Zazie: Baby Name of the Day

The baby name Zazie sounds like an invention, but this French name carries classic roots.

Thanks to Janelle for suggesting our Baby Name of the Day.

ISABELLE and FRANCES

This name evolved from at least two different, equally traditional, names for a daughter.

The first is Isabelle. If you know your name history, you’ll recall that Isabelle and Isabella reigned as the more popular versions of the Biblical name, pretty much until the first Queen Elizabeth of England arrived on the scene.

Both forms were known; and in some cases, women were recorded as Isabel one place, and Elizabeth another.

If you listen to a French speaker pronounce Isabelle, the ‘za’ sound comes through loud and clear.

French naming website Meilleurs Prénoms confidently links this name to Frances instead. It’s not a stretch to imagine the -ces leading to this nickname, either.

WHAT DOES ZAZIE MEAN?

If Zazie is short for Isabelle, then it means “my God is an an oath.”

Frances, on the other hand, means simply Frenchman. If the name comes from Frances, then the nickname shares this meaning.

And it’s France that gives us the real origin and meaning for this sparky, short choice.

LOUIS MALLE

The first major use of Zazie as an independent name seems to have come relatively recently, in 1959.

French author Raymond Queneau penned Zazie dans le métro. A year later, Louis Malle adapted it as a film.

In the book, Zazie is nearly a teenager. For the movie, she’s younger – more of a Ramona Quimby character. Either way, the story marks her first adventure in Paris. Her mom is off with a new boyfriend, leaving Zazie in the care of her aunt and uncle.

There’s a transit strike in the city, but despite – or maybe because of – the confusion, our plucky heroine manages to see all the city has to offer.

The book and movie both hit it big, and they sparked a trend: to speak Zazie. Queneau used colloquial language for his characters – street slang, sometimes called neo-French.

But even as they imitated her speech, few parents – if any – passed down the character’s name. (At least not on birth certificates. Though it’s not unknown.)

CHANTEUSE

One example of the name’s success as a nickname?

Mononymous singer Zazie was born Isabelle de Varennes in 1964. She’s known particularly for her use of language, making it a very appropriate choice. (One example? Her song “Homme Sweet Homme,” playing on the English word home and the French word homme – man.)

The singer’s first big success came in the mid-1990s. The pop rocker has continued to record, while also composing music for movies and serving as a coach on the French version of The Voice.

ZAZIE BEETZ

German-American actress Zazie Beetz gets credit for introducing the name to an American audience.

Beetz’ dad is German; her mom, American. She was born in Berlin before moving to New York during elementary school. Her bachelor’s degree is in French, so once again, language features in the story of Zazie.

The actress’ breakout role came in 2016, when she was cast as Vanessa “Van” Keefer in FX’s Atlanta. Her character is biracial, Afro-German – just like the actress. Van and Earn – Donald Glover’s character – are in an on-again, off-again relationship, and parents to daughter Lottie. The show ran for four seasons, concluding in 2022, gathering plenty of awards and accolades along the way.

Beetz also played Domino in Deadpool 2. Her superpower? Luck. Deadpool argues that luck isn’t a superpower, but Domino confidently asserts that it is – and sure enough, she pulls off all sorts of implausible feats without a scratch.

She also played Sophie in 2019’s Joker, the lauded supervillain origin story that won many an award. She’ll reprise the role in Joker: Folie à Deux later in 2024.

With Beetz’ career continuing to heat up, her given name could continue to attract attention.

HOW POPULAR IS ZAZIE?

One fictional character, plus two real women? That’s not a lot of use, and the numbers reflect it.

In the US, Zazie had never appeared in the name data at all.

In 2017, following Beetz’ debut on Atlanta, five girls received the name. Then came 2018, with Deadpool 2 and the second season of Atlanta. The name doubled in use, to 10 newborn Zazies.

Of course that doesn’t actually mean there were zero prior to 2018, because this name does appear on The Incredibles production babies list.

It peaked with 20 births in 2022, then fell to just nine in 2023.

That’s so rare as to be nearly unknown.

UNDISCOVERED GEM

File Zazie with the undiscovered gems.

It could be the coolest, unexpected nickname for Isabelle, Elizabeth, or Frances.

Or it might stand on its own, a successor for Zoe and Zoey, an alternative to Zadie and Zelie.

Either way, it’s a vibrant, upbeat, and thoroughly modern choice that might be just right for parents after something high-energy and unconventional, but with roots, too.

Do you like Zazie better as a nickname or an independent name?

First published on September 12, 2018, this post was updated on February 15, 2020, and June 29, 2024.