Last updated: March 2026

Character Name

Josephine

Meaning — The French feminine form of Joseph, from the Hebrew Yosef, meaning "God will add" or "may God increase" — from yasaf, "to add." Joseph was the beloved son of Jacob in Genesis, whose coat of many colours became a symbol of favour and envy. The French feminine form Joséphine was famously borne by Napoleon's first wife, the Empress Joséphine de Beauharnais, which gave the name a lasting aristocratic and romantic European register.·Hebrew origin·Female·JOH-zuh-feen

Josephine Josephine is a name of considerable feminine grandeur — it sounds like it belongs to women who command rooms and leave an impression that outlasts their presence. Its short forms (Jo, Josie) soften it dramatically, making it versatile across registers from the grand and formal to the warmly intimate. Characters named Josephine often have an internal life of great ambition and feeling that the name's elegance contains but does not suppress.

Best genres for Josephine

Historical FictionLiterary FictionRomanceContemporary Fiction

Famous characters named Josephine

Jo March

Little Women Louisa May Alcott

The tomboy second March sister, who goes by Jo — a passionate, unconventional writer whose determination to live on her own terms made her one of the 19th century's most influential literary heroines.


Variations & nicknames

JosephineJoJosieJosefinaJoséphine

Pairs well with

Josephine AshfordJosephine BeaumontJosephine FontaineJosephine PembertonJosephine SinclairJosephine Thornton

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Related names


More Hebrew names

John

From the Hebrew Yochanan, meaning "Yahweh is gracious," via the Greek Ioannes and Latin Iohannes. It is one of the most widely used masculine names in Western history, borne by two major figures in the New Testament — John the Baptist and John the Apostle — which drove its adoption across Christian Europe throughout the medieval period.

Joel

From the Hebrew יוֹאֵל (Yo'el), meaning "Yahweh is God," composed of the divine elements Yo (a form of YHWH) and El (God). Joel is the name of one of the twelve minor prophets of the Hebrew Bible and the author of the Book of Joel, which describes a devastating locust plague as divine judgment. The name entered general English use after the Protestant Reformation.

Mimmi

Mimmi is a Scandinavian diminutive of Maria or Miriam, both ultimately deriving from the Hebrew name Miryam of debated etymology — possibly meaning "sea of bitterness", "rebelliousness", or "wished-for child". As a standalone given name, Mimmi has been used primarily in Sweden and Finland, where it functions as a light, affectionate nickname form. It is also found as a given name in its own right in Nordic countries.

Brielle

A modern shortening of Gabrielle, ultimately from the Hebrew name Gavri'el, meaning "God is my strength" — a compound of gever ("strong man") and El ("God"). Brielle emerged as a standalone name in the late 20th century in the English-speaking world, shedding the fuller Gabrielle while retaining its French elegance. It is also associated with the Dutch coastal town of Brielle in South Holland.

Beaulah

A variant spelling of Beulah, from the Hebrew בְּעוּלָה (be'ulah), meaning "married woman" or "married land," from the root ba'al, "to marry" or "to possess." In the Book of Isaiah (62:4), Beulah is used as a symbolic name for the redeemed land of Israel. It was adopted as a given name in English-speaking Puritan communities during the 17th and 18th centuries.

Jane

The English feminine form of John, via the Old French Jehane, from the Medieval Latin Johanna, from the Hebrew Yohanan, meaning "God is gracious." Jane has been in continuous English use since the 16th century and became one of the most enduring feminine names in the language, valued for its plain clarity and quiet strength. Its simplicity was long contrasted with fancier names, making it a byword for unadorned virtue.


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