Jael f Biblical, Biblical PortugueseFrom the Hebrew name
יָעֵל (Ya'el) meaning
"ibex, mountain goat". This name appears in the Old Testament belonging to the wife of
Heber the Kenite. After Sisera, the captain of the Canaanite army, was defeated in battle by
Deborah and
Barak he took refuge in Heber's tent. When he fell asleep Jael killed him by hammering a tent peg into his head.
Jafar m Arabic, PersianMeans
"stream" in Arabic. Jafar ibn Abi Talib was a cousin of the Prophet
Muhammad who was killed fighting against Byzantium in the 7th century. Another notable bearer was Jafar al-Sadiq, the sixth Shia imam.
Jagger m English (Modern)From an English surname meaning
"carter, peddler". It is used as a given name in honour of the British musician Mick Jagger (1943-), the lead vocalist of the Rolling Stones.
Jahan m PersianMeans
"world" in Persian. This name was borne by Shah Jahan, a 17th-century Mughal emperor who is best known as the builder of the Taj Mahal.
Jahangir m Persian, UrduMeans
"world conqueror, world seizer" in Persian, from
جهان (jahan) meaning "world" and
گیر (gir) meaning "catch, seize, conquer". This was the name of a 17th-century Mughal emperor.
Jaime 2 f EnglishVariant of
Jamie. The character Jaime Sommers from the television series
The Bionic Woman (1976-1978) helped to popularize the name. It can sometimes be given in reference to the French phrase
j'aime meaning "I love", though it is pronounced differently.
Jairus m BiblicalFrom
Ἰάϊρος (Iairos), the Greek form of
Jair used in the New Testament, where it belongs to the father of a young girl brought back to life by
Jesus.
Jakub m Polish, Czech, SlovakPolish, Czech and Slovak form of
Jacob (or
James). In Polish and Slovak this refers to both the Old Testament patriarch and the New Testament apostles, while in Czech this is used only for the apostles (with
Jákob for the patriarch).
Jalal ad-Din m ArabicMeans
"greatness of the faith" from Arabic
جلال (jalal) meaning "greatness, splendour" and
دين (din) meaning "religion, faith". Jalal ad-Din Muhammad Rumi, commonly called just Rumi, was a 13th-century Persian poet.
Jalen m African American (Modern)An invented name. In America it was popularized in the 1990s by basketball player Jalen Rose (1973-), whose name was a combination of those of his father
James and maternal uncle
Leonard.
Jamal ad-Din m ArabicMeans
"beauty of the faith" from Arabic
جمال (jamal) meaning "beauty" and
دين (din) meaning "religion, faith". Jamal ad-Din al-Afghani (1839-1897) was a political activist who promoted pan-Islamism.
James m English, BiblicalEnglish form of the Late Latin name
Iacomus, a variant of the Biblical Latin form
Iacobus, from the Hebrew name
Ya'aqov (see
Jacob). This was the name of two apostles in the New Testament. The first was Saint James the Greater, the apostle
John's brother, who was beheaded under Herod Agrippa in the Book of Acts. The second was James the Lesser, son of Alphaeus. Another James (known as James the Just) is also mentioned in the Bible as being the brother of
Jesus.
... [more] Jamie m & f Scottish, EnglishOriginally a Lowland Scots diminutive of
James. Since the late 19th century it has also been used as a feminine form.
Jamin m BiblicalMeans
"right hand" in Hebrew. In the Old Testament this is the name of a son of
Simeon.
Jamshid m Persian, Uzbek, Persian MythologyModern Persian form of Avestan
𐬫𐬌𐬨𐬀⸱𐬑𐬱𐬀𐬉𐬙𐬀 (Yima Xshaēta), which meant
"shining Jam". This was the name of a mythological king of Persia who ruled during a golden age. He is known as either
Jamshid or
Jam, where
Jamshid is a combination of his original name and an honorific.
