Jack, the commonest petname for john, has caused a good deal of difficulty owing to the natural assumption that it must be derived from the. John names and nicknames for john nicknames and names. John fitzgerald kennedy 19171963 the 35th president of the united states of america. Jacob, jason, jonathan, jan, johann, johannes, joachim and sometimes for james, from its french form jacques, from the latin jacobus. Army general who commanded the american expeditionary force aef in europe during world war i pershing graduated from the united states military academy at west point, new york, in 1886. But since as john he was always being mocked and stepped on, he decided he should be called jack as a way to differentiate his current self from his past self. In medieval england, john was used as a generic name for a person the usage john doe still survives. I always thought it was weird, since he was never called john by anyone. John as jack is not the only weird associated names you can hear around. Jack is a nickname for john and i wouldnt think twice about it if i heard that.
In medieval english, jan became jankin, which bounced back to the french, who prob lived it jackin, hence, or so the theory goes, the nickname jack. John came from the latin johannes, which became the oldmiddle french jehan and the old dutch jan. Jack was born in this house on may 29, 1917 around 3. If youre going to call him jack though, i would just name him jack. The normans imported jakke as a sobriquet for the common man john was the most popular name in england until the 1950s. Jack is a form of john and is generally pronounced like jak. John eldridge my grandfather did not use jack as a. John johnny depp american actor, famous for his role in the movie pirates of the caribbean. I thought that it was but i have mentioned using this name combination to a few people and they had no idea that jack was a nickname for john so i am looking for some opinions. Jack is probably a much more popular and common name today than john, which appears to be dropping in popularity. Now all i can think of is when he goes to school having to explain ad nauseum to his teachers that yes, jack really is a nickname for john and thats what he goes by. John is a full name, and jack is a recognized nickname.
I never understood why my mother did that, but we all had nicknames. Jack is a name thats been used by parents who are considering baby names for boys. However, during medieval times, the name john was altered slightly in the germanic tongues to jankin or jackin. If we have a boy, we have every intention of calling our child jack after both our grandfathersone who is just jack and one. Examples include edward being nicknamed teddy, james being called jim. In medieval germany, the biblical name john became jankin and then jackin. I know jack is a traditional nickname for john, my husband and our families know this, but apparently other people in my generation were both 30 dont know this. The problem with nicknames is their paper trial is considerably thinner than given names and harder to decipher. Biography of john calico jack rackham, famed pirate. By contrast jack, which was a nickname for john but is now established as a name in. Frequently asked questions john fitzgerald kennedy. In american english, jack can be a nickname for john and jake can be.
What was said is that jack is a traditional nickname for john and is derived from john. Now commonly used as a full given name instead of a nickname, it is currently the most popular name chosen for newborn boys in great britain and ireland, and its popularity is steadily growing in the united. As an outcome, they used the name jack as a nick name for john. Originally a nickname for the given name john, it has now become a given name on its own. Over time, jack worked his way into words such as lumberjack and steeplejack. Jack as far i have seen it is its own name, except when used short given that jack in the top 50 names to babies, dont think a full name rather than nickname so. All replies must be a genuine effort to answer the question helpfully. It comes from the french name jaques, which is the same name as john in. John is a name with history stretching back far into biblical times. He led the american expeditionary forces in world war i.
Jack is a common nickname for john, with john being a very common name. The first recorded mention of him appears in an antiroman catholic. Have you ever wondered how jack became a nickname for john. Although there are several accounts on the use of jack as a nickname for john, one thing they all agree is that jack used to be a diminutive of john. People who arent aware that jack is a nickname it is not short for john probably arent aware either of hank being a nickname for henry. Please remember that all comments must be helpful, relevant, and respectful. The french used the name jacques with the same purpose, and the two became conflated. Yes, there are jacobs who use the nickname jack, my uncle for one and a dutch friend of mine named jacobus who uses jack not sjaak. No one in his family called him thatit came about when a white house reported had once overheard the president call. Pershing is the only person to be promoted in his own lifetime to the highest rank ever held in the united states army.
