The Jacobs surname
In the 2010 U.S. Census, 118,614 people carried this name — #257 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 2,490 people counted. That is up 3% from 115,540 in 2000.
What the name means
The meaning of the Jacobs surname
An English surname originating as a patronymic derived from Jacob.
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Jacobs» (English), by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · excerpt, lightly adapted.
In Belgium’s population register
At least 18,231 people named Jacobs live in Belgium.
Statbel only publishes a name in a municipality when five or more people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in Antwerp.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they live today
Statbel (Statistics Belgium), family names of the population by municipality, 1 January 2026 — CC BY 4.0.
In France’s civil register
France’s register of deaths holds 685 people named Jacobs.
145 of them were born outside France. Those born in France came from 47 départements, most often Nord.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they were born
Fichier des personnes décédées, INSEE — Licence Ouverte 2.0 · deaths recorded in France since 1970, by place of birth.
In Argentina’s national register
At least 274 people named Jacobs live in Argentina.
RENAPER only publishes a name in a province when more than ten people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in Buenos Aires Province.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they live today
RENAPER (National Registry of Persons, Argentina), surnames of residents by province, December 2021 — CC BY 4.0.
In Switzerland’s population statistics
270 people named Jacobs live in Switzerland.
They live in 17 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in Zurich.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they live today
Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO), «Surnames of the permanent resident population by canton», 2025, opendata.swiss/en/dataset/nachnamen-der-standigen-wohnbevolkerung-nach-kanton3 · names with fewer than 3 bearers in a canton are not published.
In Poland’s population register
45 people named Jacobs have a registered home in Poland.
Of the 151 in Poland’s national register, these are the ones with a permanent address on file. They live in 11 of Poland’s 16 voivodeships, most of all in Masovian.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where they live today
PESEL register, Ministry of Digital Affairs of Poland (dane.gov.pl) — CC0 · living people by voivodeship of permanent residence, 20 January 2026.
In the Nordic population registers
298 people named Jacobs are counted in Sweden and Finland.
Sweden’s figure is from 31 December 2022, the last count Statistics Sweden published. Finland counts its citizens, at home or abroad.
Counted, by country
Own calculations based on data from Statistics Sweden (SCB), surnames with at least two bearers, 31 December 2022 — CC BY 4.0 (names with 20 or more bearers shown) · Digital and Population Data Services Agency (DVV), Finland, surname statistics, August 2026 — CC BY 4.0.
Who carried it
People named Jacobs,
with a public archive behind them.
-
Johannes Hilarides 1603–1666 · printer -
Christian Friedrich Wilhelm Jacobs 1764–1847 · writer -
Jacob Jacobs 1812–1879 · painter -
Harriet Jacobs 1815–1897 · writer -
Orange Jacobs 1827–1914 · judge
Wikidata and Wikimedia Commons (CC0) · 144 lives in all are documented under this name.
Nearby in the index
Surnames next to Jacobs.
- Jackson 708,099 · U.S. census
- Jacky 304 · U.S. census
- Jacob 24,688 · U.S. census
- Jacobe 519 · U.S. census
- Jacobelli 161 · U.S. census
- Jacobi 3,563 · U.S. census
- Jacobson 44,808 · U.S. census
- Jacoby 9,372 · U.S. census
- Jacomet 229 · U.S. census
- Jacomino 177 · U.S. census
- Jacot 670 · U.S. census
- Jacquard 126 · U.S. census
When the index is not enough
This page says where Jacobs is.
A volume says what happened to it.
Every page in the index is free and stays free. The Heritage Volume is the long form: the full paper trail, the arms, the crossing — bound, and yours.