Jan 1 m Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Czech, Polish, Slovene, German, Catalan, SorbianForm of
Johannes used in various languages. This name was borne by the Czech church reformer Jan Hus (1370-1415), the Flemish painter Jan van Eyck (1390-1441), and the Dutch painters Jan Steen (1626-1679) and Jan Vermeer (1632-1675).
Janaka m Sanskrit, SinhaleseMeans
"father" in Sanskrit. This was the name of an ancient Indian king of Videha. In the Hindu epic the
Ramayana he is the father of
Sita.
Jane f EnglishMedieval English form of
Jehanne, an Old French feminine form of
Iohannes (see
John). This became the most common feminine form of
John in the 17th century, surpassing
Joan. In the first half of the 20th century
Joan once again overtook
Jane for a few decades in both the United States and the United Kingdom.
... [more] Janet f EnglishMedieval diminutive of
Jane. This was a popular name throughout the English-speaking world in the 20th century, especially the 1930s to the 60s. Its popularity has since faded.
Janice f EnglishElaborated form of
Jane, created by Paul Leicester Ford for his novel
Janice Meredith (1899).
Januarius m Ancient RomanRoman cognomen meaning
"January" in Latin. The name of the month derives from the name of the Roman god
Janus. Saint Januarius, the patron saint of Naples, was a bishop who was beheaded during the persecutions of Emperor Diocletian in the early 4th century.
January f EnglishFrom the name of the month, which was named for the Roman god
Janus. This name briefly charted on the American top 1000 list for girls after it was borne by the protagonist of Jacqueline Susann's novel
Once Is Not Enough (1973).
Janus m Roman MythologyMeans
"archway" in Latin. Janus was the Roman god of gateways and beginnings, often depicted as having two faces looking in opposite directions. The month of January is named for him.
Janusz m PolishPolish variant of
Jan 1, originally a medieval diminutive but now used independently.
Janvier m FrenchFrench form of
Januarius. Though now rare in France, it is more common in French-speaking parts of Africa.
Japheth m BiblicalFrom the Hebrew name
יֶפֶת (Yefet) meaning
"enlarged". In the Old Testament he is one of the three sons of
Noah, along with
Shem and
Ham. He was the ancestor of the peoples of Europe and northern Asia.
Jarah m BiblicalMeans
"honeycomb" and
"honeysuckle" in Hebrew. In the Old Testament this is the name of a descendant of
Saul.
Jared m English, BiblicalFrom the Hebrew name
יָרֶד (Yared) or
יֶרֶד (Yered) meaning
"descent". This is the name of a close descendant of
Adam in the Old Testament. It has been used as an English name since the Protestant Reformation, and it was popularized in the 1960s by the character Jarrod Barkley on the television series
The Big Valley.
Jareth m Popular CultureInvented name, probably inspired by names such as
Jared and
Gareth. This is the name of the Goblin King, played by David Bowie, in the movie
Labyrinth (1986).
Jarmila f Czech, SlovakDerived from Czech
jarý "young, fresh" and
milý "kind, dear". This is the name of a character in the Czech poem
Máj (1836) by Karel Hynek Mácha.
Jaromír m Czech, SlovakDerived from the Slavic elements
jarŭ "fierce, energetic" and
mirŭ "peace, world". This name was borne by an 11th-century duke of Bohemia.
Jaslene f English (Modern)Combination of the popular phonetic elements
jaz and
lene. It was brought to some public attention in 2007 by Puerto Rican-born model Jaslene Gonzalez (1986-), the eighth winner of the reality television series
America's Next Top Model.
Jasmine f English, FrenchFrom the English word for the climbing plant with fragrant flowers that is used for making perfumes. It is derived via Arabic from Persian
یاسمین (yasamin), which is also a Persian name. In the United States this name steadily grew in popularity from the 1970s, especially among African Americans. It reached a peak in the early 1990s shortly after the release of the animated Disney movie
Aladdin (1992), which featured a princess by this name.
