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Worldwide Name Statistics

James

Ranked #2 - 1 in 908 people
US

Most common in

United States

2.8M bearers

World total

8,807,695

estimated living bearers

Global rank

#2

worldwide

Country breakdown

United States2.8MUnited Kingdom585kNigeria427k est.UG379k est.KE330k est.Canada202k est.TZ172k est.GH154k est.SS149k est.Australia120k est.New Zealand28k est.
Worldwide
~8.8M
rank #2
Rarity
1 in 908
of people globally
Gender split
100/0
male / female %
Countries covered
11
~2.8M in US

About the name James

There are an estimated 8,807,695 people named James alive worldwide today. That ranks James at #2 globally, with the highest concentrations in United States, United Kingdom, Nigeria.

James originates from Hebrew (supplanter; from Ya'aqov (Jacob)), and from English (anglicized form of Iacomus, the Late Latin form of Greek Iakobos). See more names with this origin on the Hebrew origin page and the English origin page.

In the United States, James is held by approximately 2,808,572 people, ranking #2 among first names. That works out to roughly 846 per 100,000 Americans (or 1 in 118 U.S. residents).

Historically James is used overwhelmingly as a male name (99.5% male).

James appears in birth records going back to 1880. Use the chart below to see how its popularity has changed across decades, and the surname section to find common pairings.

Gender distribution

Based on historical birth records, this name is used predominantly male.

Male 99.5%Female 0.5%

James popularity by year

U.S. births per year for James, 1880 to 2025 (source: SSA name files).

Show data table
  1. 1880: 5,949
  2. 1881: 5,465
  3. 1882: 5,910
  4. 1883: 5,248
  5. 1884: 5,726
  6. 1885: 5,201
  7. 1886: 5,384
  8. 1887: 4,786
  9. 1888: 5,607
  10. 1889: 5,046
  11. 1890: 5,130
  12. 1891: 4,547
  13. 1892: 5,420
  14. 1893: 5,053
  15. 1894: 5,135
  16. 1895: 5,369
  17. 1896: 5,234
  18. 1897: 5,143
  19. 1898: 5,350
  20. 1899: 4,624
  21. 1900: 7,286
  22. 1901: 4,765
  23. 1902: 5,622
  24. 1903: 5,507
  25. 1904: 5,882
  26. 1905: 6,077
  27. 1906: 5,945
  28. 1907: 6,752
  29. 1908: 7,044
  30. 1909: 7,647
  31. 1910: 9,257
  32. 1911: 10k
  33. 1912: 18k
  34. 1913: 21k
  35. 1914: 26k
  36. 1915: 34k
  37. 1916: 36k
  38. 1917: 38k
  39. 1918: 42k
  40. 1919: 43k
  41. 1920: 48k
  42. 1921: 50k
  43. 1922: 50k
  44. 1923: 51k
  45. 1924: 53k
  46. 1925: 53k
  47. 1926: 54k
  48. 1927: 54k
  49. 1928: 53k
  50. 1929: 53k
  51. 1930: 54k
  52. 1931: 52k
  53. 1932: 52k
  54. 1933: 51k
  55. 1934: 55k
  56. 1935: 55k
  57. 1936: 55k
  58. 1937: 57k
  59. 1938: 59k
  60. 1939: 60k
  61. 1940: 63k
  62. 1941: 67k
  63. 1942: 77k
  64. 1943: 81k
  65. 1944: 77k
  66. 1945: 75k
  67. 1946: 88k
  68. 1947: 95k
  69. 1948: 89k
  70. 1949: 87k
  71. 1950: 86k
  72. 1951: 88k
  73. 1952: 87k
  74. 1953: 86k
  75. 1954: 87k
  76. 1955: 84k
  77. 1956: 85k
  78. 1957: 85k
  79. 1958: 79k
  80. 1959: 79k
  81. 1960: 77k
  82. 1961: 76k
  83. 1962: 73k
  84. 1963: 72k
  85. 1964: 73k
  86. 1965: 68k
  87. 1966: 65k
  88. 1967: 62k
  89. 1968: 61k
  90. 1969: 60k
  91. 1970: 62k
  92. 1971: 55k
  93. 1972: 47k
  94. 1973: 43k
  95. 1974: 42k
  96. 1975: 40k
  97. 1976: 39k
  98. 1977: 40k
  99. 1978: 40k
  100. 1979: 40k
  101. 1980: 40k
  102. 1981: 39k
  103. 1982: 39k
  104. 1983: 37k
  105. 1984: 36k
  106. 1985: 36k
  107. 1986: 34k
  108. 1987: 33k
  109. 1988: 33k
  110. 1989: 33k
  111. 1990: 32k
  112. 1991: 31k
  113. 1992: 29k
  114. 1993: 26k
  115. 1994: 25k
  116. 1995: 23k
  117. 1996: 21k
  118. 1997: 20k
  119. 1998: 20k
  120. 1999: 19k
  121. 2000: 18k
  122. 2001: 17k
  123. 2002: 17k
  124. 2003: 17k
  125. 2004: 17k
  126. 2005: 16k
  127. 2006: 16k
  128. 2007: 16k
  129. 2008: 15k
  130. 2009: 14k
  131. 2010: 14k
  132. 2011: 13k
  133. 2012: 13k
  134. 2013: 14k
  135. 2014: 15k
  136. 2015: 15k
  137. 2016: 15k
  138. 2017: 14k
  139. 2018: 14k
  140. 2019: 13k
  141. 2020: 12k
  142. 2021: 13k
  143. 2022: 12k
  144. 2023: 12k
  145. 2024: 12k
  146. 2025: 12k

James bearers by U.S. state

Top states by estimated living bearers, derived from SSA state birth files.

Show data table
  • California: 412k
  • Texas: 339k
  • New York: 281k
  • Florida: 261k
  • Pennsylvania: 196k

Most common surnames paired with James

Famous people named James

Linked from Wikidata. Click through for full biographies on Wikipedia.

Frequently asked questions

How many people are named James worldwide?

There are an estimated 8,807,695 people named James alive worldwide today, ranking #2 globally.

Is James a rare name?

Worldwide that works out to about 1 in 908 people. In the United States there are roughly 2,808,572 bearers, which is 1 in 118 Americans.

Is James a boy or girl name?

Based on historical birth records, James is used 99.5% male and 0.5% female.

Where does the name James come from?

Hebrew: supplanter; from Ya'aqov (Jacob). English: anglicized form of Iacomus, the Late Latin form of Greek Iakobos.

Who are famous people named James?

James Brown - American singer, the Godfather of Soul (1933-2006). James Dean - American actor (1931-1955). James Joyce - Irish novelist (1882-1941). James Cameron - Canadian filmmaker (b. 1954).

Data sources

Every figure on this page is cited. See the methodology page for the full picture.

Last updated:

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