Jacob
A surname from the biblical personal name Jacob, meaning “supplanter” in the traditional Hebrew interpretation.
The #1,444 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 12,506 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Jacob comes from the personal name Jacob, ultimately from Hebrew Ya‘aqov. In traditional biblical interpretation, the name was connected with the idea of “supplanting” or following closely, referring to Jacob’s holding his brother’s heel at birth. As a surname, it usually began as a patronymic, identifying someone as “son of Jacob,” and it spread in England and later elsewhere in many forms.
History
Historical surname use is well established in England, and the name later became especially common among Jewish families, as noted by 19th-century writers. It also appears in early records of English baptismal and family names, and later spread widely in the British Isles and North America. Variant plural and patronymic forms such as Jacobs and Jacobson became common in different communities.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The same root name also produced many familiar given-name and surname forms across Europe, including Jacques, James, Diego, and Seamus through different linguistic routes.
From the historical record
“this name, JACOB. JACOBS, The first occurrence of this baptismal name in England, is I think in Domesday. It is now very com- mon as a surname, especially in Jewish families. JACOBSON. See Jacob. JAFPRAY, The same as Geoffrey or Jeflery. JAGGER, JAGGERS. A north-coun-”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom