Given name & surname
Jaz
“refers to the style of music”·“one who holds the treasure”·“he who supplants”
In English use, Jaz is a diminutive of Jasmine. One Persian interpretation is “resembling the climbing plant with fragrant flowers.” Jaz is a variant of Jazz. One American interpretation is “refers to the style of music.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
In English use, Jaz is a diminutive of Jasmine. One Persian interpretation is “resembling the climbing plant with fragrant flowers.” Jaz is a variant of Jazz. One American interpretation is “refers to the style of music.” In English use, Jaz is a diminutive of Jasper. One Persian interpretation is “one who holds the treasure.” In English use, Jaz is a diminutive 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.
Explained through its name family
Where it comes from
In English use, Jaz is a diminutive of Jasmine. Jasmine has been associated with Old French and Persian naming traditions. Jaz is a variant of Jazz. An origin associated with Jazz is American. In English use, Jaz is a diminutive of Jasper. An origin associated with Jasper is Persian. In English use, Jaz is a diminutive 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
In English usage, Jaz is a diminutive of James. In English usage, Jaz is a diminutive of Janet. In English use, Jaz is a diminutive 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 1989. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin. In English use, Jaz is a diminutive 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
Jaz through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 352
- 236 boys · 116 girls
- Most popular year
- 1991
- 24 babies
- 2025
- 0
- Outside the ranked list
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- —
- Too few births to compare
By the numbers
The most recent published U.S. birth count for boys is 5 in 2023. Later missing counts do not mean the name went unused. Its largest published annual count for boys was 19 in 1993. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 930 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.
Jaz’s family of names
In English usage, Jaz is a diminutive of James. Jaz has a related form in Jazz. In English usage, Jaz is a diminutive of Janet.
The ring: nicknames and forms.
Nicknames & forms 7
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
See also 4
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Jaz
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Jaz, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Jacques
“he who supplants” · “heel grabber”
>99% boys
Davon
“Beloved” · “darling”
>99% boys
Abiezer
“my father is help” · “father of help”
>99% boys
Davyen
“the beloved one”
>99% boys
Jair
“God enlightens”
>99% boys
Nethaniah
“Yah has given”
>99% boys
Jakeel
>99% boys
Tahan
“encampment”
>99% boys