James Meaning

What does James mean?

The name James is of Hebrew origin.

The meaning of James is "supplanter".

James is generally used as a boy's name.

It consists of 5 letters and 1 syllable and is pronounced James.

The Given Name James

James is an anglicized form of the Latin Iacomus, a variant of Iacobus (the basis for Jacob) , which is a form of the Greek New Testament name Iakobos, itself a form of the Hebrew Old Testament name Yaakov.

In English, the names Jacob and James were originally considered distinct, but in other languages, such as French, no distinction was ever made.

In the New Testament, the name was borne by two apostles, Saint James the Greater and James the Lesser.

In Britain, the name James has long been a royal one.

In use since the 13th century, the name became more popular in Scotland where it has long been associated with the Scottish House of Stewart.

James falls into the classic name category.

Some famous bearers of this name include: James A. Garfield, and James Augustus Grant.

James Popularity

In the U.S. in 2018, it ranked 4 in baby name popularity for boys with 13,525 occurrences. It ranked 3,512 in baby name popularity for girls with 44 occurrences.

In contrast, the year before it ranked 4 in baby name popularity for boys with 14,291 occurrences. It ranked 2,363 in baby name popularity for girls with 77 occurrences.

Want to see how James sizes up? How it compares to some other names? Then check out the James Name Popularity Page.

James Related Names

James is a form of Iacomus.

Variants of the name James include Jame, Jamese, Jamez, Jaymes.

The names Diega, Diego, Giacobbe, Giacomo, Hamish, Hemi, Jacque, Jacques, Jaime, Jaimelynn, Jakome, Jamea, Jamee, Jamei, Jamesina, Jaume, Jaumet, Jaymie, Kimo, Seamus, Seumas are all forms of James.

James has the diminutives (nicknames) Jamie, Jem, Jemmy, Jim, Jimbo, Jimi, Jimmey, Jimmi, Jimmie, Jimmy, Jimy.

Famous Jamess

James ~ Biblical Character (Luke 6:16, Matt. 10:3, Matt. 4:21/Mark 3:17, Matt. 13:55), Saint
James A. Garfield ~ U. S. President (1881)
James Augustus Grant ~ Explorer
James B. Sumner ~ Nobel Prize for Chemistry 1946
James Benwick ~ Pride and Prejudice character
James Bird ~ Saint
James Black ~ Nobel Prize for Medicine 1988
James Bond ~ Dr. No character, Casino Royale character
James Brolin ~ Actor
James Brown ~ Soul Musician
James Bruce ~ Explorer
James Buchanan ~ U. S. President (1857-1861)
James Buzabalio ~ Saint
James Caan ~ Actor
James Cagney ~ Actor
James Callaghan ~ British Prime Minister (1976-1979)
James Cameron ~ Film Director
James Chadwick ~ Nobel Prize for Physics 1935
James Clark Ross ~ Explorer
James Claxton ~ Saint
James Clerk Maxwell ~ Scientist
James Coburn ~ Actor
James Cook ~ Explorer
James Cosmo ~ Actor
James Cromwell ~ Actor
James Cronin ~ Nobel Prize for Physics 1980
James D'Arcy ~ Actor
James Dean ~ Actor
James Denshi ~ Saint
James Duckett ~ Saint
James Dunn ~ Actor
James Earl Jones ~ Actor
James Faulkner ~ Actor
James Fayashida ~ Saint
James Fenimore Cooper ~ Writer
James Fenn ~ Saint
James Fox ~ Actor
James Franck ~ Nobel Prize for Physics 1925
James Franco ~ Actor
James Gandolfini ~ Actor
James Garner ~ Actor
James Gregory ~ Scientist
James Guengoro ~ Saint
James Harden ~ Basketball Player
James Heckman ~ Nobel Prize for Economics 2000
James Hetfield ~ Rock Musician
James Holland ~ Soccer Player
James Horner ~ Musician
James Hunt ~ Driver
James I ~ English King (1603-1625), Scottish King (1406-1437)
James II ~ Scottish King (1437-1460), English King (1685-1688)
James III ~ Scottish King (1460-1488)
James Intercisus ~ Saint
James IV ~ Scottish King (1488-1513)
James J. Hill ~ Business Mogul
James Joyce ~ Writer
James K. Polk ~ U. S. President (1845-1849)
James Kyushei Tomonaga ~ Saint
James Lafferty ~ Actor
James Lofton ~ Football Player
James M. Buchanan Jr. ~ Nobel Prize for Economics 1986
James Madison ~ U. S. President (1809-1817)
James Marsden ~ Actor
James Marsters ~ Actor
James Mason ~ Actor
James McAvoy ~ Actor
James McLamore ~ Business Mogul
James McNeill Whistler ~ Artist
James Meade ~ Nobel Prize for Economics 1977
James Mirrlees ~ Nobel Prize for Economics 1996
James Monroe ~ U. S. President (1817-1825)
James Morland ~ Northanger Abbey character
James Nam ~ Saint
James Nesbitt ~ Actor
James Newton Howard ~ Musician
James of Nisibis ~ Saint
James of Sasseau ~ Saint
James of Tarentaise ~ Saint
James Packer ~ Business Mogul
James Patterson ~ Writer
James Pickens, Jr. ~ Actor
James Potter ~ Harry Potter character
James Prescott Joule ~ Scientist
James Purefoy ~ Actor
James Rainwater ~ Nobel Prize for Physics 1975
James Rebhorn ~ Actor
James Reynolds ~ Actor
James Rodriguez ~ Soccer Player
James Rothman ~ Nobel Prize for Medicine 2013
James Scullin ~ Australian Prime Minister (1929-1932)
James Sirius Potter ~ Harry Potter character
James Spader ~ Actor
James Stewart ~ Actor
James the Deacon ~ Saint
James the Syrian ~ Saint
James Thomas 'Cool Papa' Bell ~ Baseball Player
James Thompson ~ Saint
James Tobin ~ Nobel Prize for Economics 1981
James Troisi ~ Soccer Player
James Tupper ~ Actor
James V ~ Scottish King (1513-1542)
James Van Der Beek ~ Actor
James VI ~ Scottish King (1567-1625)
James VII ~ Scottish King (1685-1689)
James Walworth ~ Saint
James Watson ~ Scientist, Nobel Prize for Medicine 1962
James Watt ~ Scientist
James Woods ~ Actor
James Worthy ~ Basketball Player

James Numerology

Want to know how your name choice may effect your child?

Then take a look at the Numerological Report For James.

It may give you some insight about your new baby.

Children named James are often careless and hopeful but most of all they are read more >>

James Name Fun

Would you like to fingerspell the name James in American Sign Language?

Then just follow the diagram below.

Be creative with the name James.

Just for fun, see the name James in Hieroglyphics, learn about ancient Egyptian Hieroglyphics and write a Hieroglyphic message.

Learn about nautical flags and see your name or message written in nautical flags, on the James in Nautical Flags page.