Were the names John, James, Peter, Mark, etc., popular everyday names for folks during the days of Jesus?

Arpeggionist

James was not - the name was redesignated to replace "Jacob" when King James I ascended the throne. Peter was a name substituted in the New Testament for "Shim'on", which was more popular. Names in general in the New Testament should be taken with a grain of salt, since in many cases they were Greek substitutions for the Hebrew equivalent or certain people were just plain given different names to signify the new experience of early Christianity. "John" was pronounced "Yochanan" in Hebrew, and that might be the only name which really was more common. Apr 26 09, 4:41 AM

queproblema

Yes, with the exception of "Peter," they were, although of course in Hebrew or Aramaic or Latin or Greek: English wouldn't exist yet for centuries. John-- "The name John is derived, via Latin and Greek, from the Hebrew name Yochanan... "The name had gained popularity among Jews in Judea and Galilee by the time the area became a province of the Roman Empire in 6 A.D." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_(name) James-- "The name “James” is derived from the same Hebrew name as Jacob, meaning “holds the heel” (in the Genesis narrative, Jacob was born grasping Esau′s heel and later bought his birthright). "The name came into English language from the French variation of the Late Latin name Iacomus, a dialect variant of Iacobus, from the New Testament Greek Ἰάκωβος (Iakōbos), from Hebrew word יעקב (Yaʻaqov)." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_(name) Mark-- "Mark is a common male given name and is derived from old Latin 'Mart-kos', which means 'consecrated to the god Mars'. Marcus was one of the three most common Roman given names." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_(given_name) Peter-- This name certainly became popular, but I am not sure it existed as a given name before Jesus coined it for his disciple, Simon bar-Jonas. "Peter is a popular masculine given name. It is derived, via Latin 'petra', from the Greek word πετρος (petros) meaning 'stone, rock'. "According to the New Testament, Jesus gave the Apostle Peter (whose given name was Simon) the name Kephas or Cephas meaning 'stone' in Aramaic." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_(first_name) "Due to the renown of the apostle, this name became common throughout the Christian world (in various spellings)." http://www.behindthename.com/name/peter Apr 26 09, 5:10 AM