Jaan was born in 1789. Jaan's father was Villem and his mother was Madli. His paternal grandparents were Niklus and Liis; his maternal grandparents were Hindrik and Ann. He had a brother and five sisters, named Peep, Mai, Margaret, Leenu, Juuli and Mari. He was the fifth oldest of the seven children. He died at the age of 16 in 1805.