Arabic form of Ya'aqov (see JACOB).From the Latin Iacobus, which was from the Greek (Iakobos), which was from the Hebrew name (Ya'aqov). In the Old Testament, Jacob (later called Israel) was the son of Isaac and Rebecca and the father of the twelve founders of the twelve tribes of Israel. He was born holding his twin brother Esau's heel, and his name is explained as meaning "holder of the heel" or "supplanter". Other theories claim that it is in fact derived from a hypothetical name like (Ya'aqov'el) meaning "may God protect".