James Murray Yale (c. 1798 – 7 May 1871) was a clerk, and later, a Chief trader for the Hudson's Bay Company, during the late North American fur trade, as they were competing with the Montreal based Northwest Company and the American Fur Company of John Jacob Astor. During his career, he would negotiate and compete with Americans, French Canadians, Russians, and Indians for market shares. He is best remembered for having given his name to Fort Yale, British Columbia, which became the city of Yale during the gold rush, and eventually, became the Yaletown district of Downtown Vancouver.