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Hänsel is a German diminutive form of Hans, which is itself a contracted form of Johannes, the Latin rendering of the Greek Iōannēs, ultimately derived from the Hebrew name Yohanan meaning God is gracious. The name is deeply embedded in German folk tradition, most famously through the fairy tale Hänsel und Gretel collected and published by the Brothers Grimm in 1812, which has kept the name culturally vivid long after it fell out of everyday use. It shares its roots with a vast family of cognates across European languages, including John, Jean, Johann, Jan, and Ivan.