Jerusalem. Expresses the Hebrew for “habitation of peace.”
Jerusalem Artichoke. A corruption of “Girasole Artichoke,” from the resemblance of the leaf and stem of this flower to the “Girasole,” or sunflower.
Jerusalem Chamber. This apartment of Westminster Abbey, in which Henry IV. died, received its name from the pictures of the Holy Land, in connection with the Crusades, that adorned its walls.
Jesuits. The members of a powerful missionary order styled “The Society of Jesus” which was founded in 1534 by Ignatius Loyola, on a military basis, having himself been a soldier.
Jesuits’ Bark. Another name for the Peruvian or Cinchona Bark, because discovered by the Jesuit missionaries in Peru.
Jewin Street. The ancient burying ground of the Jews while they were permitted to reside within the city walls--viz. in the Old Jewry. The suffix in is a corrupt form of the Anglo-Saxon en, expressing the plural, as in Clerken or clerks’ well.
Jewry Street. All that remains of the old name given collectively to the Jewish quarter of London after this oppressed race had been driven eastward of the city proper. This street was the Jews’ later burial ground. The suffix ry denotes a place or district.
Jews’ Harp. A corruption of “Jaws’ Harp,” because it is held between the teeth.
Jezebel. A daring, vicious woman, so called after the wife of Ahab, King of Israel.
Jig. From the French gigue, a lively dance, and the Italian giga, a romp.