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I would appreciate an answer to this question.
A few years ago, I realized that the word "jack" is used frequently in the English language. I have heard you say that the origin of "jack" is unknown. So I have developed my own theory and I would like you to tell me if its plausible. I first realized the prominence of jack because of how often it is used in children's tales and fables, for example: Jack and the beanstalk, Jack Sprat, The house that Jack built, Jack be nimble and etc. A friend and I listed about 90 words that contain the word Jack and we realized it is used in every part of our language, plant, animal, food, tools, jobs, profanity as well as titles of books, movies and songs. My theory is that before the human species could talk the most common sound that was used was "jk" because that sound takes the least amount of facial muscles and tongue movement. As language developed that sound was extended to "jack" and continued to be used to describe the environment. This propensity continues today. Does this sound plausible? Is there any other information you can give me on this issue?
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Gidday Terry
I found this interesting from the OED
jack (n.)
1391, jakke "a mechanical device," from the name Jack. Used by 14c. for "any common fellow" (1362), and thereafter extended to various appliances replacing servants (1572). Used generically of men (jack-of-all-trades, 1618), male animals (1623, see jackass, jackdaw, etc.), and male personifications (1522, e.g. Jack Frost). The jack in a pack of playing cards (1674) is in Ger. Bauer "peasant." Jackhammer is from 1930. Jack shit "nothing at all" is 1970s southern U.S. student slang. The jack of Union Jack is a nautical term for a small flag at the bow of a ship (1633).
By the way, I think the humans have always been able to talk.
Interesting theory though.
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In order to answer the plausibility question, more information is needed. For example, how prevalent are these phonemes in other languages? Basing such a universal theory on one language only (English) is a bit shaky.
Other than that, I would vote for the syllable "ma" as having near universal incidence. Interestingly, many words for "mother" begin with it.
"Jack" is a nickname for "John", a name so common it's used to "identify" unidentified males. I did find this one reference:
"Jack, for instance, was originally from the name Jakin, a corrupted form of Jenkin (John+kin)."
The implication is that the origin of the name Jack, at least, lies in the evolution of words meaning the relatives of John. Interesting also is that the name "John" is featured in several male sexually connoted words or phrases, i.e. "John Thomas", and the customer of a prostitute.
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I don't think it sounds all that plausible. I haven't seen any evidence for the idea. For it to have any credibility at all you would have to show first of all that it was a recurrent feature of all ancient languages as far back as we know.
I always assumed that it is simply connected somehow with the French name Jacques. Is Jack attested in English before the Norman conquest? Isn't it just the saxonised version of Jacques?
Last edited by The Pook; 04/29/08 11:22 PM.
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Hmm, as others have suggested, the name Jack is from the Hebrew יעקב yaʕakov 'Jacob' via French Jacques. Jack is pronounced /'ʤæk/ which involves quite a bit of articulation: e.g., the stop d involves the tip of the tongue stopping the flow of air in the vocal tract at the alveolar ridge right behind the front teeth. That stop is released, slightly, and a point of contact further back along the hard palate, is not completely closed off to allow the fricative /Ʒ/ to be articulated. Then comes the vowel /æ/ which involves constrictions at various places in the vocal tract. Finally comes the unreleased stop /k/, which stops the flow of air at the soft palate or velum. During roughly the first two-thirds of the words duration, the vocal cords are vibrating, but they stop with the onset of the velar stop /k/. The simplest sound to make is a broad vowel /ɑ/, which is pronounced by completely relaxing the vocal tract and vibrating the glottis. You can replicate this sound by taking a paper towel tube which will stand in for the vocal tract and blowing a raspberry into the end. Something like an /ɑ/ will be heard. (Of course, a paper towel tube is not really the same thing as the human vocal tract.)
[Fixed spelling error.]
Last edited by zmjezhd; 04/30/08 03:00 PM.
Ceci n'est pas un seing.
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I have a vested interest in this! :-) I was named after my father, whose name was John although he was called Jack. I found the following at link:
Gender: Masculine
Language: English
Etymology:
Jack is short for Jackin, an alternate form of Jankin, a English diminutive form of John, the English form of a Hebrew name, Yohanan, Johanan, or Yochanan. Originally it meant “The Lord Has Favored,” “Gift of God,” or “God is Good.
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Jack is sometimes thought of as an English form of Jacques, the French form of Jacob, the English form of a Hebrew name meaning “Supplanter.”
History:
Jack was a very common nickname for John (as well as, more rarely, for Jacob). It was so common that it became slang for “man” and is found in many common phrases from “Jack-of-all-trades” to “Jack-o-lantern.” Occasionally, Jack, used as a nickname for Joseph or George, as well as others. Reading about the Hebrew names--rather, their beginnings, I was reminded of the name Yahweh, for God. So...my name goes back that far?
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Reading about the Hebrew names--rather, their beginnings, I was reminded of the name Yahweh, for God. So...my name goes back that far? Yes the first syllable of both Jacob and Johanen comes from that of God's name, YHWH, as does any Hebrew based name transliterated as beginning with J in English, such as Joshua. James is also another form of Jacob, which is why the Scottish C18 rebels were known as Jacobites.
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another form of Jacob
The folk etymology of Jacob in Hebrew has naught to to do with the Tetragammon: it usually is glossed as 'the supplanter' on account of the story in the Old Testament where Jacob usurps his brother Esau's place.
Ceci n'est pas un seing.
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another form of Jacob
The folk etymology of Jacob in Hebrew has naught to to do with the Tetragammon: it usually is glossed as 'the supplanter' on account of the story in the Old Testament where Jacob usurps his brother Esau's place.
Yes you're right. I knew that. I just had a brain explosion.  It means literally one who grasps the heel, which figuratively means a deceiver. God changed his name to Israel which means he struggles with God.
Last edited by The Pook; 04/30/08 08:09 AM.
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In order to answer the plausibility question, more information is needed. For example, how prevalent are these phonemes in other languages? Basing such a universal theory on one language only (English) is a bit shaky.
The Jack-thing I think is typically English. We do have a Hannes (from Johannes), " Stomme Hannes"; it means a simpleton ; it also gave the word 'gehannes'(noun) meaning "clumsy dealings". For the English Jack I remember that Jack and Jill went up the hill, but I don't know if they ever came down again.
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