Jamie is a name of Scottish origin and it means "supplanter" or "to take the place of". The name has been popular among both boys and girls for several decades now.
The name Jamie is derived from the Scottish form of James, which was born out of the Latin name Jacobus. In turn, Jacobus is a derivative of the Hebrew name Yaacov, which means "supplanter" in reference to the Biblical story where Jacob wrestled with an angel and received a new name for his actions.
Historically, Jamie has been used as a diminutive form of James since the Middle Ages. It was first used as an independent given name in Scotland during this period, but it did not become widespread until the 20th century.
Today, Jamie is considered to be a unisex name and is often associated with Scottish heritage or culture. Despite its Scottish roots, Jamie has gained popularity worldwide and can be found in many different cultures today. Some famous people named Jamie include actress Jamie Lee Curtis, tennis player Jamie Murray, and musician Jamie xx.
The name Jamie has seen a fascinating journey in popularity over the years in the United States, as indicated by the annual birth statistics provided.
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the name Jamie was quite rare, with fewer than 10 births per year recorded between 1896 and 1937. However, starting from 1938, we begin to see a steady increase in the number of Jamies being born each year.
The 1950s marked a significant turning point for the name Jamie. In 1952, there were 137 births, and by 1959, this number had more than doubled to 773. This upward trend continued into the 1960s, with a peak of 2642 births in 1970.
However, after this peak, the popularity of the name Jamie began to decline. Between 1978 and 1985, the number of annual births with the name Jamie fell by more than half, from 3447 to 1630.
The 1990s saw a further decrease in the popularity of the name Jamie, with fewer than 1000 births per year recorded between 1990 and 1995. This trend continued into the early 2000s, with the lowest point reached in 2003, when there were only 412 births.
However, since then, we have seen a resurgence in the popularity of the name Jamie. In 2021 and 2022, there were 441 and 473 births respectively, indicating that the name is once again on the rise.
In total, over the period from 1896 to 2023, there have been 87,677 babies named Jamie born in the United States. This remarkable journey of popularity serves as a fascinating snapshot of societal trends and preferences over time.