James (name)


James is an English and Old French masculine given name.

Etymology

It is a modern descendant, through Old French James, of Vulgar Latin Iacomus, a derivative version of Latin Iacobus, Latin form of the Hebrew name Jacob. The final -s in the English first names is typical of those borrowed from Old French, where it was the former masculine subject case. James is a popular name worldwide, but it is most commonly seen in English-speaking populations.

Forms of James

Spellings

James is one of the most common male names in the English-speaking world. In the United States, James was one of the five most common given names for male babies for most of the twentieth century. Its popularity peaked during the Baby Boom, when it was the most popular name for baby boys. Its popularity has declined considerably over the past thirty years, but it still remains one of the twenty most common names for boys.
In Northern Ireland, the name has appeared among the 10 most popular for the last quarter of the 20th century and into the 21st. In 2013, James was the eighth most popular name for boys in Australia.