John

Where John comes from

From Middle English John, Johan, Johannes, from Anglo-Norman Jehan, Johan, and also Old English Iohannes, both from Late Latin Iōhannēs, variant of Latin Iōannēs, from Koine Greek Ἰωάννης (Iōánnēs), from Biblical Hebrew יוֹחָנָן (Yôḥānān), perhaps contracted from a former יְהוֹחָנָן (Yəhōḥānān, “God is gracious”). Doublet of Jack, Jon, Johan, Johann, Johannes, Jean, Sean, Shane, Shaun, Ian, Ivan, Evan, Juan, Giovanni, and Yahya.
— Wiktionary's entry for John
  • 1 syllable
Along the way
  1. 1735
    John Adams born
    Founding Father, U.S. president from 1797 to 1801
  2. 1880
    First SSA year
    Already #1 among boys — 9,655 babies in the first year on record.
  3. 1917
    John F. Kennedy born
    president of the United States from 1961 to 1963
  4. 1921
    Peak, #1
    58,216 babies named John — more than any year before or since.
  5. 1990
    The fade
    The first year with half the peak's births — down to #12.
In the dictionary
  • A male given name originating from the Bible [in turn from Hebrew]; very popular since the Middle Ages.
  • Used generically for a man whose actual name may not be known.
  • Used frequently to form an idea personified, as in John Bull, John Barleycorn (see derivations below).
Namesakes
  • John F. Kennedy · president of the United States from 1961 to 1963, 1917–1963
  • John Adams · Founding Father, U.S. president from 1797 to 1801, 1735–1826
  • John Lennon · British musician, 1940–1980
  • John Quincy Adams · President of the United States from 1825 to 1829, 1767–1848
  • John Milton · English poet and civil servant, 1608–1674

Sources: the origin note and dictionary entry are quoted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0); the namesakes come from Wikidata (CC0); the milestones are worked out from the SSA record.