James

“Variant of Jacob — Supplanter, or holder of the heel” — Hebrew, via Greek and Latin origin

Boy's name · #6 in the US (2025) · Timeless

James has appeared in US records since 1880 — best rank #1 (1940) · 5,250,638 babies named James all-time · 1 in 140 boys born in 2025.

Around the world: #3 in N. Ireland (2025) · #4 in Ireland (2025) · #6 in Netherlands (2025) · #8 in Canada (2024) · #13 in New Zealand (2025).

Appears in 2020-2025 birth records of 51 states, the #1 boy's name in 1 of them. See the full state-by-state map on this page.

Famous Jameses

James Joyce — Irish novelist and poet (1882–1941)
James Cook — British explorer, cartographer and naval officer (1728–1779)
James Madison — President of the United States from 1809 to 1817 (1751–1836)
James Clerk Maxwell — Scottish physicist (1831–1879)
James Watt — British engineer (1736–1819)

Among 28,148 notable people named James:

Military figures appear 2.45× more often than among typical names — e.g. James Cook, British explorer, cartographer and naval officer (1728–1779).

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