| Harper | Joan | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Harp player | God is gracious |
| Origin | English | english |
| Gender | Girl | Girl |
| Pronunciation | HAR-per | JOHN |
| Syllables | 2 | 1 |
| First appeared | 1971 | 0 |
| Peak year | 2016 (10,803) | 1932 (21,044) |
| In 2025 | 6,792 | 0 |
| Trend | Rising | Vintage |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Harper | Joan |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 47,509 | 1,031 |
| 2010s | 85,193 | 941 |
| 2000s | 5,671 | 1,003 |
| 1990s | 563 | 1,858 |
| 1980s | 82 | 3,300 |
| 1970s | 45 | 6,480 |
| 1960s | 0 | 36,676 |
| 1950s | 0 | 85,179 |
| 1940s | 0 | 117,708 |
| 1930s | 0 | 173,439 |
| 1920s | 0 | 45,351 |
| 1910s | 0 | 7,021 |
| 1900s | 0 | 863 |
| 1890s | 0 | 267 |
| 1880s | 0 | 121 |
Harper is an English occupational surname for someone who played or made harps. Boosted by the novelist Harper Lee, it became a hugely popular girls’ name.
A medieval English feminine of John, from Old French Johanne, ultimately from Hebrew 'Yochanan' ('Yahweh is gracious'). Like Jane, it descends from John rather than from Hannah.
Harper is more popular than Joan today: about 6,792 US babies were given the name Harper in 2025, compared with 0 named Joan.
Harper means Harp player (English origin), while Joan means God is gracious (english origin).
In US records, Harper first appears in 1971 and Joan in 0, so Joan has the longer recorded history.