What is the origin of the name john?

Answer 1

The name "John" originates from יוחנן Yôḥānnān, which means "Yahweh is gracious." Yahweh is the name of God used by the Jewish people. Yôḥānnān was the name of several important Jewish rabbis in the Second Temple Period in Israel, such as Yochanan ben Zakai and Yochanan ben Nuri. The name had gained popularity among Jews in Judea and Galilee by the time the area became a province of the Roman Empire in 6 A.D. It was the given name of Yochanan ben Zechariah, a Jewish prophet known in English as John the Baptist. It was also the given name of Yochanan ben Zibhdi, a fisherman from Galilee who became one of the favorite students (called disciples) of Jesus Christ and so is known in English as John the Apostle. Because Yochanan also wrote one of the four accounts of the life of Jesus Christ called gospels, the Gospel of St. John, he is also known as John the Evangelist. The texts that tell of the lives of both these men named Yochanan were written in Greek, and their name was adapted in Greek as Ἰωάννης, Iōannēs (pronounced YIO-an-NES). The name Ioannes became extremely popular among the early Christians, and bearers include such noted members of the early church as Ioannes Chrysostomos and the Ioannes who wrote the Book of Revelation. Because of the great respect Christians had for these men, the name came into use in other parts of the Christianized Roman Empire, even in remoter parts such as Gaul and Britain. The Western areas of the Roman Empire did not, however, speak Greek like the areas in the East. Instead, they spoke Latin. Accordingly, in the Western part of the Roman Empire the name was Latinized as Iohannes (pronounced like the Greek).

John is a biblical name, one for which is known from two bible accounts. John the baptist who had been honored to baptize Jesus Christ; the second being the apostle John who wrote a few bible books including Revelations.