Jacob
Boy nameJacob has been given to 990,532 babies in the U.S. since 1880. It peaked in 1998 and currently ranks #43 for boys (2025).
Meaning & origin /ˈd͡ʒeɪkəb/
From Middle English Iacob, from Late Latin Iācōbus, from Ancient Greek Ἰάκωβος (Iákōbos), from Biblical Hebrew יַעֲקֹב (yaʿăqōḇ, literally “May He Heel”), from the third-person singular masculine imperfective form of the Semitic verb "to heel" (with various meanings), in turn from עָקֵב (ʿāqēḇ, “heel of the foot”). Doublet of James, Yaakov, and Yakub.
Origin: Hebrew
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Popularity over time births per year, 1880–2025
Total babies
990,532
Peak year
1998 (36,091 babies)
Rank in 2025
#43 for boys
First recorded
1880
10-year trend
▼ -62%
Gender split
0% girls / 100% boys
Famous people named Jacob
Jacob
In Genesis, a son of Isaac, also known as Israel; the patriarch of the Israelites
Jacob Zuma
4th President of South Africa (2009–2018)
Camille Pissarro
Danish-French painter (1830-1903)
George Gershwin
American composer and pianist (1898–1937)
Notability data from Wikidata (CC0).
Names with a similar vibe
Same primary gender, peaked around the same years, and roughly as common as Jacob.
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