John (given name)

John ( JON) is a very common given male name in the English language, ultimately of Hebrew origin. Traditionally in the Anglosphere, it was the most common, although it has not been since the latter half of the 20th century. The name is among the most commonly given names in the Anglophone, Arabic, European, Latin American, Iranian, and Turkic countries. The numerous forms of the name in various languages were formerly often simply translated as "John" in English but are increasingly left in their native forms (see sidebar). John owes its unique popularity to two highly revered saints, John the Baptist (forerunner of Jesus Christ) and the apostle John (traditionally considered to be the author of the Gospel of John); the name has since been chosen as the regnal or religious name of many 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. The name Jonathan, sometimes shortened to Jon, derives from a different Biblical name Yonatan ( "given by God") and is not etymologically related to the name John.