boy's name
Jean-Baptiste
zhahn ba-TEEST
- Origin French
- Gender Boy
- Syllables 3
- Letters 13
- Popularity Uncommon
- Births on record 49,373
Jean-Baptiste means John the dipper, and the second half is a job description — baptizein is the ordinary Greek for dipping something in liquid, so the title says plainly what he did in the river.
- Jean-Baptiste is a name of French origin.
- Peaked in France in 1991, when 1,440 babies were given the name.
- It has been falling over the past decade in France.
- Today about 1 in 16,843 babies in France is given this name.
- First appears in birth records in 1900.
- 3 syllables, with the stress on syllable 3.
Jean-Baptiste 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 | 3,055 |
| 1910s | 2,280 |
| 1920s | 2,310 |
| 1930s | 1,615 |
| 1940s | 1,385 |
| 1950s | 1,780 |
| 1960s | 2,130 |
| 1970s | 6,220 |
| 1980s | 12,810 |
| 1990s | 10,835 |
| 2000s | 3,615 |
| 2010s | 1,020 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 225 |
What Jean-Baptiste means
Jean-Baptiste means John the Baptist. The first half means God is gracious and the second names an action, so the compound is a name joined to an occupation.
Where Jean-Baptiste comes from
Jean-Baptiste compounds Jean, the French John from the Hebrew Yochanan, God is gracious, with Baptiste from the Greek baptistes — one who dips, from baptizein, to dip or immerse. The word was entirely ordinary in Greek and used of dyeing cloth and sinking ships before it was used of a rite. Jean-Baptiste Lully effectively invented French opera, and Jean-Baptiste Poquelin is better known as Molière.
Jean-Baptiste in use
Jean-Baptiste peaked in France in 1991, when 1,440 babies were registered, and is falling in our data. It charts in exactly one of the six markets we track, at 1003rd in France on 35 births, across 49,373 lifetime births. Our records hold five births in England and Wales in 2011 and effectively nothing outside France, so this is a French name in the strictest sense we can measure.
How popular is Jean-Baptiste?
In 2025, Jean-Baptiste was given to 35 babies in France. It is used consistently but remains uncommon.
Where Jean-Baptiste 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.
How Jean-Baptiste is spelled
Birth registers count each spelling separately, so every one has its own ranking.
| Spelling | What it is | Births on record |
|---|---|---|
| Jeanbaptiste | Jeanbaptiste is Jean-Baptiste written as one word, used in the United States, where it ranks #13,416. | 10 |
Names that peaked alongside Jean-Baptiste
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Jean-Baptiste also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Jean-Baptiste over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
Jean-Baptiste 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.
- Dutch
- Jean
- French
- Jean Jean-Pierre Baptiste
Sibling names for Jean-Baptiste
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Jean-Baptiste — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Jean-Baptiste
What does Jean-Baptiste mean?
John the Baptist — God is gracious, joined to one who dips.
Does baptize literally mean dip?
Yes. Baptizein was ordinary Greek, used of dyeing cloth and sinking ships.
Was Molière a Jean-Baptiste?
He was born Jean-Baptiste Poquelin.
Where is the name used?
France, essentially exclusively.
How popular is the name Jean-Baptiste?
In 2025, Jean-Baptiste was given to 35 babies in France. It is used consistently but remains uncommon.
Is Jean-Baptiste a girl's or a boy's name?
Jean-Baptiste is given almost entirely to boys in birth records.
How many syllables are in Jean-Baptiste?
Jean-Baptiste has 3 syllables.
When was Jean-Baptiste most popular?
Jean-Baptiste peaked in 1991, when 1,440 babies were given the name. It has been falling over the past decade.
Is Jean-Baptiste a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Jean-Baptiste currently ranks #1,003 in France. It has been falling over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.