Jason m English, French, Greek Mythology (Anglicized), BiblicalFrom the Greek name
Ἰάσων (Iason) meaning
"healer", derived from Greek
ἰάομαι (iaomai) meaning "to heal". In Greek mythology Jason was the leader of the Argonauts. After his uncle
Pelias overthrew his father
Aeson as king of Iolcos, Jason went in search of the Golden Fleece in order to win back the throne. During his journeys he married the sorceress
Medea, who helped him gain the fleece and kill his uncle, but who later turned against him when he fell in love with another woman.
... [more] Jasone f BasqueFrom Basque
jaso meaning
"to lift up, to raise". It was coined by Sabino Arana in 1910 as an equivalent of the Spanish name
Asunción.
Jasper m English, Dutch, Judeo-Christian-Islamic LegendFrom Latin
Gaspar, perhaps from the Biblical Hebrew word
גִּזְבָּר (gizbar) meaning
"treasurer", derived from Persian
ganzabara. This name was traditionally assigned to one of the wise men (also known as the Magi, or three kings) who were said to have visited the newborn
Jesus. It has occasionally been used in the English-speaking world since the Middle Ages. The name can also be given in reference to the English word for the gemstone.
Javan m BiblicalMeans
"Greece" in Hebrew, possibly related to
Ion 2. In the Old Testament this is the name of a grandson of
Noah and the ancestor of the Greek peoples.
Jax m English (Modern)Short form of
Jackson. It appeared in the video game
Mortal Kombat II in 1993. It first registered as a given name in the United States in 1995 (when it was used only five times) but steadily grew in popularity for two decades, probably inspired by similar names like
Max and
Dax and helped by a character of this name on the American television series
Sons of Anarchy (2008-2014).
Jay 1 m EnglishShort form of names beginning with the sound
J, such as
James or
Jason. It was originally used in America in honour of founding father John Jay (1749-1825), whose surname was derived from the jaybird.
Jaya f & m Hinduism, Tamil, Telugu, Hindi, MarathiDerived from Sanskrit
जय (jaya) meaning
"victory". This is a transcription of both the feminine form
जया (an epithet of the Hindu goddess
Durga) and the masculine form
जय (borne by several characters in Hindu texts). As a modern personal name, this transcription is both feminine and masculine in southern India, but typically only feminine in the north.
Jayadeva m SanskritMeans
"divine victory" from Sanskrit
जय (jaya) meaning "victory" and
देव (deva) meaning "god". This was the name of a 13th-century Indian poet.
Jayden m & f English (Modern)Variant of
Jaden. This spelling continued to rapidly rise in popularity in the United States past 2003, unlike
Jaden, which stalled. It peaked at the fourth rank for boys in 2010, showing tremendous growth over only two decades. It has since declined.
Jayendra m HindiMeans
"lord of victory" from Sanskrit
जय (jaya) meaning "victory" combined with the name of the god
Indra, used here to mean "lord".
Jean 1 m FrenchModern French form of
Jehan, the Old French form of
Iohannes (see
John). Since the 12th century it has consistently been the most common male name in France. It finally dropped from the top rank in 1958, unseated by
Philippe.
... [more] Jean 2 f English, ScottishMedieval English variant of
Jehanne (see
Jane). It was common in England and Scotland during the Middle Ages, but eventually became rare in England. It was reintroduced to the English-speaking world from Scotland in the 19th century.
Jean-Luc m FrenchCombination of
Jean 1 and
Luc. A famous bearer is the French filmmaker Jean-Luc Godard (1930-2022).
Jeanne f French, EnglishModern French form of
Jehanne, an Old French feminine form of
Iohannes (see
John). This has been the most reliably popular French name for girls since the 13th century. Joan of Arc is known as Jeanne d'Arc in France.
Jeb m EnglishSometimes a diminutive of
Jacob. This name may have also resulted from a nickname of James Ewell Brown Stuart (1833-1864), a Confederate general in the American Civil War, which was formed from the initial letters of his three given names.