John

Primarily a boy's name · 100% boys

Also spelled: John- (3)

Meaning

John is a very common given male name in the English language, ultimately of Hebrew origin. The English form is from Middle English Ioon, Ihon, Iohn, Jan, itself from Old French Jan, Jean, Jehan, from Medieval Latin Johannes, an altered form of Late Latin Ioannes.

From Wikipedia

John first appears in the data in 1996 and has been recorded in 21 different years as a boy's name. Its single biggest year was 1996 with 1,649 babies (rank #46 that year). It was not in the 2024 data. The name has been declining over the last five years.

Numerology of John

In Pythagorean numerology, every letter has a value from 1 to 9. Adding the letters of John yields these three numbers — a playful read on the name's character.

2Destiny numberThe peacemakerDiplomatic, sensitive, partnership-minded.Sum of every letter. The overall character a name carries.
6Soul urgeThe carerNurturing, responsible, family at the centre.Sum of the vowels — what's said to drive the heart.
5PersonalityThe free spiritCurious, restless, energised by change.Sum of the consonants — the outer impression.

19,089

Total babies (all years)

Years in the data

1,649

Peak in a single year

Popularity Over Time — Boys

Also a character in

In Bible: John the Baptist; John the Evangelist
In Sherlock Holmes: Dr John Watson — Holmes' friend and chronicler
In Little Women: John Brooke — Meg's husband
In Peaky Blinders: John Shelby — the middle brother
In Yellowstone: John Dutton — the patriarch

Famous people named John

John F. Kennedyanti-communist · b. 1917
John Lockephilosopher of law · b. 1632
John Adamspolitical philosopher · b. 1735
John Maynard Keynesnon-fiction writer · b. 1883
John Lennonpop singer · b. 1940

More popular boys' names

Other boys' names starting with J

Year-by-Year Detail

Rank is among all boys' names registered that year.

Year	Babies	Rank
1996	1,649	#46
1997	1,439	#49
1998	1,357	#53
1999	1,158	#57
2000	1,096	#58
2001	995	#58
2002	916	#64
2003	920	#66
2004	995	#64
2005	946	#72
2006	905	#73
2007	905	#75
2008	810	#83
2009	762	#83
2010	690	#94
2011	645	#100
2012	618	#104
2013	576	#107
2014	601	#101
2015	594	#108
2016	512	#120