Gender Masculine & Feminine
Usage Spanish, Portuguese, French
Meaning & History
Spanish and Portuguese form of Joseph, as well as a French variant. In Spanish and Portuguese-speaking regions it is occasionally used as a feminine middle name (or the second part of a double name), often paired with María. This was the most popular name for boys in Spain for the first half of the 20th century. A famous bearer was the Portuguese novelist José Saramago (1922-2010).