girl's name
Ninon
nee-NOHN
- Origin French
- Gender Girl
- Syllables 2
- Letters 5
- Popularity Top 1000 (France)
- Births on record 15,231
France
#186
2025 births
Ninon is a girl's name of Hebrew origin meaning "favor," a French diminutive of Anne, and its bearer left money in her will to a nine-year-old Voltaire for books. It ranks 186th in France.
- Ninon is a name of French origin.
- Peaked in France in 2007, when 810 babies were given the name.
- It has been falling over the past decade in France.
- Today about 1 in 1,902 babies in France is given this name.
- First appears in birth records in 1911.
- 2 syllables, with the stress on syllable 1.
Ninon over time
Births per decade in France, 1910s 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 |
|---|---|
| 1910s | 15 |
| 1920s | 45 |
| 1930s | 30 |
| 1940s | 50 |
| 1950s | 35 |
| 1960s | 10 |
| 1970s | 100 |
| 1980s | 330 |
| 1990s | 1,515 |
| 2000s | 5,520 |
| 2010s | 5,450 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 2,110 |
What Ninon means
Ninon means favor or grace, inherited from Anne and behind that the Hebrew Channah. The root chanan is about showing favor, so the name describes something granted rather than a quality held.
Where Ninon comes from
Ninon is a French diminutive of Anne, formed with the -on suffix that also gives Manon from Marie and Lison from Élise. Anne comes through the Greek Anna from the Hebrew Channah, favor. Its bearer is Ninon de l'Enclos, the seventeenth-century courtesan, writer and salon hostess who kept one of the most influential intellectual gatherings in Paris, was briefly imprisoned in a convent by order of Anne of Austria, and remained sought after into her eighties. On her death in 1705 she left a legacy to the nine-year-old son of her accountant so that he could buy books; the boy was François-Marie Arouet, who became Voltaire. Ninon is also a fine silk fabric, named after her.
Ninon in use
Ninon ranks 186th in France with about 310 births in 2025 and is falling in our data from a peak in 2007. Our records carry it from 1911. It appears in no other market we hold, which places it with Lison, Louison, Garance and Aurore among the French diminutives and nouns that have never crossed a border.
How popular is Ninon?
In 2025, Ninon was given to 310 babies in France, ranking #186 that year. It is a well-established, commonly used name.
Where Ninon 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 Ninon
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Ninon also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Ninon over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
Ninon 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 Ninon
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Ninon — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Ninon
What does the name Ninon mean?
Ninon means "favor," inherited from Anne and the Hebrew Channah.
Who was Ninon de l'Enclos?
A seventeenth-century courtesan and salon hostess who left money in her will to the young Voltaire so he could buy books.
Is Ninon short for Anne?
Yes, a French diminutive formed like Manon from Marie.
How popular is Ninon?
186th in France, and unused in every other market we hold.
Is Ninon a girl's or a boy's name?
Ninon is given almost entirely to girls in birth records.
How many syllables are in Ninon?
Ninon has 2 syllables.
Is Ninon a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Ninon currently ranks #186 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.