James
Meaning of James
James—pronounced the friendly, one-syllable “JAYMZ”—began his journey in ancient Hebrew as Ya’aqov, detoured through the Latin Iacomus, and finally strolled into English courts wearing the polished boots of “supplanter,” a meaning that hints at a quiet confidence rather than outright rebellion. Over the centuries the name has collected stories the way a well-traveled suitcase collects stickers: Saint James trekking the Camino, King James commissioning that famous Bible translation, literary Jameses from Mr. Joyce to Mr. Baldwin, and pop-culture icons like the ever-dapper Mr. Bond. In America, it’s practically a hometown hero—camping out in the nation’s Top 10 for most of the last hundred years and still flexing near the podium today—proof that classic never goes out of style. Shortened to Jim, Jimmy, or the punchy J.R., James shape-shifts with ease, suiting a backyard shortstop, a boardroom boss, or a rock-and-roll front man. It feels both button-down and windswept, as comfortable on a royal throne as on a Little League bleacher. With history in its back pocket and modern charm in its grin, James is the name that tips its hat to tradition while sprinting toward tomorrow.
Pronunciation
English
- Pronunced as JAYMZ (/dʒeɪmz/)
U.S. Popularity Chart
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Notable People Named James
| Irish modernist James Joyce, author of Ulysses, Dubliners, A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, and Finnegans Wake, is considered one of the most influential writers of the 20th century. |
| James Baldwin was an American writer and civil rights activist whose acclaimed works, including Go Tell It on the Mountain and Notes of a Native Son, made him a leading voice of the civil rights era. |
| James Madison, an American Founding Father and statesman, was the fourth United States president and is known as the Father of the Constitution for his key role in framing the Constitution and Bill of Rights. |
| James Cagney was an American actor and dancer celebrated for energetic performances, a distinctive voice, deadpan comic timing, and an award winning range. |
| James Cameron is a Canadian filmmaker whose pioneering blockbusters have earned over eight billion dollars, making him the second highest grossing director and a multiple Oscar, Emmy, and Golden Globe winner, with films in the National Film Registry and recognition on the Time 100 list. |
| James Rodríguez - James Rodriguez is a Colombian attacking midfielder and winger for Leon who captains Colombia and is regarded as one of the greatest Colombian players, praised for his technique, vision, and playmaking as an heir to Carlos Valderrama. |
| Captain James Cook was a British Royal Navy officer, explorer, and cartographer who led three Pacific voyages, circumnavigated New Zealand’s main islands, and made the first recorded European visits to Australia’s east coast and the Hawaiian Islands. |
| James Vernon Taylor is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist who won six Grammy Awards and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000. |
| James Callaghan was a British Labour statesman who served as Prime Minister from 1976 to 1979 and is the only person to have held all four Great Offices of State. |
| James Scott Garner was an American actor who starred in more than 50 films including The Great Escape, earned an Oscar nomination for Murphys Romance, and became a TV icon as Bret Maverick and Jim Rockford. |
| James Fenimore Cooper was a nineteenth century American novelist famed for historical romances about colonial and Native American life who spent much of his life in Cooperstown founded by his father, attended Yale, and later supported the Episcopal Church. |
| James Blunt is an English singer, songwriter, and musician best known for his hits Youre Beautiful and Goodbye My Lover. |
| James Earl Jones was an American actor and pioneering Black performer who achieved an EGOT and received the National Medal of Arts and the Kennedy Center Honor. |
| James Gunn is an American filmmaker who began at Troma and directed Slither, Super, the Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy, The Suicide Squad, and Superman. |
