Another name for Jack

Pepper Jay · May 14, 2009

Oh,oh,oh… I love the name Jack! I’d love to use it for my character who is a little bit naughty with a wink in his eye. I know, you’ve seen him many times before.

So any ideas for a name with the feeling of Jack?

Also there was a thread of great unused names. I'm looking for some fresh last ones.

Thanks!
Pepper

Wayne K · May 14, 2009

Jackie was popular when I was young, but you mostly see women use it now.

Jan is another male name that happened to.

CaroGirl · May 14, 2009

Horner is a great last name. And has the advantage of rhyming with the word corner.

CACTUSWENDY · May 14, 2009

Not to derail this....but I never understood why Jack was a nickname for someone named John. It makes no sense to me. (Like most of the zillion other things around.....)

Red_Dahlia · May 14, 2009

CACTUSWENDY said:
Not to derail this....but I never understood why Jack was a nickname for someone named John. It makes no sense to me. (Like most of the zillion other things around.....)

Huh, that's interesting. I always assumed it was a nickname for Jacob.

Scribhneoir · May 14, 2009

CACTUSWENDY said:
Not to derail this....but I never understood why Jack was a nickname for someone named John. It makes no sense to me. (Like most of the zillion other things around.....)

I've never understood that, either. My father's name was Jack and he spent his whole life correcting people who assumed his real name was John.

Sarita · May 14, 2009

Red_Dahlia said:
Huh, that's interesting. I always assumed it was a nickname for Jacob.

Isn't Jake the nick for Jacob?

I think John/Jack has something to do with Germanic roots, but I could be WAY off there.

I like the name Clyde for a mischief maker, only because I had a sneaky pup named Clyde and you know, Bonnie &...

gothicangel · May 14, 2009

Are you sure it's John; I think it could be James.

Know how you feel my main character is Jack and he lives up to the name! In my second book I have a character called Blake.

Kitty Pryde · May 14, 2009

Jack is definitely the diminutive of John. On the other hand, it can also be the diminutive of Jacob. And some people have 'Jack' on their birth certificate.

Names like Jack? Hmm...

Jules (french or english pronunciation)
Nick
Ollie
Mikey
Joey
Zack
Tal (it's hebrew)
Tao (yes, I know a real Tao, pronounces it like Tay-oh)

PS Wikipedia says...

"Jack" originated from the Middle English jakke (1350–1400). Jakke was used in addressing any male, especially one considered a social inferior, and was extended to anything male, including designation a variety of inanimate objects. Variants included Jakken and Jankin with the addition of the diminutive suffix "-kin" (similar to the German "-chen") to the name "Jan," (John) which was itself a contracted version of the name "Jehan." One of names formed, "Jankin," then became "Jackin", and eventually "Jack". The process of back-formation has possibly led many to believe that the name is related to the French "Jacques," owing to phonological similarities, but this seems to be coincidence. Although it is possible and may appear at first glance to be derived from the French Jacques—which is cognate with the names James and Jacob—native speakers of English have historically associated the name "Jack" with John and only very rarely with "Jacob" (in which case the usual shortened form Jake is preferred). This would make it a variant of names like "Hans" or "Seán".

Stew21 · May 14, 2009

Jack is most definitely a nick for John.

http://searchwarp.com/swa465873-The-Origins-Of-Nicknames-Especially-John.htm

My son is John (named after my father) and we call him Jack.

Pepper · May 14, 2009

Jack = John. So perhaps try "Johnny" on for size? *shrugs*

blacbird · May 14, 2009

CaroGirl said:
Horner is a great last name. And has the advantage of rhyming with the word corner.

You do realize that there's an actual famous dinosaur paleontologist from the western U.S. named Jack Horner?

caw

blacbird · May 14, 2009

A Spanish version, another derivation from "John" is Joaquin. Or Joachim in the German mode, or Giacomo in Italian.

caw

KTC · May 14, 2009

CaroGirl said:
Horner is a great last name. And has the advantage of rhyming with the word corner.

YOU DON'T SAY! Hey. We should make a rhyme about this!!!

