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Jakob

boy name
Origin
Scandinavian
Syllables
2
Peak era
2000s/2010s
Today
▬ Steady

Meaning

supplanter (biblical; Scandinavian spelling of Jacob, very popular across Scandinavia)

The story

Read the story of Jacob →

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Jakob around the world

One shared root links 18 names across 5 languages.

Shared root: from Hebrew Ya'aqov, traditionally "holder of the heel, supplanter"; Late Latin split it into Jacobus and Iacomus, giving Europe both Jacob and James

The constellation

JakobScandinavianJacobEnglishJacoboSpanishJacquesFrenchJamesEnglishJaimeSpanish
12 more branches of this family
JakeEnglish · short formJimEnglish · short formJimmieEnglish · diminutiveJamieScottish · diminutiveJaymeEnglish · variantJamesonEnglish · surname formJamisonEnglish · surname formJacquelineFrench · feminine formJacquelynEnglish · variantJaclynEnglish · variantJacklynEnglish · variantJaquelineEnglish · variant

Popularity, 1890–2024

1890speak 2000s

Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Jakob peaked in the 2000s and the 2010s in nearly equal measure.

See popularity in Brazil

Popularity in Brazil

37 people · the #81,857 first name in Brazil · median age 18

Source: IBGE, Censo Demográfico 2022

When you meet Jakob

Most people given the name Jakob in the United States are teenagers or young adults today.

Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.

Names that fit alongside Jakob

Johan Axel Davi Jakub Eyob Jonas

The Jakob deep dive

Written for you · $1.99 →

Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Jakob truly comes from, how it traveled, and what a century of records reveals. If you have grown a tree on nametree, it also considers how Jakob fits with your family’s names and surname.

Both reports, explained →

Keep exploring

Scandinavian baby names

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