Jean

A female given name from French.

Proper noun

  1. A female given name from French.
    • There's not a bonnie flower that springs By fountain, shaw, or green, There's not a bonnie bird that sings But minds me o' my Jean. - 1788, Robert Burns, Of A' the Airts the Wind Can Blaw:
    • Isn't Jean a pretty name?" "Not bad; but why don't you call her Miss Muir?" "She begged me not. She hates it, and loves to be called Jean, alone." - 1866, Louisa May Alcott, chapter II, in Behind a Mask, or a Woman's...
    • He was trying to think of her name; she had come to cook him dinner twice last spring. Jean, maybe. Or Betty. One of these plain names. - 1972, Anne Tyler, The Clock Winder, Knopf, page 67:
  2. An unincorporated community in Nevada.

Origin

Variant of Jeanne, from French Jeanne, from Old French Jehane, from Medieval Latin Johanna, variant of Latin Ioanna under influence from Latin Iōhannēs, from Koine Greek Ἰωάννα (Iōánna), from Hebrew יוֹחָנָה (Yôḥānāh, literally “God is gracious”), the feminized form of יְהוֹחָנָן (Yəhōḥānān). Doublet of Ivana, Jana, Jane, Janice, Janis, Jeanne, Jen, Joan, Joanna, Joanne, Johanna, Juana, Shavonne, Sian, Siobhan, Shane, Shaun, Shauna, and Sheena. The unincorporated community in Nevada, originally named Goodsprings Junction, was renamed Jean on 28 June 1905 by postmaster George Arthur Fayle in honor of his wife.

Related

Jeanette Jane

Derived

Jeanie Jeannie Jenny

Proper noun Entry 2

  1. A male given name from French.

Origin

From French Jean, from Old French Jehan, from Latin Iōhannēs, from Koine Greek Ἰωάννης (Iōánnēs), from Hebrew יוחנן (Yôḥānān, literally “God is gracious”). Doublet of John, Jack, Johan, Johann, Johannes, Sean, Shaun, Shane, Ian, Evan, Ivan, Juan, and Giovanni.

Related

Île Saint Jean Isle de Jean Charles Jean Potage Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean Saint-Jean-du-Sud Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu

Proper noun Entry 3

  1. A surname.
    • In his cast of characters, you really see a disproportionate focus, I think, on Black women - on Kamala Harris, who he's insinuated only has her job today because of who she dated; to Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, who...

Origin

A French surname from the male given name, or an English surname which originated as a variant spelling of Jayne or as a toponymic surname referring to Genoa, Italy.