in Don’t Trust the B—- in Apartment 23. Dreama Walker played June, opposite Krysten Ritter. 

Perhaps the most memorable is The Handmaid’s Tale. The original book kept its main characters – the handmaids – mostly anonymous. But when Margaret Atwood’s novel was expanded to a television series, we learned the names of many characters.

At the heart of it all? June Osborne, played by Elisabeth Moss. Her sweet, gentle name offers a stark contrast to the tough-as-nails character she becomes throughout the series.

UNISEX NAME

In Indonesia, Juni is used as a gender neutral name for children born during the month of June. That name is also familiar to everyone who grew up with the Spy Kids movies starting 2001, including Juni Cortez. 

Jun and Joon are also heard in other languages, sometimes with different meanings. In Persian, it might be used in combination with a give name, sort of like calling someone “Annie Dear.” Though to American ears, Annie Joon might sound like a double name. 

HOW POPULAR IS THE NAME JUNE?

The baby name June ranked in the US Top 100 from 1915 through 1941, peaking in the 1920s.

June slipped during the 1960s and 70s, leaving the US Top 1000 entirely after 1986. After more than two decades in hibernation, June returned to the US Top 1000 in 2008.

That timing suggests that Alicia Keys and The Secret Life of Bees deserves some credit for the name’s resurgence. But that also sounds like the 100-Year Rule at Work. A 1920s favorite is due for revival right about now. 

As of 2024, the baby name June stands at #152.

It fits with so many vintage names we love, like Ruby, Lucy, and Luna. It’s a brief, compact name with that great OO sound. 

Also worth noting: Juni is quite popular in Sweden right now.

RETRO CHARM

From Roman mythology to pop culture, the baby name June has quite a story to tell. 

But for many parents, it’s more of a summery, seasonal choice – the perfect name for a daughter born as the days grow longer. Or maybe it’s an optimistic pick, a name meant to assure us all that blue skies and the warmth of sunshine always return. 

If you’re looking for something that blends vintage appeal with plenty of energy, the baby name June might be exactly right for your family. 

What do you think of the baby name June?

First published May 31, 2012, this post was revised on October 29, 2025.