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[Facts] Jennie
So I met a Jennie "without the ifer" who said that Jennie came before Jennifer and is different name. Is there any truth to this?
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I've been reading a letter from the year 1782 in which the writer, a London man, mentions his wife Jenny. I assume she was a Jane, since it was indeed a nn for Jane in those days, and Jenifer was not used outside Cornwall.
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It used to be a common nickname for Jane.
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Right, but she's just Jennie.
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Some given names were originally nicknames. JENNIE is an alternate spelling of JENNY. They are both probably Americanizations of JENNET, a variation of JANET.

This message was edited 11/22/2015, 3:25 PM

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I don't think Jenny/Jennie is an "Americanization." It is actually associated with Scotland, and it's not hard to find 17th and 18th c. examples of Scottish Jennys, such as Jenny Cameron and Jenny Geddes.
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JENNET was said to have been used in Scotland. Would they have made the leap JENNET > JENNY?
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Absolutely. The diminutive -IE ending was highly popular in Scotland in the 18th century. The poet Robert Burns, for instance (1759-1796) was called Rabbie among contemporaries, and Charles Stuart (a pretender to the throne of England, 1720-1788) was commonly called "Bonnie Prince Charlie." Janet/Jannet/Jennet was a popular name in Scotland, and these three forms seem to have been used almost interchangeably (for example, in this book, where all of them plus Jean appear repeatedly: http://tinyurl.com/pdelq2k.) There is no need for for the progression to necessarily be Janet > Jennet > Jennie. There is plenty of evidence that women named Jean and Janet were nicknamed Jennie as well. Jenny Cameron, for example, was also called Jeanie.

This message was edited 11/23/2015, 4:41 PM

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I think Jennie and Jenny have a history of being used as nicknames for Jane before Jennifer became popular.
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Yep. Jenny is a popular choice for maids in many of the historical mysteries I read. I love Jenny, hate Jennifer
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Yes. Jennie / Jenny was originally short for Jane.
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The entry for JENNY seems to support this. It is also consistent with why a female donkey would be called a jenny against the male jack[ass]. (Both derive from the John/Jane name trees.)

This message was edited 11/13/2015, 2:07 PM

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