French names that start with 'J'
French girl names that start with j
French female names that begin with the letter 'J' can be grouped into several categories based on their origins and meanings. Let’s start with the ones connected to the male name Joseph.
- Joséphine: Joséphine is an elegant and sophisticated feminine form of the male name Joseph. In France, this name may bring to mind Joséphine Bonaparte, the wife of Napoleon Bonaparte (the emperor of France in the early 19th century). Another famous person with this name is Joséphine Baker, an American-born singer and performer who moved to France in the 1920s and became an iconic figure of the Jazz Age in Paris.
- Josée: This is the feminine form of the name José, which is a diminutive of Joseph. As a name, Josée has a more casual and unpretentious feel compared to Josephine.
- Josèphe: Josèphe is a feminine form of the name Joseph. Although these two names are easy to distinguish in their written form, they are difficult to tell apart based solely on their pronunciation. This may be the reason why it is not a very common name in France.
- Josette: Josette is a diminutive form of the name Josèphe, formed with the suffix “-ette” which typically serves to convey a sense of smallness, cuteness, or endearment.
- Josiane: This name is formed from Josée (a diminutive of Joseph) by adding the suffix “-ane”. Alternate spellings include Josianne and Josyane.
Another category of French girl names starting with ‘J’ are those related to the male name Jean. It's important to note that, in French, Jean is exclusively used as a male name, unlike in English, where it is often used as a female name.
- Jeanne: Jeanne is a classic French girl’s name that is a feminine form of the name Jean. In French history, a famous person with this name is Jeanne d'Arc (known in English as Joan of Arc).
- Jeannette: Jeannette is a diminutive form of the name Jeanne.
- Janelle: Janelle is derived from the name Jeanne.
- Jeannine
- Janine
- Jeanne-Marie
A third group of French girl names beginning with the letter ‘J’ are those connected with the Latin name Julia.
- Julie: Julie is a French girl’s name that comes from the Latin name Julia.
- Juliette: Juliette is a girl's name derived from the French name Julie by adding the suffix “-ette.” This is a name with a romantic feel because of its association with William Shakespeare's “Romeo and Juliet.”
- Julienne: Julienne is the feminine form of the name Julien.
- Juline
More French female names that start with ‘J’:
- Justine: Justine is a French girl’s name that comes from the Latin name Justina (there was a Roman empress named Justina). The name’s root is the Latin adjective “iustus” which means “just” and “proper”.
- Jacqueline: Jacqueline is the female form of the male name Jacques. This French name is quite popular in the U.S. and many recognize it as the name of Jacqueline Kennedy, the wife of U.S. President John F. Kennedy.
- Jocelyne: This name has several variants with different spellings: Joselyne, Joseline, Josseline and Josselyne
- Joëlle: Joëlle is a French female name that corresponds to the male name Joël.
- Joffrette: This is the feminine form of the name Joffre. It is a rare name.
French boy’s names that start with j
- Jean: Jean is a French male name that corresponds to the English name John. This is a classic, not only as a standalone name but it also appears in the formation of many compound names (see the list further down the page)
- Jules: Jules is a French boy’s name that comes from the Latin name Julius. In France, Julius Caesar is known as Jules César.
- Julien
- Jacques: Jacques is a French name that has the Hebrew origin as the English names Jacob and James. To many in France, this name brings to mind the former French president Jacques Chirac. Also, in French culture “Frère Jacques” is a nursery rhyme, and “Jacques a dit” is a children’s game.
- Jérôme
- Joseph: Joseph is an international name rather than a French name. However, some of the feminine forms of this name are more specifically French (Joséphine, Josiane).
- Joël
- José: In France, a well-known person who goes by this name is José Bové, a French farmer, activist, and politician.
- Jérémie: This French name corresponds to the names Jeremy and Jeremiah in English.
A large number of French boy names that start with the letter ‘j’ are compound names that begin with “Jean”:
- Jean-Luc
- Jean-Pierre
- Jean-Claude: A famous person with this name is Jean-Claude Van Damme, a Belgian martial artist and actor.
- Jean-Marc
- Jean-Paul: Famous people with this name include Jean-Paul Sartre, the French existentialist philosopher, and Jean-Paul Belmondo, a French actor associated with the “nouvelle vague” (a film movement that emerged in the late 1950s).
- Jean-Michel: Although Jean-Michel is a distinctively French name, the most famous person with this name is probably the American artist Jean-Michel Basquiat.
- Jean-Louis
- Jean-François: A well-known French person with this name is Jean-François Champollion, the 19th-century philologist who deciphered Egyptian hieroglyphs.
- Jean-Marie
- Jean-Jacques
- Jean-Philippe
- Jean-Christophe
- Jean-Yves
- Jean-Baptiste
- Jean-Noël
- Jean-Charles
French last names that start with j
- Joly
- Jean
- Jacquet
- Julien
- Jacques
- Joubert
- Jourdan
- Jacquot
- Jourdain
- Jeanne
- Jolly
- Jacquemin
- Jamet
- Josse
- Jolivet
- Jullien
- Jacquin
- Janvier
- Jarry
- Jan
- Jouve
- Jaouen
- Jean-baptiste
- Jardin
- Jeannin
- Jeannot
- Jegou
- Janin
- Jacquier
- Jérôme
- Jamin
- Jean-louis
- Joyeux
- Jaffré
- Jouin
- Jacq
- Jaubert
- Jeanneau
- Jost
- Jaillet
- Jouet
- Julienne
- Journet
- Jousse
- Josserand
- Jaulin
- Jouanneau
- Jobard
- Juillard
- Juin
- Jacquelin
- Jobert
- Josselin
- Jousset
- Josset
- Jules