James is an English language given name that is a derivative of the name Jacob, most commonly used for males.
Contents
Etymology
James is a modern descendant of the Hebrew name Ya'akov (original Hebrew: יַעֲקֹב), in English: Jacob. The Hebrew name went successively through the Latin form Iacobus, its derivative Vulgar Latin version Iacomus (cf. Italian Giacomo, Portuguese Tiago or Thiago (in ancient spelling although still used as a first name), and Spanish Iago, Santiago), and finally the Old French James. The final -s in the English first names is typical of those borrowed from Old French, where it was the former masculine subject case (cf. Jules, Miles, Charles, etc.).
Forms of James
Abbreviations
Jas. (English)
Diminutives
Jack
Jake
Jim or Jimmy/ Jimy/Jimmi/Jimi/Jimmie
Jimbo
Jay
Jaime or Jamie
Variants in English and various other languages
Afrikaans: Jakobus, Koos (diminutive), Kobus (diminutive), Jakko (diminutive)
James is one of the most common male names in the English-speaking world.
As of 2025, James has remained within the top 5 names for boys in Northern Ireland every year since at least 1998, and within the top 7 names for boys in the Republic of Ireland every year since 1964.
In 2013, James was the eighth most popular name for boys in Australia.
In the United States, James was one of the five most common given names for male babies for most of the 20th century. Its popularity peaked during the Baby Boom (Census records 1940–1960), when it was the most popular name for baby boys. Its popularity has declined considerably over the past 30 years, but it still remains popular, and in 2022, it was the fourth most popular boys' name. James is the second most common first name for living individuals in the United States, belonging to roughly 3.4 million people in the United States as of 2021, according to the Social Security Administration.
In 2022, James was the 11th most popular name given to boys in Canada.
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Γιακουμής (Yakoumis, colloquial, possibly also from Ιωακείμ (Joachim))
Ιακωβίνα (Iakovina, feminized)
Γιάγκος (Yangos, probably through Slavic languages)
Ζάκης or Ζακ (Zakis or Zak, French-sounding)
Hawaiian: Kimo, Iakobo, Iakopo
Hebrew: Jacob and James are two separate, yet related names.
Jacob is יעקב (Ya'aqov or Yakov), with its diminutives:
קובי (Kobi)
ג׳קי (Jecky : from Jacky)
ז׳אק (Zhack from French pronunciation of Jacques)
יקי (Yaki)
יענקל׳ה/ינקי (Yankalleh/Yankee – through Yiddish).
James is transliterated as גֵ׳יימס/גִ׳ימי/גִ׳ים/ (James/Jimmy/Jim from English).
The Spanish name Jaime for James is pronounced in Spanish like the Israeli pronunciation of חיים (Haim or Chaim pronounced Kha-yim and meaning life). Diminutives of Chaim are:
Polish: Jakub, Kuba (diminutive), Kubuś (diminutive endearing)
Portuguese: Jacó (O.T. form), Jaime, Iago, Tiago (contracted form used in the N.T.), Thiago (variant used in Brazil), Diogo, Diego, Santiago, Jaqueline (fem. – French influence), Jacobina (fem.)
Spanish: Jaime, Jacobo, Yago, Tiago, Santiago, Diego, Jacoba (fem.), Jacob
Swahili: Yakobo
Swedish: Jakob
Sylheti: য়াকুব (Yakub)
Syriac: ܝܰܥܩܽܘܒ (Yaqub)
Tamil: ஜேம்ஸ் (Jēms)
Telugu: యాకోబు (Yākôbu) జేమ్స్ (Jēms)
Thai: เจมส์ (Jame, Cems̄̒)
Turkish: Yakup, Yakub
Ukrainian: Яків (Yakiv)
Urdu: جیمز (James), یعقوب (Yaqoob)
Venetian: Jàcomo, Jàco
Walloon: Djåke
Welsh: Iago, Siâms
Yiddish: יעקב (Yankev/Yankiff), קאפעל/קופפל (Kappel/Koppel), יענקל/יענקלה (Yankel/Yankelleh), יענקי (Yankee), יאקאב (Yakab – from Romanian Iacob), and the Gentile name not associated with Jacob: דזשעיימס (James)
