Yuko is of Japanese origin, meaning "beautiful jade." It is a unisex name but is more commonly used for females. The name has been particularly popular in Japan since the early 20th century. Pronounced as /ˈjuːkoʊ/, it consists of two characters: 由 (Yū) meaning 'to use' or 'by means of', and 子 (Ko) meaning 'child'. Thus, Yuko can be interpreted as 'used child' or 'a child used by something'. However, the name is typically associated with beauty and preciousness due to its kanji characters.
The name Yuko appears to have been quite popular in the late 60s and early 70s, with a peak of 13 births in 1986. However, its popularity has since declined, with only 5 or fewer births recorded each year from 2005 onwards. In total, there were 157 babies named Yuko over these years.