John (given name)
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
|
Related e |
|
Featured: |
John is a masculine given name in the English language. The name is derived from the Latin Ioannes and Iohannes, which are forms of the Greek name Iōannēs (Template:Lang), originally borne by Hellenized Jews transliterating the Hebrew name Yohanan (Template:Hebrew), "Graced by Yah", or Template:Transl (Template:Hebrew), "Yahweh is Gracious". There are numerous forms of the name in different languages; these were formerly often simply translated as "John" in English but are increasingly left in their native forms (see sidebar).
It is among the most common given names in Anglophone and European countries; traditionally, it was the most common, although it has not been since the latter half of the 20th century. John owes its unique popularity to two highly revered saints, John the Baptist (forerunner of Jesus Christ) and the apostle John (traditionally considered the author of the Gospel of John); the name has since been chosen as the regnal or religious name of a vast number of emperors, kings, popes, and patriarchs. Initially, it was a favorite name among the Greeks but it flourished in all of Europe after the First Crusade.
