James is a common given name. It is the most popular name for a male in the United States, and during the 1990 U.S. Census, approximately 3.3% of males counted had the first name James. It is derived from the same Hebrew name as Jacob, meaning "grasps by the heel" or "supplanter," probably in a deceiving way (In the bible Jacob was born grasping Esau's heel and later bought his birthright).

Etymology

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The name came into English from the French variation Gemmes of the Late Latin word Iacomus, a substandard dialect variant of Iacobus, from the New Testament Greek (Iakōbos), from Hebrew יעקב (). Cognates include Jacob.

Translations

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• Amharic: ያዕቆብ (Ya`iqob)
• Afrikaans: Jakob, or Jacobus
• Arabic: يعقوب (Yaʻqub)
• Armenian: Հակոբ (western Hagop, eastern Hakob)
• Azerbaijani: Yaqub
• Basque: Jakes
• Belarusian: Jakub
• Breton: Jagu, Jagut, Jacut, Jak, Jakes, Jakez, Jakezig, Jakou
• Bulgarian: Яков, (Yakov)
• Catalan: Jaim, Jaume, Xaume
• Chinese: 雅各 (pinyin: yǎgè), 詹姆士 (pinyin: zhānmǔshì), 詹姆斯 (pinyin: zhānmǔsī)
• Cornish: Jago, Jammes, Jamma
• Croatian: Jakov
• Czech: Jakub, Jakoubek, Kubicek (diminutive), Kubes Kubes, Kuba (diminutive)
• Danish: Jakob, Jeppe, Ib.
• Dutch: Jacob(us), Jakob, Jaap (diminutive), Cobus (diminutive), Coos (diminutive), Chime (diminutive)
• English: Jacob, Jakob (uncommon, by way of German, Yiddish, etc.), Jacoby (rare, chiefly American, and originally a surname), Jake (diminutive), Jakey (diminutive), Jackie (diminutive, chiefly British), Jack (diminutive, also taken as short for John), Coby (diminutive, uncommon, chiefly American); James, Jamie (diminutive, chiefly British), Jaime/Jaimie (diminutive, uncommon, chiefly American, and by way of Spanish), Jim (diminutive), Jimmy/Jimmi/Jimi (diminutive); Jacqueline/Jaqueline (feminized, by way of French), Jacqui/Jaqui (feminized diminutive), Jackie (feminized diminutive, chiefly American), Jacki (feminized diminutive), Jamie (feminized, chiefly American), Jamey/Jami (feminized)
• Finnish: Jaakob, Jaakoppi, Jaakko
• French: Jacques, Jacob, Jacquot, Jacot, Jaco, Jack (diminutive), Jacky (diminutive), Jacq (diminutive), Jacquy(diminutive), Jame, Gemmes (Normandy), Gemme (Normandy), Jacomo; Jacqueline (feminized)
• Korean: 야고보 (romaja: Yagobo)
• Galician: Xaime, Iago, Diego, Xacobe
• German: Jakob, Jeckel (diminutive), Jaeckel (diminutive)
• Modern Greek: Ιάκωβος (Iakovos)
• Hawaiian: Kimo
• Hebrew: יעקב (Ya'aqov)
• Hungarian: Jakab
• Icelandic: Jakob
• Indonesian: Yakob, Yakobus
• Italian: Giacomo, Jacopo, Giacobbe, Lapo
• Irish: Séamas/Séumas, Shéamais (vocative, whence anglicized Hamish), Seamus (anglicized), Shamus (anglicized), Séimí (diminutive), Séimín (diminutive)
• Japanese: Most common:ジェームズ (romaji:Jēmuzu) Also: ジェイムス

(romaji:Jeimusu) and ジェムス (romaji:Jemusu)

• Latin: Iacobus, Iacomus (vulgarized)
• Malayalam: യാക്കോബ്‌ (Yacob), ചാക്കോ (Chacko)
• Manx: Jayms
• Norwegian: Jakob, Jeppe
• Occitan: Jammes, James
• Portuguese: Jacó, Jaime, Iago, Thiago, Tiago, Diogo, Diego
• Polish: Jakub, Kuba, Kubuś (diminutive)
• Provençal: Jacme
• Romanian: Iacob, Iacov
• Russian: Яков (Yakov), Яша (Yasha) (diminutive)
• Scottish Gaelic: Seumas, Sheumais (vocative), Hamish (anglicized)
• Serbian (Cyrillic/Latinic): Јаков/Jakov (Yakov); Јаша/Jaša (Yasha) (diminutive)
• Spanish: Jacobo, Iago, Yago, Santiago, Diego, Jaime
• Syriac: ܝܰܥܩܽܘܒ (Yaqub)
• Swedish: Jakob
• Tagalog: Jaime
• Turkish: Yakup
• Ukrainian: Яків (Yakiv)
• Welsh: Siam, Iago
• Yiddish: Yankel (diminutive), Koppel (diminutive)

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