Given name & surname
Javan
“mire”·“mud man”
Javan is used as a given name and a surname.
Original Hebrewיון
Meaning & origin
What it means
As a biblical name, Javan means “mire” or “mud man.”
From biblical name research
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is Hebrew.
How it developed
From the Hebrew noun yawen (יון), “mire.”
From biblical name research
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1916. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
In the Bible
In the Bible, the name Javan appears in Genesis 10:2-5.
From biblical name research
Javan through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 3,636
- 3,593 boys · 43 girls
- Most popular year
- 2004
- 142 babies
- 2025
- 27
- #3,988 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −28%
- Easing
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 27 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 3,988 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 27.6% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 142 in 2004. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 2,876 as a first name in 2020; 175 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Javan’s family of names
Javan has a feminine form in Javana. Javan has a related form in Javon. Javan has a related form in Jayvon.
Inner ring: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 7
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Across languages 1
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
See also 2
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Javan
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Javan, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
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