Jane
A female given name from French, the standard feminine form of John since the 17th century.
Jane at a glance
- Origin
- French
- Pronunciation (IPA)
- /d͡ʒeɪn/
Etymology
Variant of Jeanne, from French Jeanne, from Middle French Jehanne, from Medieval Latin Johanna, variant of Latin Ioanna under influence from Latin Iōhannēs, from Koine Greek Ἰωάννα (Iōánna), from Hebrew יוֹחָנָה (Yôḥānāh, literally “God is gracious”), the feminized form of יְהוֹחָנָן (Yəhōḥānān) which produced John and its many doublets. As a placeholder name, cf. similar use of John and Jack and earlier use of Joan in the same role. Doublet of Gianna, Ivana, Jana, Janice, Janis, Jean, Jeanne, Jen, Joan, Joanna, Joanne, Johanna, Juana, Shavonne, Sian, Siobhan, Shane, Shaun, Shauna, and Sheena.
Meaning and etymology from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
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FAQ
What does the name Jane mean?
A female given name from French, the standard feminine form of John since the 17th century.