boy's name
Jean-Claude
zhahn-KLOHD
- Origin French
- Gender Boy
- Letters 11
- Births on record 174,748
Jean-Claude is a French compound of two names, God is gracious and lame. It peaked in 1947 at 10,300 births and no longer ranks in any market we track — the sharpest full exit in this group.
- Jean-Claude is a name of French origin.
- Peaked in France in 1947, when 10,300 babies were given the name.
- It has been falling over the past decade in France.
- First appears in birth records in 1900.
Jean-Claude over time
Births per decade in France, 1900s to 2020s. The striped bar is the 2020s, still in progress — it covers 2020 to 2023, not a full ten years.
Show the numbers
| Decade | Births |
|---|---|
| 1900s | 155 |
| 1910s | 115 |
| 1920s | 770 |
| 1930s | 12,010 |
| 1940s | 66,660 |
| 1950s | 58,940 |
| 1960s | 27,545 |
| 1970s | 5,970 |
| 1980s | 1,250 |
| 1990s | 540 |
| 2000s | 190 |
| 2010s | 70 |
| 2020s (to 2023) | 20 |
What Jean-Claude means
Jean-Claude means God is gracious, from Jean, joined to lame, from Claude. French compound names keep both meanings side by side rather than blending them.
Where Jean-Claude comes from
Jean-Claude joins Jean, the French John from the Hebrew Yochanan, God is gracious, to Claude, from the Roman family name Claudius, built on claudus, lame. The Claudii were among Rome's most powerful families, and the emperor Claudius did have a limp, which his relatives used against him and which appears to have kept him alive through Caligula's reign. French hyphenated compounds like this were a mid-century fashion — Jean-Pierre, Jean-Luc, Jean-Michel and Marie-Claire belong to the same period, and they are single legal names rather than a first and middle.
Jean-Claude in use
Jean-Claude peaked in France in 1947, when 10,300 babies were registered, and is falling in our data. It no longer ranks in any of the six markets we track, across 174,748 lifetime births. Of the nine French names in this group it is the only one to have left every chart while still carrying more than 170,000 lifetime births.
How popular is Jean-Claude?
In 2023, Jean-Claude was given to 5 babies in France. It was given to fewer than five babies in the most recent year of published US data.
Where Jean-Claude 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-Claude is spelled
Birth registers count each spelling separately, so every one has its own ranking.
| Spelling | What it is | Births on record |
|---|---|---|
| Jeanclaude | Jeanclaude is Jean-Claude written as one word, used in the United States, where it ranks #11,289. | 367 |
Names that peaked alongside Jean-Claude
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Jean-Claude also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Jean-Claude over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
1 nickname for Jean-Claude
Each one is a name in its own right — the figure underneath is how it is doing today, so you can see which short forms are rising and which have faded.
Jean-Claude 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 Jean-Luc
Sibling names for Jean-Claude
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Jean-Claude — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Jean-Claude
What does the name Jean-Claude mean?
God is gracious, from Jean, joined to lame, from Claude.
Is Jean-Claude one name or two?
One legal name in France — a hyphenated compound, not a first and middle name.
Why does Claude mean lame?
From the Roman family name Claudius, built on claudus. The emperor Claudius did have a limp.
Does Jean-Claude still rank?
Not in any of the six markets we track, despite more than 170,000 lifetime births.
How popular is the name Jean-Claude?
In 2023, Jean-Claude was given to 5 babies in France. It was given to fewer than five babies in the most recent year of published US data.
Is Jean-Claude a girl's or a boy's name?
Jean-Claude is given almost entirely to boys in birth records.
When was Jean-Claude most popular?
Jean-Claude peaked in 1947, when 10,300 babies were given the name. It has been falling over the past decade.
What are the nicknames for Jean-Claude?
Jean-Claude is usually shortened to Jc.