Little Jack Horner sitting on the corner
With no shoes and clothes
This aint funny, but he took his money
And sniffed it up his nose

KTC · May 14, 2009

Sarita said:
Isn't Jake the nick for Jacob?

I think John/Jack has something to do with Germanic roots, but I could be WAY off there.

I like the name Clyde for a mischief maker, only because I had a sneaky pup named Clyde and you know, Bonnie &...

My son's name is Jacob. We call him Jay, Jake, Jack and JayJay. Mostly Jack or Jacob.

Wayne K · May 14, 2009

Jack is also short for Jackson.

CaroGirl · May 15, 2009

blacbird said:
You do realize that there's an actual famous dinosaur paleontologist from the western U.S. named Jack Horner?

caw

I didn't realize that, no. That's quite a handle to go through life with, as Mary Contrary and Jack Spratt could tell you.

KTC · May 15, 2009

CaroGirl said:
I didn't realize that, no. That's quite a handle to go through life with, as Mary Contrary and Jack Spratt could tell you.

How do you think Humpty Dumpty feels! Always being called a good egg and what not!

gothicangel · May 15, 2009

Pepper said:
Jack = John. So perhaps try "Johnny" on for size? *shrugs*

Do you know 'Johnny' is British slang for a condom?

Pepper · May 15, 2009

Pepper said:
Jack = John. So perhaps try "Johnny" on for size? *shrugs*

gothicangel said:
Do you know 'Johnny' is British slang for a condom?

ROFL. You serious?? Then that leaves me with one great big pun in that post! *blush*

IceCreamEmpress · May 15, 2009

gothicangel said:
Do you know 'Johnny' is British slang for a condom?

And US colloquial for a backless hospital gown.

Shamisen · May 15, 2009

LMAO, gothicangel you beat me to it!

JustJess · May 16, 2009

My youngest is Jackson-but we call him Jack. ( I must admit I was drawn to the name Jack because of all the wonderful characters/spunky heroes named Jack)

Hmmm names like Jack...
Nick
Jake
Luke
(maybe it's a "k" thing....)

Barrett · May 16, 2009

I was always under the impression that Jack became another version of John due to the French for John, Jacque.

This might help...
"The name Jack comes from the name John or the name Jacques. The name John is from the Bible and it means 'the Lord is gracious'. Alternatively, Jacques is the French name coming from the Hebrew Jacob. Jacob means 'he who supplants'. Either one of these routes to get to the name Jack is possible and both are probable. The name Jack has a long history of usage in English."

I spotted that at http://wiki.name.com/en/Jack

Swordswoman · May 17, 2009

Pepper Jay said:
Oh,oh,oh… I love the name Jack! I’d love to use it for my character who is a little bit naughty with a wink in his eye. I know, you’ve seen him many times before.

Hi, Pepper, and welcome to AW. :welcome:

I have to ask:

If you already know we've 'seen him many times before' - er...why are you writing him?
If you already know 'Jack' is a cliched name for such a character - er... why are you looking to follow that cliche? Call him John, Jake, Blake, whatever, whatever, you're still chasing the cliche, right?

Why?

I don't know, maybe you're writing in a genre where that kind of button-mould character is de rigeur. But if you're not, why not use the fact your cliche alarm is already sounding without any help from us, and see where it's coming from?

Call him Marion (John Wayne, anyone?) Call him Sue (a boy called...). Call him Humbert Hum. Call him the furthest thing in the world you can think of from Jack, work out the effect it's going to have on him and maybe you have the start of a real character.

And what's behind that twinkle in the eye? The courage of despair (why? what happened to him to create that?); the desperate need to pretend he's a cartoon girlie heroine called Jack (why? what happened to him when he was twelve to make him need this affirmation?);the need to pretend he's an all-right guy (why? is he gay? reads poetry? had a daddy who told him to 'be a man' when he was beating him?)....

I don't mean to be harsh here, because we've all had to go through this one at some stage, but the best advice I can give is this:
Worry about the label when you've found something worth labelling. Not before.

Good luck!

Louise

Another name for Jack

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i luv you giant bear statue

I IS PRANCING

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Resilient and kind