"Is jacquard related in any way?"

I don't think so. I think it's the name of the person who invented the way to make a loom weave that way. Believe it or not, the thingie he invented is the very early precursor of the computer punch-card.

Ooh! Squeal! I looked it up in AHD4, and that's exactly what it is. He invented it in 1801. How totally eponymous.