Giovanna

Giovanna is the female form of Giovanni which are the Italian equivalents to the English John (or Joanne). All of the John names can find their original root in the Hebrew Yochanan meaning “Yahweh (God) is gracious, generous” (Latin: Iohannes). Although the name appears briefly in the Old Testament (as one of King David’s mighty men), as a name, John owes most of his enduring popularity to two prominent New Testament figures: John the Baptist and John the Apostle. John the Baptist (like Jesus) was born under miraculous circumstances. The angel Gabriel appeared to his father (Zechariah) claiming that God will give his barren wife (Elizabeth) a son (John) to help prepare the way for the Messiah (Jesus). John the Baptist had the distinction of baptizing Jesus himself in the River Jordan. John the Apostle was a fisherman, the brother of James, and a follower of Christ. He is most known as one of the authors of the four gospels of the New Testament. John’s gospel focuses on Jesus as the “Eternal One of from heaven” and is considerably more theological and philosophical than the other three gospels. As a name of great importance among early Christians, John has spawned countless variations in different languages which were also feminized for baby girls. Giovanna is the Italian female form of John. It has recently been adopted among English speakers to a greater extent; although, unlike the classic three-syllable pronunciation used by the Italians (jo-VAHN-nah), English speakers tend to use the four-syllable GEE-oh-vahn-nah.