Nicknames, cool fonts, symbols and tags for john jo. Jac and jak are alternate spellings of the name jack. Is it common knowledge that jack is a nickname for john. Er, jack is the traditional nickname for john if youre in the u. Perhaps the most accurate account is that kin, a common english suffix was added to jen, which became jackin, and eventually, jack. Jack ketch, byname of john ketch, died november 1686, english executioner notorious for his barbarous inefficiency. Why is jack a nickname for john and other facts about this john is one of the most common names in the englishspeaking world. The recorders in jacks office about timothy are probably for jacks double for the internship. Pershings first name is john, for which jack is a nickname, and he was a white man who commanded black troops. Since jack is a nickname for john, i assumed john was his real name. Jack kerouac jean louis kerouac was a famous writer. Apart from john and jack, there are other nicknames also, that sound different but actually are used till date. John alexander is a nice, handsome name that will age well. Every person named john normally uses jack as their alias.
Jack as a nickname for john canielle sep 8 2019, 1. Jack was a nickname for the more formal name of john for a very long time, but it has evolved into a name of its own. In fact, a friend of mines son is jack, but formal name is john after the babys father. Even jackass, the commonly used term for a donkey, retains its generic essence in the word jack. General of the armies john joseph black jack pershing september, 1860 july 15, 1948, was a general officer in the united states army. Im sure there are some great jacks out there, but i cant see myself liking this name. Jack as a nickname for john 6sammie6 sep 8 2019, 1. If you look at both names closely, they dont correlate with each other except both have j, as its first letter. Jack frost jack donaghy is one of the main characters on the show 30 rock jack russell werewolf by night in the marvel comics jack hammer, weasel from the deadpool comics and the deadpool movie. I also like jack as a nickname, even though i dont really see its relation to john.
Is jack a nickname for john or is john a nickname for jack. John jack malone character in the cbs crime drama without a trace, portrayed by actor anthony lapaglia. Jack as a nickname for john 6sammie6 sep 7 2019, 12. You can tell your friends that jack is a legitimate nickname for john. Of course, john was once used as a generic name for english commoners and peasants, john doe which could be why jack came became his nickname. I found a few early references to people given this nickn. John fitzgerald kennedy official name was called jack kennedy nickname by his family and friends. Kennedy is known as jack, to his family, relatives and friends. Apart from the first letter, the two names have nothing in common. All due respect 2004 so one of them is working for red john. Apparently it was once common to put kin on the end of a name. Pershing, in full john joseph pershing, byname black jack, born september, 1860, laclede, missouri, u.
In medieval germany, the biblical name john became jan, then jankin and then jackin. My uncle, now deceased, was my uncle jack, but his given name was john. When short for jackson, the name jack it means son of jackjohn. Other examples are jfk and on 30 rock alex baldwin who plays john donaghy is called jack. The name jack is believed to be derived from jankin. Redacted 2011 famous people named john or its variations.
Jack is a common nickname for john and it is what his family called him when he was growing up. Its worth remembering that french and english were both evolving at this time, from the same basepartial base latin. Nevertheless, traditionally jack is a nickname or byname, as they. Jack is also becoming its own given name, being given to tons of boys nowadays. John and johnathon are two different names entirely. One such example is the surname snowball, which was adopted from a nickname. I prefer john alexander to jack alexander, just because jack clashes with alexander a little bit. John rackham, who earned the nickname calico jack because of his taste for clothes made of brightly colored indian calico cloth, was an upandcoming pirate during the years when piracy was rampant in the caribbean and nassau was the. Even the nuns in school learned he answered to jack and always called him by jack. Jack palance 19192006, american actor born volodymyr palahniuk 3. Jack is a standard nickname for john and taken up by his family and so by his boyhood friends. Asked in history of the united states, us presidents. Other theories suggest that jack was derived from the french name jacques, which is the french form for jacob or james.
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