Names That Mean Gracious

This variation of Ivan, itself a form of John, entered the US Top 1000 for the first time in 2022. Double As are trending across the states, such as Saanvi and Aarush, and Ivaan is running right along with them — all the way into the Top 1000 in 2022.

A cute and easily accessible Finnish nickname, although not one that is likely to become popular in America now that Hannah and co are on the decline.

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.

It feels like a slenderized modern version, but Jennet actually has deep roots. Could this plucky name rescue Janet and Jenny from their datedness?

Ianto is a lively and unique spin on John, possible familiar to American sci-fi fans via the popular character on Torchwood.

Pronounced YAH-nosh, has a serious, violin-playing air. Perhaps that's why it has so many nicknames: JANCKZI, JANCSI, JANI, JANKIA, JANKO.

Top 100 choice in Puerto Rico.

A Scandinavian short form of Johanna, properly pronounced with a Y sound at the start, but would likely be read as the more prosaic "John-a" in an English-speaking context.

Together with the more common (in France) Jeannine spelling, this feminine form of Jean was most popular in the 1930s in its home country, and in the 1960s in the US. It's fallen off the Top 1000 list since, but perhaps cute retro nickname Jeannie could tempt some vintage-loving parents back.

This might be a better choice than the similarly pronounced Jan, to avoid gender confusion.

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 given to one or two dozen boys in California each year.

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 the Croatian-born gallerist Siniša Mačkovic.

An example of the traditional French/Catholic style of double names starting with Jean: in this case, two Gospel writers. Star Trek, Captain Jean-Luc Picard is from 24th-century France, where the French language is almost extinct, but parents apparently still give their children classic French names.

This common name in Finland, which is also a diminutive for Jan in Sweden, might feel a bit feminine in the English-speaking world, too close to girls' names Jan and Jane.

Jianna was one of the fastest-rising names of 2020 after the deaths of Kobe and Gianna Bryant. It continued to rise in 2021.

Juana with an X factor.

Anno is an extreme rarity: a simple, familiar-sounding name with deep history that is completely unknown in the US and rare in its native Germany. Anno is the name of a saint also known as Hanno, a 10th century archbishop of Cologne also known as Hanno of Worms.

Swahili form of John.

An lesser-known member of the John-Joan family, though popular in its native habitat, has never emigrated, possibly due to its non-intuitive pronunciation.

Johannes never caught on in the US, but popular European short form Hannes may be more accessible.