Janelle

Janelle is a modern elaboration of Jane by adding the popular “-elle” suffix common in so many other female names (Danielle, Gabrielle, Arielle, etc). Jane is the feminine equivalent of John. John is the anglicized form of the Latin “Iohannes”, the Greek “Iōannēs” and the Hebrew “Yochanan” all of which translate to ‘Yahweh (God) is gracious’. Apparently, in medieval times, the “John names” were given to children born to late-in-life parents, most likely in recognition of John the Baptist’s mother, Elizabeth, who had been barren but to whom God had ‘graciously’ made pregnant in her older age (and so the baby was named John). Separately, the Biblical John the Apostle is one of the authors of the four gospels, another reason why the John names have been so popular among Christians – both in their masculine and feminine forms – in many languages. There are several female names that have been borne from John: Jane, Janet, Janice, Joan (English), Giovanna, Gianna, Gia (Italian), Jean (French), Juanita (Spanish) and Jan (Dutch). Although the French Jean and Dutch Jan have been used as female names in the United States, they are masculine names in their respective native languages. Jane has been a successful female name among native English speakers since the 16th century and over time there have been elaborations and diminutives created such as Janelle, Janette, Janessa, Janie, Janet, Janine and Janice.