Of Hebrew origin.
Russian and Bulgarian form of the name Jacob or James.
It’s also a Hebrew variant of Yaakov.
Alternative forms of the name are: Yasha, Yankel, Yakub, Iakovos, Koby, Jakub, Jakov, Jacopo.
Famous bearers are Yakov Protazanov, Yakov Smirnoff, Yakov Estrin.
Yakov Protazanov was a Russian film director and screenwriter.
He is considered as one of the founding fathers of the Russian cinema.