Julie (given name)


Julie is a popular Latin first name which originally comes from the Latin Julia which could mean youthful, soft-haired, beautiful or vivacious. It is the feminine form of Julius, and can be a pet form of Julia, Yulie, or Juliette. It is also occasionally used as a male nickname or pet form of Julius, Julian, or Jules.

Popularity

Julie has perpetually been one of the most popular female names used in the United States. According to the United States' Social Security Administration, Julie was consistently in the top one-hundred registered female names in the forty years between 1951 and 1991; peaking at #10 in 1971. Additionally, a variation of the name Julie, Julia has been in the top one-hundred since 1980.
Julie has also been a popular given name in some European countries. In the most recently available statistics, the name was the fourth most popular female name in Belgium in 2005 and ninth most popular in Denmark in the first half of 2005. In France, the name was only mildly popular in the beginning of the 20th century and its usage nearly disappeared between 1940 and 1970. It then suddenly soared to previously unknown heights, reaching its peak in 1987 when 9,908 Julies were born. It was the 17th most popular name in 2006. Julie may be given to males as well, though mostly as a second or third given name. In 2006, 204 Frenchmen had Julie among their given names.

History

The first appearance of Julie in a popular non-French literary work occurred with Swedish playwright August Strindberg's tragedy Miss Julie in 1888. As it became one of the most widely performed plays in the English-speaking world, the choice of Julie as a name expanded along with it.

People

Given name