Santiago

Santiago meaning

Santiago is an international and Christian boy's name of Hebrew origin (Spanish form).

Saint James (Sant Iago); James is a form of Jacob, "heel-catcher, supplanter"

Santiago is the Spanish name of St James the Great, one of the twelve apostles, run together from Sant Iago, 'Saint James'. James itself comes through Greek Iakobos from Hebrew Ya'aqov, Jacob, which Strong's glosses 'heel-catcher', that is, supplanter, recalling Jacob born holding his twin's heel. Spanish tradition holds that the apostle's body lies at Santiago de Compostela, which became one of Christianity's great pilgrimage sites, and the name was carried across the Spanish-speaking world, including Chile's capital. Famous bearers include the neuroscientist Santiago Ramón y Cajal. It is said san-tee-AH-goh.

Source: Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible (1890), Hebrew and Chaldee Dictionary, H3290 · entry Ya'aqov · See the entry · checked 25 Oct 2026

References: Strong's H3290, Ya'aqov (with BDB and NAS entries) · Strong's G2385, Iakobos (with Thayer's entry) · Wikipedia, Santiago (name)

Famous namesakes

• St James the Great (Santiago), apostle
• Santiago Ramón y Cajal, Spanish neuroscientist

Popularity abroad

• #26 United States, boys 2025 (up 3 from 29 in 2024)
  US Social Security Administration
• #296 England and Wales, boys 2025
  Office for National Statistics

Official birth registrations. India publishes no national name statistics.

Related names

Also starting with San-

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