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==Origins==
The name "John" originates from יוחנן Yôḥānnān, which means "[[Yahweh]] is gracious." [[Yahweh]] is the name of [[God]] used by the [[Jewish]] people. Yôḥānnān was the name of several important [[Jewish]] [[rabbis]] in the [[Second Temple Period]] in Israel, such as [[Yochanan ben Zakai]] and [[Yochanan ben Nuri]].

The name had gained popularity among [[Jews]] in [[Judea]] and [[Galilee]] by the time the area became a province of the [[Roman Empire]] in 6 A.D. It was the given name of [[John the Baptist|Yochanan ben Zechariah]], a [[Jewish]] prophet known in English as [[John the Baptist]]. It was also the given name of [[John the Apostle|Yochanan ben Zibhdi]], a fisherman from [[Galilee]] who became one of the favorite students (called [[Seventy Disciples|disciples]]) of [[Jesus Christ]] and so is known in English as [[John the Apostle]]. Because Yochanan also wrote one of the four accounts of the life of [[Jesus Christ]] called [[gospels]], the [[Gospel of St. John]], he is also known as [[John the Evangelist]].

The texts that tell of the lives of both these men named Yochanan were written in [[Greek language|Greek]], and their name was adapted in Greek as Ἰωάννης, '''Iōannēs''' (pronounced YIO-an-NES). The name Ioannes became extremely popular among the early Christians, and bearers include such noted members of the early church as [[John Chrysostom|Ioannes Chrysostomos]] and the Ioannes who wrote the [[Book of Revelation]].

Because of the great respect Christians had for these men, the name came into use in other parts of the Christianized [[Roman Empire]], even in remoter parts such as [[Gaul]] and [[Roman Britain|Britain]]. The Western areas of the [[Roman Empire]] did not, however, speak Greek like the areas in the East. Instead, they spoke [[Latin]]. Accordingly, in the Western part of the [[Roman Empire]] the name was Latinized as '''Iohannes''' (pronounced like the Greek).

The local populations in these areas of the [[Roman Empire]] soon changed Roman names to fit their own [[dialect]], which included dropping the [[suffixes]] -us and -es from such names. In the Roman sphere of influence, Johannes became the [[German language|Germanic]] '''Johann''', for example, the [[Slavic languages]] '''Ivan''', and '''Ion''' in the area on the Black Sea that is now [[Romania]]. On the outskirts of the Empire in the newly converted [[Ireland]] it became the [[Irish language|Irish]] '''Eoin'''. In some cases, the pronunciation of the original initial "Y"/"I" also changed to variants of "J", so that in [[Iberian Peninsula|Iberia]] the name eventually changed to the [[Spanish language|Spanish]] '''Juan''' and the [[Portuguese language|Portuguese]] '''Juo''' and '''Ivo''' (now '''João'''). In [[Gaul]], it became the Old French '''Jehan''' and later '''Jean''' (pronounced /ʒɑ̃/).

In the [[11th century]] the [[France|French]] duke [[William of Normandy|William the Conqueror]] invaded and conquered [[England]] and brought his French knights and their dialect with him. In [[England]], the French name Jean came to be pronounced like the current name '''John''', though prior to the adoption into English of the letter 'J', the letter 'I' was used. Seventeenth Century English texts still spelled the name '''Iohn'''. Since then, it has been spelled in its current form, '''John'''.


==In English speaking countries==
==In English speaking countries==

Revision as of 00:04, 17 October 2008

For other uses, see John.
John
Pronunciation/ˈdʒɒn/, /ˈdʒɑn/)
GenderMale
Origin
MeaningGod is gracious

John is an English name for males.


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In English speaking countries

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 male infants in the United States until 1924, and though its use has fallen off gradually since then, John was still the 20th most common name for boys on the Social Security Administration's list of names given in 2006.[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 newborn boys in England and Wales.[2] By contrast Jack, which was a nickname for John but is established as a name in its own right, was the most popular name given to newborn boys in England and Wales every year from 1995 to 2005.[2][3]

In Great Britain, the name John has not been a popular name for members of the royal household, however. 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.

