Gender Masculine
Scripts יוֹנָתָן(Ancient Hebrew)
Pronounced Pron. JAHN-ə-thən(American English) JAWN-ə-thən(British English) ZHAW-NA-TAHN(French) YO-na-tan(German)  [key·IPA]

Meaning & History

From the Hebrew name יְהוֹנָתָן (Yehonatan), contracted to יוֹנָתָן (Yonatan), meaning "Yahweh has given", derived from the roots יְהוֹ (yeho) referring to the Hebrew God and נָתַן (natan) meaning "to give". According to the Old Testament, Jonathan was the eldest son of Saul. His relationship with his father was strained due to his close friendship with his father's rival David. Along with Saul he was killed in battle with the Philistines.

As an English name, Jonathan did not become common until after the Protestant Reformation. A famous bearer was the Anglo-Irish satirist Jonathan Swift (1667-1745), who wrote Gulliver's Travels and other works.

Related Names

VariantsJohnathan, Johnathon, Jonathon(English) Jonatan(German) Jonatan(Swedish) Jonatan(Norwegian) Jonatan(Danish)
DiminutivesJon, Jonny(English) Jonty(English (British))
Other Languages & CulturesIonathan(Biblical Greek) Yehonatan, Yonatan(Biblical Hebrew) Ionathan(Biblical Latin) Jonatán(Biblical Spanish) Joonatan(Estonian) Jónatan(Faroese) Joonatan(Finnish) Yehonatan, Yonatan, Yoni(Hebrew) Jonatán(Hungarian) Jónatan(Icelandic) Ionatán(Irish) Gionata(Italian) Jonatan(Polish) Jônatas(Portuguese (Brazilian)) Jónatas(Portuguese (European)) Jonatan(Spanish)

People think this name is

classic   mature   formal   natural   wholesome   strong   refined   serious  

Name Days

Austria: December 29
France: March 1

Images

Jonathan (seated) and David by Gustave Doré (1866)Jonathan (seated) and David by Gustave Doré (1866)

Categories

Entry updated November 20, 2020