Jacques

Meaning & origin●

Attested across 22 languages in the etymology graph.

Languages●

Language is read off each record's context, not declared by the bearer; a share is of all records for this spelling.

Other names spelled this way◐

Jacques is also recorded as 4 other names, grouped separately because the records behind them do not connect to the one described above.

• English given name347K records spelled Jacques15 spellings in the group

  Most recorded in United States, Netherlands, South Africa, Canada

  Languages: English, Dutch, Western Frisian

  Also written Jac'Ques, Jac-Ques, Jacqués, Jacquës, Jácques

• Portuguese given name73K records spelled Jacques3 spellings in the group

  Most recorded in Brazil, United States, South Africa, Switzerland

  Also written Jacquês, Jacqués

• a separate given name20K records spelled Jacques2 spellings in the group

  Most recorded in United States, Canada, Belgium, Switzerland

• German given name17K records spelled Jacques2 spellings in the group

  Most recorded in Germany, United States, Switzerland, South Africa

  Also written Jacquès

111 further groups record this spelling and are not listed here.

Grouping is the name graph's, not a register's: two spellings join a group when the evidence links them, so a group is a claim about the records rather than about the people.

Other recorded senses●

Jacques is also recorded in 5 other lexicons, as a different name or as an ordinary word. These are senses of the spelling, not of the name above.

• In French, French form of Hebrew Ya‘aqov ‘supplanter’; used in the text as a father’s name in patronymics.

  as a name·Tên Họ Người Việt Nam

• In French, From Latin/Greek Iacobus/Jacobus, ‘supplanter’; saint’s day listed twice (3 May, 25 Jul.)

  as a name·Tên Họ Người Việt Nam

• In French, From Hebrew Ya'aqov via Latin Iacobus, traditionally 'supplanter'.

  as a name·Le grand guide des prénoms (Enfant - Education)

• In French, From Jacob, a Biblical name; means 'God replaces'.

  as a name·Tên Họ Người Việt Nam

• In English, Either a late introduction from France or a refashioning of Jakes, Jackett, etc., after the French; first attested not given. Jaquest and Jaquiss are certainly English forms.

  as a name·A Dictionary of English Surnames

Ordered by how much of this spelling's record each language holds, so a sense from a language the name is barely used in sits last rather than first.

Over time●

US SSA — National Baby Names (1880–present) — 120 years between 1888–2025. One register's own figures, never a sum across registers: two registers counting the same people would double them.

Notable people with this name●

• Urban IVb. 1185FRnot in their usual nameHead of the Catholic Church from 1261 to 1264 (1185–1264)
• papa Benedetto XIIb. 1280FRnot in their usual namepope of the Catholic Church 1334–1342
• Louis Daguerreb. 1787FRnot in their usual nameFrench scientist, artist and photographer (1787–1851)
• Jacques Lacanb. 1901FRFrench psychoanalyst and writer (1901–1981)
• Jacques Chaban-Delmasb. 1915FR82nd Prime Minister of France (1915–2000)
• Jacques Delorsb. 1925FRFrench economist and politician (1925–2023)
• Jacques Derridab. 1930FRFrench philosopher (1930–2004)
• Jacques Chiracb. 1932FRPresident of France from 1995 to 2007
• Jean Chrétienb. 1934CAnot in their usual nameprime minister of Canada from 1993 to 2003
• Benjamin Pavardb. 1996FRnot in their usual nameFrench footballer (born 1996)

The ten people covered by the most Wikipedia language editions — a proxy for cross-cultural notability, which favours historical and Western figures over equally prominent contemporary ones — shown by birth year. Source: Wikidata (CC0).

Evidence●

Register rows as of the 2026-09-12 data build · 939 rows in the corpus for this spelling.

Frequently asked questions

How common is the name Jacques?

We estimate roughly 498 thousand people bear Jacques (counting its spellings and scripts) across 8 countries in our records.

In which country does Jacques have the most bearers?

We estimate about 483 thousand people bear Jacques in France, more than in any other country in our records, where it is most often spelled jacques.

Where is Jacques most common?

Jacques is densest in France, where the national register counts about 1 in 140 people carrying it.

How common is Jacques compared with other names?

In France, Jacques is the 21st most common given name of 711,207 given names recorded there.

Is Jacques a male or female name?

Jacques is a male name in our records. Opposite-gender entries fall within the cross-gender noise we measure in the source data, so we don't report them as usage.

What does the name Jacques mean?

Recorded meaning: From Old French Ja(c)ques, from the personal name Jacques.