Common mistakes

Because the name Jonathan is sometimes abbreviated as Jon, John is sometimes falsely considered to be a short form of Jonathan, especially in the United States, where the latter name is sometimes misspelled "Johnathan" as a result. John is a variation of the Hebrew name Yôḥānnān, whereas Jonathan derives from the Hebrew יוֹנָתָן Yônāṯān, which means "Gift from Yaweh" and thus is a longer version of Nathan.

Alternate forms

Other language forms

  • Eoin (Irish language derivation of Seán; in Irish and Scottish Gaelic refers to the Apostle)
  • Evan (Anglicized form of Welsh Ieuan or Ifan)
  • Giovanni, Gianni (Italian)
  • Gjon (Albania)
  • Giuàn (Western Lombard)
  • Ġwanni, Ġwann, Ġanni (Maltese)
  • Ian (Scottish derived from Gaelic Iain)
  • Ιωάννης, Γιάννης (Ioannis, Giannis) (Greek)
  • Ion (Romanian)
  • Ivan (Bulgarian, Croatian, Russian and other Slavic language nations)
  • Jan (Norwegian, Dutch, Swedish, Faroese, Polish, Czech, German)
  • Ján (Slovak)
  • Janez (Slovenian)
  • Jani (Finnish)
  • Jānis (Latvian)
  • János (Hungarian)
  • Jean (French)
  • Jens (Danish, Norwegian, Swedish)
  • Jevan (variation of Evan)
  • Joan (Catalan)
  • João (Portuguese)
  • Joanes (Basque)
  • Jógvan (Faroese)
  • Johan (Dutch, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, German, Faroese)
  • Johann (Germanic: German, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish, Dutch)
  • Johannes (Germanic: German, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish, Dutch)
  • Jon (Norwegian, Swedish, Basque)
  • Jón (Icelandic, Faroese)
  • Jonas (Lithuanian, Swedish)
  • Joni (Fijian)
  • Jovan (Serbian)
  • Juan (Spanish / Filipino), feminine form Juana with diminutive Juanita
  • Juhani (Finnish)
  • Seán (Irish Seán, after the French Jean)
  • Shane (anglicized form of Seán)
  • Shaun (anglicised form of Seán)
  • Shawn (anglicised form of Seán)
  • Shon (Israeli Hebrew) שון (from Shawn)
  • Siôn (Welsh)
  • Yahya (Arabic: يحيى) Muslim version of John
  • Yohanu (Telugu)
  • Yohanes (Eritrean)
  • Yohannan (Malayalam)
  • Yohani (Kirundi)
  • Yohanna (Arabic: يوحنا) the Arabic/ Aramaic language derivative used by Christians of the Levant.

Feminine forms

  • Giovanna (Italian)
  • Ioana
  • Ivana (Croatian)
  • Jana (Czech, Slovak)
  • Janina (Polish)
  • Jane (English)
  • Janet, Janice, both shortened as "Jan"
  • Jean
  • Jeanne (French)
  • Jeanette (French, adopted as an English name)
  • Joan
  • Joana (Portuguese, Catalan and Basque)
  • Joanne
  • Johanna
  • Jóhanna (Icelandic, Faroese)
  • Johanne (Norwegian, Danish)
  • Jovana (Serbian)
  • Seonaid, Sinead, Seonag
  • Ιωάννα , Γιάννα ( Ioanna , Gianna ) (Greek)

Pet, diminutive and alternative forms

  • Hans (pet form of Johannes)
  • Hansel/Hänsel (Bavarian/Austrian diminutive of Hans)
  • Hasse (Very common pet form of Hans in Swedish)
  • Ivica, Ivo, Ivek (Croatian diminutives of Ivan)
  • Jack (English dimunitive of John)
  • Jock (Scottish dimunitive of John)
  • Jeník, Jenda, Jeníček, Honza, Honzík, Honzíček (Czech diminutives of Jan)
  • Jan, Jani, Janko (Slovenian diminutives of Janez)
  • Jancsi (Hungarian diminutive of János)
  • Johnny/Johnnie (English pet name for John)
  • Jonn
  • Jovo, Jovica (Serbian diminutives of Jovan)
  • Juanita (Spanish feminine diminutive)

Forms and transliterations

See also

References

  1. ^ Popular Baby Names
  2. ^ a b Top UK baby names 2004
  3. ^ National Statistics
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