Girls Names F Through J

Janet

Diminutive of Jane

"God is gracious"

Janet started as a pet form of Jane but has long been used independently. Jane is a feminine form of John, which derived from the Hebrew name Yochanan. Janet can also be considered a variation of…

Janevra

Janevra is an uncommon feminine name that appears to blend elements of 'Jane' with names like Geneva or Genevra. It may have roots in the Italian name Ginevra, which is the Italian form of Guinevere…

Janice

Variation of Jane

"God is gracious"

For a minute or two this sounded more modern than Janet, now equally outmoded.

January

English month name from Latin

"doorway"

Thanks to two cultural influences, January has joined March, April, June and August as a plausible month name. The first was a character named January Wayne in a bestselling 1973 Jacqueline Susann…

Jarita

Hindi-Sanskrit

"mother or legendary bird"

Delicate and lacy, with less emphasis on the jar syllable.

Jarrah

botanical name

Jarrah is the name of a beautiful Australian tree famous for its richly-colored red timber and lovely scent. Jarrah may be used for both girls and boys.

Jay

Latin

"jaybird"

While Jay has been long used as a stand-alone boy name, it has more recently been used as one for girls. Otherwise, it has largely been seen as a pet form of any J name, or as a singular middle name.

Jaya

Hindi-Sanskrit

"victory"

This name of a Buddhist goddess, a possible alternative to the trendy Maya, was chosen for their daughter by Laura Dern and Ben Harper. Jaya is simple yet unusual, a winning combination, and one of…

Jaye

Jaye is a gender-neutral name that has been more commonly used for females in recent decades. It originated as a simplified variant of names like Jay, Jayne, or Jay, with the added 'e' giving it a…

Jazmín

Spanish

"jasmine"

The Spanish version of popular Jasmine has that zippy Z many parents are loving in recent years.

Jazz

Word name

Musical choice that may be a short form of Jasmine or Jazlyn, or might stand on its own like this or as Jaz, the spelling used by tennis duo Steffi Graf and Andre Agassi.

Jean

English and Scottish, from French variation of Johanna

"God is gracious"

Originally a feminine of John, Jean was popular in Scotland long before it found favor elsewhere, and had its most shining moment here in the era of Jean Harlow (born Harlean), ultimate symbol of…

Jeanette

French, diminutive of Jeanne

Relic of a past period of French favorites, out to pasture with Claudette and Paulette.

Jeanmarie

English combination of Jean and Marie

"god is gracious + drop of the sea, bitter, or beloved"

Rather dated smoosh name. The meaning of Marie is uncertain, but theories include "drop of the sea" (from Hebrew roots mar "drop" and yam "sea"); "bitter" (from Hebrew marah "bitterness"); and…

Jeannette

French, diminutive of Jeanne

"God is gracious"

Jeannette is a feminine name with French origins, functioning as a diminutive of Jeanne (the French form of Jane/Joan). Ultimately derived from the Hebrew name Yochanan, the root of John meaning 'God…

Jedda

Australian Aboriginal

"wren"

Love the name wren but need something not quite so trendy? Consider Jedda. Jedda is derived from the word 'djida' meaning "wren" in the language of the Noongar people of Western Australia. Jedda was…

Jelina

Another version of Jelena, both Eastern European relatives of Helen.

Jem

Diminutive of Jemma or Jemima

"gem; dove"

There was an eighties cartoon queen named Jem (& The Holograms), and this is as likely to be a full name as a short form – deriving from Jemma, Jemima or Jameela.

Jemima

Hebrew

"dove; daytime"

Jemima, the name of a strong and beautiful Biblical daughter of Job, has long been among the chicest choices of aristocratic Brits, and has since shifted to be used more generally too, replacing…

Jemini

Contemporary spelling of Gemini

See GEMINI.