Names That Mean Gracious
Across 8 pages
of 8
Janie
Diminutive of Jane, English
"God is gracious"
Will this old-fashioned nickname make a comeback, now that Jane has shed her "plain" image? Janie is cute and approachable, and would stand as well on the birth certificate as Josie and Jessie do…
Žan
Slovene variation of John, Hebrew
"God is gracious"
A Top 10 name in Slovenia, where it is a form of John. Žan is pronounced similarly to the French Jean.
Milla
Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, Finnish, Hungarian
"young ceremonial attendant, gracious people"
Milla originated as a diminutive of names like Camilla and Ludmilla, but has since become well established as a name in its own right in several European countries. Milla Jovovich is a Ukrainian-born…
Jia
Italian or Chinese
"God is gracious or home, family"
Jia might be considered a spelling variation of Gia, an Italian feminine form of John as a shortening of Gianna or Giovanna. Jia might also be the anglicized form of many Chinese names, which have…
Jackie
English
"God is gracious"
A cute diminutive of Jack, already technically a nickname for John, famously borne by Hong Kong actor, director and martial artist Jackie Chan.
Jalo
Finnish
"noble, gracious"
A cool Finnish name with a lovely sound and meaning.
Juhani
Finnish
"god is gracious"
Finnish form of John
Anže
Diminutive of Janez, Slovene
"God is gracious"
Anže was originally a nickname for Janez, a Slovene form of Johannes, but now ranks in the Slovene Top 20 as an independent name.
Lashawn
American, a combination of the prefix La- and Shawn, Irish variation of John
"God is gracious"
The prefix La- was historically used by the Free Blacks of New Orleans in the nineteenth century to indicate paternity. Thus, someone named Lashawn was the son of Shawn, a phonetic spelling of Sean,…
Janek
Polish
"god is gracious"
A short form of the very popular Polish name Jan, which is the equivalent of John in English. Short forms ending in -ek are very widespread in Poland, but it is rare that one is given as the official…
Hannes
German, Dutch, Scandinavian variation of Johannes
"God is gracious"
Johannes never caught on in the US, but popular European short form Hannes may be more accessible.
Janis
Variation of Jannis, Frisian and Dutch
"God is gracious"
Keoni
Hawaiian variation of John
"God is gracious"
Keoni is one of the lesser-used international forms of John, but it has an on-trend sound that many parents may find appealing, perhaps as an alternative honor name. As well as Hawaii, it is also…
Vanja
Croatian, Serbian variation of Vanya, Russian
"God is gracious"
Goodbye Uncle Vanya and hello...It Girl baby name? It's true — style icon Chloë Sevigny chose the name Vanja for her son, born in 2020. The name honors Vanja's paternal heritage — Chloë's partner is…
Johani
Nyakyusa
"god is gracious"
Nyakyusa form of John.
Janez
Slovene variation of Johannes
"God is gracious"
Popular short form Anže has eclipsed Janez in Slovene popularity.
Jan
Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Czech, Polish, Slovene, German, and Catalan variation of John, Hebrew
"God is gracious"
A standard form of John in Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Czech, Polish, Slovene, German, and Catalan. Properly pronounced yahn (in most of these languages), most Americans will still equate it…
Yannou
Breton
"God is gracious"
Short form of Yann, the Breton form of John.
Iván
Spanish and Hungarian variation of Ivan, Russian
"god is gracious"
Deshawn
American invented name, variation of Shawn
"God is gracious"
Classically, the De- prefix indicates "son of," so any variation of this name could work for the child of a dad named Shawn or Sean. DeShawn Stevenson is a former professional basketball player.