Jan

Jan derives from Latin Iohannes, itself from Greek Ioannes, which traces back to the Hebrew name Yohanan meaning God is gracious. As a masculine name it functions as the standard Dutch, Scandinavian, Czech, Polish, Slovene, and Slovak form of John, borne by countless historical figures across those cultures; the Slovak form is distinguished by an accent as Ján. In English, Jan arose in medieval times as a masculine diminutive of John but is today used predominantly as a feminine short form of Janet or Janice. Related forms include Johan, Johannes, Hans, Ivan, Juan, and Giovanni.