John is one of the most popular names in the English-speaking world. It was the #1 name for boys in the United States from 1900 to 1923, and remained in the top five for another 50 years, dropping to #6 in 1973. John continued to be among the top 10 names for boys in America through 1986, and stayed in the top 20 until 2009. The 2020 statistics rank the name John as the 27th most popular name for boys in the United States.

Name Variations

As it is a biblical name, John has an equivalent in virtually every known language. These include:

Gianni or Giovanni (Italian)Hans (Danish)Ivan (Russian)Jan (Dutch)Janek (Polish)Jean (French)Johann (German)Juan (Spanish)

Similar Names

People named Jonathan often use “Jon” (without an H) as a nickname, and since it’s pronounced the same way, this is sometimes viewed as a variant spelling of John. In fact, Jon/Jonathan is based on an entirely different name in the Bible: Jonathan derives from the Hebrew Yonatan (“given by God”), whereas John comes from Yohanan (“graced by God”). Other boy names from the New Testament include:

AndrewLukeMarkMatthewPaulPeterPhillipThomas

Other boy names starting with J:

Jacob James Jason Jeremy Jonah Jonas Joseph Joshua

Common Nicknames

Jack or Jackie are frequent nicknames for John. For example, U.S. President John F. Kennedy was known to his friends as Jack. The name Jack is very common in English literature. It is often associated with naivete and youth, as in several Mother Goose nursery rhymes (“Jack and Jill,” “Little Jack Horner,” “Jack Be Nimble,” “Jack Sprat”), as well as the tale of “Jack and the Beanstalk.” Another nickname, Johnny, also expresses youth but is associated with heroic figures such as Johnny Appleseed or Johnny Tremain.

Suggested Sibling Names

Anna Charles Daniel Elizabeth Emily Frank George Henry Mary Rose Sophie Violet

Famous People Named John

The best known Johns of the Bible are John the Baptist and John the Apostle, who is credited as the author of several books of the New Testament. Although John has been a common name throughout English history, there was only one king of England called John—King John, who reigned from 1199 until his death in 1216. John has been the name of several U.S. presidents, including John Adams, John Tyler, and John F. Kennedy. Recent presidential hopefuls have included Senators John Edwards, John McCain, and John Kerry.

Other Famous Johns

John Quincy Adams, the 6th U.S. presidentJohn Denver, American folk and country singerJohn Elway, Hall of Fame NFL quarterbackJohn Goodman, American actorJohn Jay, first Chief Justice of the Supreme CourtJohn Legend, American singer-songwriterJohn Lennon, English rock musician, songwriter, and member of The BeatlesJohn Malkovitch, American actorJohn Mulaney, American comedian and former writer for “Saturday Night Live"John D. Rockefeller, American business tycoonJohn Steinbeck, American novelistJohn Travolta, American actor

Famous Johnnys

Johnny Appleseed, the nickname of American pioneer nurseryman John ChapmanJohnny Carson, American comedian and talk show hostJohnny Cash, American singer-songwriterJohnny Lawrence, the fictional antagonist of “The Karate Kid” film seriesJohnny Mercer, American songwriterJohnny Rose, fictional character on the TV show “Schitt’s Creek”

Famous Jacks

Jack Black, American actorJack Iverson, Australian cricketerJack Kemp, American politicianJack Kerouac, American novelistJack Lemmon, American actorJack London, American authorJack Nicholson, American actor

Top 1,000 Baby Boy Names in the U.S. 100 Biblical Baby Names Gender-Neutral Baby Names