unisex name
Jean
ZHAHN
- Origin French
- Gender Unisex
- Syllables 1
- Letters 4
- Popularity Uncommon
- Births on record 2,401,294
France
#104
2025 births
Jean is a unisex name in our data: the French form of John, meaning "God is gracious," and separately a Scottish feminine form of Jane. It ranks 104th in France and holds nearly 2.4 million births in our records.
- Jean is a name of French origin.
- Peaked in France in 1946, when 53,395 babies were given the name.
- Its usage has held steady over the past decade in France.
- Today about 1 in 1,016 babies in France is given this name.
- First appears in birth records in 1900.
- 1 syllable, with the stress on syllable 1.
Jean over time
Births per decade in France, 1900s to 2020s. The striped bar is the 2020s, still in progress — it covers 2020 to 2025, not a full ten years.
Show the numbers
| Decade | Births |
|---|---|
| 1900s | 174,655 |
| 1910s | 175,335 |
| 1920s | 303,870 |
| 1930s | 339,780 |
| 1940s | 420,165 |
| 1950s | 276,160 |
| 1960s | 121,350 |
| 1970s | 37,375 |
| 1980s | 28,305 |
| 1990s | 13,190 |
| 2000s | 9,090 |
| 2010s | 7,990 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 3,540 |
What Jean means
Jean means God is gracious. It carries the meaning of the Hebrew Yochanan through the Latin Johannes, and the feminine English usage carries the same sense by way of Jane, which descends from the same name.
Where Jean comes from
Jean is the French development of the Latin Johannes, from the Hebrew Yochanan, God is gracious — the name behind John, Juan, Giovanni, Ivan, Sean and Hans. In France it was so dominant that it generated hundreds of compounds: Jean-Pierre, Jean-Paul, Jean-Baptiste, Jean-Luc. Separately and confusingly, Jean in English is a feminine name, a Scottish form of Jane, which itself comes from the same Johannes by a different route through the Old French Jehanne. So the masculine French Jean and the feminine English Jean are the same name arriving twice, which is why our data records it as unisex across markets.
Jean in use
Jean holds nearly 2.4 million births in our records, second only to Marie, and ranks 104th in France today. It appears in Northern Ireland and Scotland in small numbers, reflecting the feminine usage there rather than the French masculine one. Our data carries it from 1880 with a peak in 1927. Like Marie, its decline from near-universality is among the steepest long falls we hold.
How popular is Jean?
In 2025, Jean was given to 580 babies in France, ranking #104 that year. It is used consistently but remains uncommon.
Where Jean is used
French counts are rounded to the nearest five and nothing below five is published, so these figures show the shape of the name's use rather than an exact tally. Data & sources.
Names that peaked alongside Jean
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Jean also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Jean over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
Jean in other languages
The same name as it is spelled elsewhere — not shortenings, and not different names that merely sound alike. Each one has its own record here.
Sibling names for Jean
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Jean — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Jean
What does the name Jean mean?
Jean means "God is gracious," from the Hebrew Yochanan.
Is Jean a boy's or a girl's name?
Both, in different countries. Masculine in France, feminine in Scotland and England as a form of Jane.
Why is Jean feminine in English?
The English Jean is a Scottish form of Jane, which descends from the same Latin Johannes by a different route.
How common is Jean?
It holds nearly 2.4 million births in our records, second only to Marie.
How many syllables are in Jean?
Jean has 1 syllable.
Is Jean a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Jean currently ranks #104 in France. Its usage has held steady over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.