Names / James
Is James a first name or a last name?
James is both: a family name in some places and a given name in others. It is mostly a given name in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia.
How to address someone called James
- United States. James is a given name. Hi James on first-name terms; formally, Mr. or Ms. goes with the family name, not with James.
- United Kingdom. James is a given name. Hi James on first-name terms; formally, Mr. or Ms. goes with the family name, not with James.
- Canada. James is a given name. Hi James on first-name terms; formally, Mr. or Ms. goes with the family name, not with James.
- Australia. James is a given name. Hi James on first-name terms; formally, Mr. or Ms. goes with the family name, not with James.
Not sure which part of a full name is which? Check the full name with the country where the person is based.
James by country
People recorded in Wikidata who carry James as a family name or as a given name, by country of citizenship (25,106 in total).
| Country | As family name | As given name | Family name share |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States | 677 | 12,914 | 5% |
| United Kingdom | 391 | 4,930 | 7% |
| Canada | 92 | 1,977 | 4% |
| Australia | 105 | 1,291 | 8% |
| New Zealand | 42 | 863 | 5% |
| Ireland | 4 | 382 | 1% |
| France | 24 | 149 | 14% |
| South Africa | 11 | 115 | 9% |
| Nigeria | 11 | 69 | 14% |
| Kenya | 0 | 62 | 0% |
Wikidata covers notable people, so counts show how the name is used, not how many people carry it.
James in the United States
- As a surname: about 249,379 people in the 2010 census, rank 85 among US surnames.
- As a first name: 2,862,541 babies born between 1950 and 2017, 0% of them girls.
James as a given name: men or women?
About 0% of people with James as a given name in Wikidata are women, and 0% of US babies given the name. This describes the name, not any one person: a title is usually a safe guess, but the full name without a title is always polite.
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