Séamus is an Goidelic male given name, of Hebrew origin via Latin. It is the Irish equivalent of the name James. The name James is the English New Testament variant for the Hebrew name Jacob. It entered the Irish and Scottish Gaelic languages from the French variation of the late Latin name for Jacob, Iacomus; a dialect variant of Iacobus, from the New Testament Greek Ἰάκωβος (Iákōvos), and ultimately from Hebrew word יעקב, i.e. Jacob. The name comes either from the Hebrew root עקב ʿqb meaning "to follow, to be behind" but also "to supplant, circumvent, assail, overreach", or from the word for "heel", עֲקֵב ʿaqeb. It can also be taken to mean "may [God] protect". The traditional explanation for the name follows that it was given to the patriarch Jacob when he was born, as he was grasping his twin brother Esau's heel, though this is a folk etymology. Other variant spellings in Irish include Séamas, Seumas and Seumus. It has also been anglicised as Shaymus, Seamus, Seamas, Sheamus and Shamus. Diminutives include Séimí, Séimín and Séamaisín. In the United States, the word "Shamus" was a derogatory slang misspelling of Séamus that arose during the 19th century as more than 4.5 million Irish immigrated to America, peaking at almost two million between 1845 and 1852 during the Great Famine (Irish: An Gorta Mór). Irish immigrants found employment in the police departments, fire departments and other public services of major cities, largely in the Northeast and around the Great Lakes, and have been overrepresented in the New York police since then. Though still used by some as a derogatory term, the great preponderance of Irish and Irish-American law enforcement officers led to a persisting stereotype, and the name "Shamus" continues to refer to Irish-American police and private detectives.

Given name