Through watching Counting On and 19 Kids & Counting on TLC over the years, we've gotten to know the Duggar family pretty well — even though there are a lot of them. Michelle and Jim Bob are known for choosing names that start with the letter "J" for all 19 of their children, following the pattern set by their dad's first name, and with a little creativity, they've managed to accomplish that goal. But are their first names what the family really calls these kids?
In the case of some of the Duggars, like Jinger Duggar and Jana Duggar, their family mostly sticks to their given first name. But as some of the kids get older, like Jedidiah Duggar, they've ended up with nicknames that they actually use more now that they're all grown up, and recently, In Touch Weekly rounded up all the Duggar nicknames that fans need to know — both past and present.
Wondering what the family has called their children over the years? Check out the nicknames used amongst the group through the years.
Josh
The oldest child in the family is Josh, which is actually a nickname of his full name: Joshua James Duggar. Most of the time, Josh is what we'll hear his family call him. When they were first courting, Anna would refer to him as Joshy, but they were a lot younger then!
John-David
Though the second oldest Duggar son, John-David, was called his full hyphenated name for a lot of his childhood (at least, he was on 19 Kids & Counting), as an adult, he more commonly goes by John, especially when his wife, Abbie, is talking about him.
Jana
John-David's twin sister, Jana Marie, already has a pretty short name to begin with, but as In Touch pointed out, she is commonly called "Jana Banana" by her family members — though we're not sure she appreciates that one now that she's 31 years old!
Jill
Next in the Duggar line of succession, we have Jill Michelle — yep, her middle name comes from her mama! When she was younger and living at home, she went by the sweet (yet slightly embarrassing) nickname Jilly Muffin, but it's been years since we've heard anyone call her that.
Jessa
Now, we have Jessa Lauren, who, like Jana, has a first name that's hard to shorten. That didn't stop her family from coming up with the nickname "Jessa Blessa," though, which they've explained on the show is because she's been such a blessing to them since she was a little girl.
Jinger
Next, we have Jinger Nicole, Jessa Blessa's best friend, though she doesn't get a cool rhyming nickname like her sister does! Instead, it's more common that we'll hear her family (including her husband Jeremy Vuolo) refer to her as "Jinge."
Joseph
The next oldest Duggar is Joseph Garrett, who is a married father of three these days (how time flies!). Though he was mostly referred to by his full name growing up, more and more often, we'll hear his family and wife Kendra call him "Joe."
Josiah
The eighth child of Jim Bob and Michelle, Josiah Matthew rarely goes by his full first name these days. Instead, it's way more often that we'll hear him go by "Siah" or "Si" — in fact, his Instagram handle (shared with wife Lauren) refers to him as "Si."
Joy-Anna
Here's another hyphenated name in the Duggar bunch! Though her given name is Joy-Anna, we usually hear her being called Joy instead, both by her parents and her husband, Austin Forsyth, and her family has said many times that she lives up to her name.
Jedidiah
With a name like Jedidiah Robert, there's no wonder he's going by a much shorter version of his name these days! Even while running for office, Jedidiah has gone by "Jed," and it seems like that nickname is here to stay.
Jeremiah
Jedidiah's twin brother is Jeremiah Robert — yep, he and his twin share the same middle name. Unsurprisingly, they share the same style of nickname, too, with Jeremiah also going by the first three letters of his name: "Jer."
Jason Duggar
The twins' next youngest brother is Jason Michael, though these days, fans probably know him as "Jase." Not only is that a family nickname, but it also seems to be what he wants to be known as now that he's an adult — it's his Instagram handle and everything.
James
Though most of the time James Andrew just simply goes by "James," according to In Touch, his family also calls him "Jay-bird," though it's not too clear where that nickname came from. James, please explain!
Justin
The recently married 18-year-old Justin Samuel Duggar typically just goes by his first name, Justin — it's not really a name that lends itself too well to nicknames! But he does shorten his middle name on Instagram, calling himself Justin Sam Duggar.
Jackson
Jackson Levi Duggar definitely has one of the most unusual names out of the bunch, so it's no surprise that he doesn't seem to use a nickname at all. He is only 16, though — maybe he'll start going by "Jack" when he's older.
Johannah
After a long string of boys, finally, Jim Bob and Michelle had a girl: Johannah Faith Duggar. Ever since she was little on 19 Kids & Counting, we've heard her called "Hannie," and it seems like the nickname has stuck.
Jennifer
As one of the youngest members of her family, it's hard to believe that Jennifer Danielle Duggar is a teenager already! We can still remember when she was only called "Jenni" as a baby on the show, and now she'll all grown up.
Jordyn
A year younger than Jennifer is Jordyn-Grace Mayika Duggar, yet another member of the family with a hyphenated first name. Despite that, we exclusively hear her being called "Jordyn" by her family.
Josie
And finally, we have Josie Brooklyn Duggar — the family's youngest and final child. Though she doesn't seem to have a nickname (at least, not yet), the family does often refer to her as their "miracle" because of the way she survived being born premature at 25 weeks.
