"J" Word Origins

JA

German

Borrowed from German JA (“Junge Alternative für Deutschland”).

jab

Middle English

Originally a Scots/Scottish English variant of "job" meaning to peck or poke, from Middle English "jobben".

Jabbar

Arabic

From Arabic jabbār, meaning "mighty" or "powerful," also one of the traditional names of God in Islam.

jabbee

Origin

From jab + -ee.

jabber

Middle English

From Middle English forms meaning "to chatter" or "babble", related to "jowl" (jaw) — the word has always been about the mouth running fast.

Jabberwocky

Origin · 1872

Coined by Lewis Carroll for his 1872 poem, named after the fictional monster "the Jabberwock", with an ending styled after classic epic titles like "the Odyssey".

Jabez

Hebrew

From Hebrew יַעְבֵּץ.

Jabs

German

Borrowed from German Jabs.

Jace

Origin

Shortening of Jason.

Jacinta

Spanish

Borrowed from Spanish Jacinta. Variant of Jacinda and Jacintha.

jacinth

Origin

From Middle English jacynct, partly from Old French jacincte, and partly from Old English iacinþ, both from Medieval Latin jacintus, jacinthus, from Latin hyacinthus, from Ancient Greek ὑάκινθος (huákinthos). Doublet of hyacinth.

jack

Anglo-Norman

From the medieval given name "Jacques" (via Anglo-Norman), which became a generic English word for "a man" or "a fellow" and later attached itself to countless tools, devices, and objects.

jackal

French

Passed into English through French "chacal", ultimately from Persian "šaġâl", itself from an ancient Sanskrit word for the animal.

jackanapes

Origin

From Middle English iack napys, iac nape, iac napes (“derogatory nickname of the English military commander and statesman William de la Pole, 1st Duke of Suffolk (1396–1450)”), probably from Jacun or Jakin (“pet forms of the male name Jack”) + ape (“ape, monkey”) + -s (possibly modelled after surnames such as Hobbes and Jakkes), referring to Suffolk’s heraldic badge which was an ape’s chain and clog (“weight such as a block of wood or log attached to an animal to hinder motion”) (see the image, right). It is uncertain whether the word was first coined as a nickname for Suffolk (the earliest known uses), or to refer to an ape or an ape-like person. If the word was originally a nickname, some early uses of etymology 1 sense 2.1 (“person thought to behave like an ape or monkey”) may allude to Suffolk who was widely regarded as an upstart, having risen from the merchant class. In later uses, the middle element of the word was often treated as the indefinite article a or an, that is, as if the word meant “Jack, an ape”.

jackaninny

Origin

Unknown; speculatively, influence may flow (in some direction) among the following words: jackass, ninny, jackanapes, pickaninny.

jackass

Origin

A straightforward combination of "jack" (a male animal) and "ass" (donkey), later extended as an insult for a foolish or rude person.

jackboot

Origin

From Old French jaque (“coat of mail”).

jacket

Old French

From Middle French jacquet, a diminutive of Old French jaque, an old term for a short coat.

jackfish

Origin

From jack + fish.

jackfruit

Origin

From jack (“jackfruit”), from Portuguese jaca (“jackfruit”), from Malayalam ചക്ക (cakka) / Tamil சக்கை (cakkai), + fruit.

jackhammer

Origin

Formed from jack + hammer.

Jackie

Origin

Formed from Jack plus the diminutive ending -ie.

jacklight

Origin

* jack + light. Probably from jack (“a male servant of any rank”), later associated with a boy servant or any boy, and later still with a knave: a rogue, thief, or deceitful man. * Possibly also related to Spanish jaque (“a bully”).

jackman

Origin

Formed from jack + man.

Jacko

Origin

Formed from the name "Jack" plus the informal "-o" ending common in Australian and British nicknames.

jackoff

Origin

Deverbal from jack off (“to masturbate”).

jackpot

Origin · 1944

First recorded around 1944 for a big prize; it comes from an earlier poker term for a pot that only opens once a player holds a pair of jacks or better.

jackrabbit

Origin

A blend of jackass and rabbit, referring to the animal's long, donkey-like ears.

Jackson

Origin

From the surname Jackson, formed as "son of Jack."

Jacksonville

Origin

Named after Andrew Jackson, seventh President of the United States, plus the suffix -ville.

jacktar

Origin

From jack (“common man or sailor”) + tar (“tarpaulin”), used for a common sailor dating back to the 1600s.

Jacky

Origin

Formed from "Jack" plus the diminutive ending "-y."

Jaco

Origin

Various etymologies: * Portuguese Jacó * Italian Jàco or Italian Jacò * Czech or Slovak Jačo

Jacob

Hebrew

From Hebrew ya'ăqōḇ, traditionally linked to the word for "heel," referencing the biblical account of Jacob grasping his twin brother Esau's heel at birth. A doublet of James and Jacques.

Jacobi

German

Borrowed from German Jacopi, a Jewish Ashkenazi surname from a Latinized patronymic from the personal name Jacob.

jacobin

Origin

From Middle English Jacobin, from Old French jacobin, from Latin Jācōbīnus, from Latin Jācōbus (“James, Jacob, etc.”) + -īnus (“-ine: forming adjectives”), from Ancient Greek Ἰάκωβος (Iákōbos), from Biblical Hebrew יַעֲקֹב (Ya'akóv), q.v. In reference to the Dominican Order, from the proximity of their 1218 chapel and chapter house in Paris to the city's Porte Saint-Jacques, whose road formed an extension of the Way of St. James running to Santiago de Compostela, Spain. In reference to the Jacobin Club, from its 1789 founding at the former Dominican convent. In reference to the Syrian church, from Jacob bar Addai, bishop of Edessa during the mid-6th century.

jacobinic

Origin

From Jacobin + -ic.

jacobinical

Origin

From Jacobinic + -al or Jacobin + -ical.

Jacobite

Latin

From Latin Jacobus ("James") plus -ite, since the movement supported the deposed King James II.

jacobitism

Origin

From Jacobite + -ism.

Jacobs

Origin

Cockney rhyming slang from "Jacob's Cream Crackers," a real biscuit brand, rhyming with "knackers."

Jacobson

Origin

From Jacob + -son, a patronymic surname meaning "son of Jacob," related to Scandinavian forms like Jacobsen and Jakobsson.

jactitate

Origin

First attested in 1822; borrowed from Latin iactitātus, perfect passive participle of iactitō, see -ate (verb-forming suffix).

jactitation

Origin

From Medieval Latin jactitio, from iactitō (“throw, fling; boast, brag; utter, mention”).

jacuzzi

Origin

From Jacuzzi, originally a trademarked brand name that became a generic term for any jetted hot tub.

jade

French

Borrowed from French le jade, ultimately from Spanish piedra de ijada ("flank stone"), because the stone was once believed to cure pain in the side.

jaded

Old Norse

From jade, an old word for a worn-out horse, possibly from Old Norse jalda ("mare").

Jaden

Origin

From jade + -en.