1

Acts 1:13

When they entered the city they went to the upper room where they were staying, Peter and John and James and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James son of Alphaeus, Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James.

Iakóbos: James, the name of several Israelites Original Word: Ἰάκωβος, ου, ὁ Part of Speech: Noun, Masculine Transliteration: Iakóbos Phonetic Spelling: (ee-ak'-o-bos) Definition: James, the name of several Israelites Usage: James, (a) the Small, son of Alphaeus, and one of the Twelve, (b) half-brother of Jesus, (c) father (?) of Jude, (d) son of Zebedee, and brother of John, one of the Twelve, killed A.D. 44.

Book of (J)ames

Improve this question
2
  • 2
    That is a quirk of English. Most languages change names to suit the phonemes of the tongue. Commented Jan 6, 2024 at 21:55
  • Welcome to the group, "I believe." This site usually requires a biblical text to start with. To avoid having it closed as off-topic in the future, please provide a specific bible quote. In the meantime I will add one; please edit if you like. Also please take a look at the Help and Tour pages (links below, left) Commented Jan 6, 2024 at 22:23

2 Answers 2

Reset to default
7

This is part of the progression from Hebrew to Greek to Latin and finally English. The name in Hebrew is pronounced Yaakov (Jacob). This became Iakóbos in Greek, then Iacomus in Latin and finally James in English. The "bos" in Greek became "mus" in Latin. Later, in the transition from European languages to English, the soft "a" became the long "a" in James and the, the "y" sound of the earlier names turned in a "j" sound. We also get this in the names we use for Jesus and Jehovah.

Other examples:

  • Mary - Miryam in Hebrew = Mariam in Greek = Maria in Latin = Mary in English

  • Jesus - Y'shua (Joshua) in Hebrew = Iesous in Greek = Iesus in Latin = Jesus in English

  • Peter - Sela (Rock) in Hebrew = Cephas (kefa) in Greek = Petrus in Latin = Peter in English

  • The LORD - yhwh (unpronounced) in Hebrew = JeHoVa in Latin (pronounced with a "y") = Jehovah in German, also with a "y" = Jehovah in English = Yahweh in some translations.

The list goes on. A good place to research the derivation of Biblical names in English is the Online Etymological Dictionary

Note: This question stimulated me to wonder how "Yaakov" became "Diego" in Spanish. It's an even more convoluted process than with "James." Here's a plausible hypothesis.

Improve this answer
1
  • 2
    A good answer that shows this is nothing to do with the Bible but the idiosyncrasies of each language. Commented Jan 7, 2024 at 20:38
1

All the explanations that I have seen fail because the same Greek word is translated "James" or "Jacob" (only in reference to the son of Isaac) in English translations (see the Geneva Bible for example). So the Entomology can't be the reason. There must have been another explanation. Some claim antisemitism, but it might rather be an honoring of Jacob from OT fame and not wanting to any confusion in the NT. Just a thought.

Improve this answer
1
  • 1
    Welcome Shane! Please take a moment to take the site tour and check out what we are looking for in answers. You address the question and provide some relevant observations but it could be more focused and well-supported. A more thorough exploration of the historical and linguistic context would improve upon this! It could use concrete evidence or scholarly references to substantiate the claims. Just a thought. Again, welcome! Commented Feb 9 at 19:38

Start asking to get answers

Find the answer to your question by asking.

Ask question

Explore related questions

See similar questions with these tags.