Jane (given name)

Jane

Lady Jane Grey is a famous Jane.
Gender Female
Origin
Word/name Hebrew, Greek, Latin, French, English
Meaning "Yahweh is gracious/merciful"
Region of origin Worldwide
Other names
Nickname(s) Janie, Jenny
Related names John, Joanna, Joan
Popularity see popular names

Jane is a feminine given name. It is the English form of the Old French name Jehanne, which was an old feminine form of the male name Johannes or Ioannes (also the source of the English name John), a Latin form of the Greek name Ἰωάννης (Iōannēs), which is derived from the Hebrew name יוֹחָנָן (Yochanan), a short form of the name יְהוֹחָנָן (Yehochanan), meaning "Yahweh is merciful".[1]

The name was first used in large numbers in the mid-16th century for the daughters of aristocrats as an alternative to the more commonplace Joan. The two names have alternated popularity. In the early 19th century, Jane was again seen as a name with a certain amount of glamour. Joan became more popular in the early to mid-20th century, when it was ranked in the top 500 most popular names given to girls in the United States, but the name has again been displaced by Jane on the popularity charts in the 21st century.

Name variants

Alternate forms include:

People with this name

Arts

(born 1956), artist and journalist

Entertainment

History

Literature

News media

Politics

Religion

Royalty and nobility

Science

Sport

Fictional Janes

Characters in animation

Comic book characters

Characters in literature

Characters in TV, film, and theater

Characters in video games

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Behind the Name
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