Masculine dossier · first seen 1880
James
Stable
Cross-generational persistence
Peak era
1947
Peak births
94,767
Current vitality
Strong
Peak generation
Boomer
Quick answers about James
How many people are named James?
An estimated 2.7 million living Americans are named James.
How rare is James?
James is still widely used among babies today, with 11,945 boys receiving the name in 2025, down 87.4% from its 1947 peak.
How old is the typical James?
The median age of a living American named James is approximately 57 years, with most bearers falling between 39 and 69 years old.
Is James still popular?
Yes. James is holding steady, with 11,945 births in 2025 and a consistent recent baseline.
Where is James most common?
James has its strongest geographic signal in District of Columbia, where it appears 2.6× more often than the national baseline.
1880Peak 19472025
Peak year
1947
Decline from peak
87.4%
2025
11,945
All-time
5,250,638
Where it lives now
James is most concentrated in District of Columbia — about 2.6× the national rate in the 2020s.
States where James is given more often than the national average — its present-day heartland.