John (name)

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John (IPA: [dʒɒn]) is a common English name for males.

Since the time of the Crusades John has been a common given name in English speaking countries, and either it or William was the number one name in England and English speaking North America from around 1550 until the middle of the twentieth century. John was the most popular name given to boys in the United States until 1924, and though its use has fallen off gradually since then, John was still the 18th most common name for male infants on the Social Security Administration's list of names given in 2005. [1] It was also long the most common male name in the UK, but by 2004 it had fallen out of the top 50 names for new born boys in England and Wales. [2] By contrast Jack, which was originally a nickname for John but is now established as a name in its own right, was the most popular boy's name in England and Wales every year from 1995 to 2005. [3][4]

In Britain, King John signed the Magna Carta in 1215; Prince Alexander John, the youngest son of King Edward VII, died shortly after birth, and Prince John, the youngest son of King George V, died in his sleep in 1919. As such, the name John has been considered unlucky by the British Royal Family and its use avoided. It was reported that Diana, Princess of Wales wished to name her elder son "John", after her own father, but was prevented from doing so by royal tradition.

[edit] John

The name John derives from the Latin Johanne, simplified from Johannes, which derives from Greek Ἰωάννης, Iōannēs, in turn from Mishnaic Hebrew יוחנן Yôḥānān, Yohanan, during the Second Temple Period, after both John the Apostle and John the Baptist, with the original meaning being "God is merciful."

Johanne has variants: Iohann, Ion, and Ivan where v is pronounced as 'u' - note, the letter J was derived from I, and V from U: compare the Spanish, Juan, and Ivan and the Portuguese Juo and Ivo.

John was first used in England with the arrival of the Normans in the 11th century and has been in regular use in the English speaking world since the 16th century.

Diminutive and alternative forms are:

  • Jack
  • Hank
  • Jon
  • Jonny/Johnny/Johnnie
  • Evan (Welsh)
  • Giovanni (Italian)
  • Jan (German/European)
  • Jean (French)
  • Johan (Dutch/Scandinavian)
  • Juan (Spanish / Filipino)
  • Ian (Scottish)
  • Ivan (Russian)
  • Sean (Irish Seán, after the French Jean)
  • Shaun (anglicised form)
  • Shawn (a variant of Sean)
  • Shon (Israeli Hebrew) שון (from Shawn)
  • Yohani(Kirundi)

Feminine forms are:

  • Ann/Anne/Anna
  • Nancy, Nanny, and Fanny, pet forms of Ann
  • Jane
  • Joanne
  • Joan
  • Jean (in Scots)
  • Janice, Janet, both shortened as "Jan"
  • Non-English variants adopted as English names include Hannah, and Jeanette

[edit] Jon / Jonathan

Jonathan is not a variation of John, but a name of its own, with the meaning "Yahweh has given."[5] Therefore John and Jonathan (as well as many other biblical Hebrew names) share the element "Yah-" ("God"). The diminutive or nickname Jon is often, but not always, short for Jonathan rather than John.

[edit] Evolution of the name John

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