Yann

Yann is the Breton John, a name that has been carried along the fishing ports of Finistère for centuries. The single syllable lands with a soft nasal close, the double n almost inaudible in French but written in to mark its Celtic origins rather than the Parisian Jean. Yann Tiersen scored Amélie with music that sounds exactly like its composer's name—spare, melodic, a little wistful. The name has also drifted into German and Dutch circles as an alternative to Jan. Short, distinct, and regionally proud without being showy. A workingman's name with a poet's ear.