Given name
Hemi
“he who supplants”
Hemi is a form of James. James is traditionally associated with “he who supplants” through its connection with Jacob. The explanation belongs to the biblical Jacob story, rather than describing a separate meaning created by the English spelling James.
Meaning & origin
What it means
In Maori use, Hemi carries the interpretation “he who supplants.” Hemi is a form of James. James is traditionally associated with “he who supplants” through its connection with Jacob. The explanation belongs to the biblical Jacob story, rather than describing a separate meaning created by the English spelling James.
Combines direct and name-family evidence
Where it comes from
Hemi is a form of James. James is the English and Scottish form of a name sharing the Hebrew ancestor Yaakov with Jacob. English developed a lasting distinction between the two; that separation is not universal across languages.
Explained through its name family
How it developed
Hemi is used as a form of James. Hemi is a form of James. The shared background comes through James: The route to James passes through Late Latin Iacomus, a variant of the Latin form of Jacob. This different Latin development helps explain how James and Jacob could become distinct English names while retaining the same older origin.
Combines direct and name-family evidence
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 2004. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin. Hemi is a form of James. The history of James gives this family its wider story. James was borne by two New Testament disciples: James son of Zebedee and James son of Alphaeus. James later became a recurring Scottish royal name: James VI of Scotland took the English throne in 1603. After James II lost that throne in 1688, his family’s supporters became known as Jacobites, drawing on the Latin form of James.
Combines direct and name-family evidence
Hemi through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 288
- 186 boys · 102 girls
- Most popular year
- 2022
- 22 babies
- 2025
- 7
- #12,383 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +6%
- Steady
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 7 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 12,383 among girls’ names. The recent annual counts are too incomplete to establish a ten-year comparison. Its largest published annual count for girls was 10 in 2015. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 322 as a first name in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Hemi’s family of names
Hemi is a form of James. Hemi has a related form in Hemea. Hemi has a related form in Hemee.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 6
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 1
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 1
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
Appears in
Similar names
If you love Hemi, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
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Kamari
Kamari is a masculine given name.
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