Josephine
Meaning of Josephine
Josephine, pronounced JOH-suh-feen in English and zhoh-zeh-FEEN in French, is the silk-lined feminine of Joseph, drawn from the Hebrew Yosef—“God will add”—a phrase that sounds less like a prophecy and more like an accountant’s optimistic footnote. History obliges the name with Empress Joséphine de Beauharnais, whose Napoleonic roses still scent European gardens, while literature counters with the pragmatic Jo March of Little Women, proving that a Josephine can rule an empire or a cluttered attic with equal poise. In the United States the name shimmered at the top of the charts a century ago, slipped into relative obscurity mid-century, and has been quietly ascending again—much like a phoenix that prefers punctual quarterly reports. The appeal lies in its dual nature: Gallic finesse tempered by sturdy Hebrew roots, a bit like setting Persian saffron in fine Limoges porcelain. For parents seeking a classic that neither evaporates in trend’s desert heat nor feels archaic as a caravanserai ledger, Josephine stands ready—graceful, resourceful, and politely waiting to “add” the next chapter.
Pronunciation
British English
- Pronunced as JOH-suh-feen (/ˈdʒəʊsəfɪn/)
American English
- Pronunced as JOH-suh-feen (/ˈdʒoʊsəˌfin/)
French
- Pronunced as zhoh-zeh-FEEN (/ʒɔ.ze.fin/)
U.S. Popularity Chart
States Popularity Chart
Notable People Named Josephine
| Josephine Baker was an American born French performer who built her career in France and became the first Black woman to star in a major film with the 1927 silent Siren of the Tropics. |
| Josephine of Leuchtenberg, also known as Josefina, was Queen of Sweden and Norway as the wife of Oscar I and a politically active adviser who helped introduce more liberal religious laws. |
| Saint Josephine Bakhita was a Sudanese former slave who became a Canossian sister, served in Italy for 50 years, and was canonized in 2000 as the first modern era Black female Catholic saint. |
| Scottish author Elizabeth MacKintosh, known as Josephine Tey, wrote The Daughter of Time, named by the Crime Writers Association in 1990 as the greatest crime novel, and as Gordon Daviot penned the West End hit Richard of Bordeaux starring John Gielgud. |
| Josephine Cochrane - American inventor Josephine Cochran created the first successful hand powered dishwasher with help from mechanic George Butters. |
| Josephine St. Pierre Ruffin was a pioneering African American publisher, journalist, and activist who edited the Woman's Era, the first national newspaper by and for African American women. |
| Marie Josephine Leopoldine Bracken was the partner of Filipino nationalist Jose Rizal, with a contested claim that they wed hours before his 1896 execution. |
| Josephine Decker is an English-born American filmmaker known for Butter on the Latch, Thou Wast Mild and Lovely, Madeline's Madeline, Shirley, and The Sky Is Everywhere, and for co-directing the documentary Bi the Way with Brittany Blockman. |
| Josephine Shaw Lowell was a 19th century American Progressive reformer who founded the New York Consumers League in 1890. |
| Josephine Cushman Bateham was an American temperance reformer, editor, and writer who served as the first superintendent of the WCTU Sabbath Observance Department from 1884 to 1896 and supported social reform for women. |
| Marie Josephine Hull was an American stage and film actress and director with a 50-year career who won the Best Supporting Actress Oscar for Harvey in 1950 and was sometimes credited as Josephine Sherwood. |
| Josephine Mary Flood is an Australian archaeologist, mountaineer, and author born in England. |
| Josephine Eliza Langford is an Australian actress best known as Tessa Young in the After series, with roles in Moxie, The Other Zoey, and Gigi and Nate. |
| Josephine Louise Miles was an American poet and literary critic, the first woman to earn tenure in the UC Berkeley English department, a pioneer of digital humanities, and a catalyst for the National Writing Project. |
| Josephine Marien Crawford was an American painter from an old New Orleans aristocratic family who helped introduce modernism to the city. |
