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ArchivesMy column on Jessica
Here is the link to my column on the name Jessica:
https://omaha.com/life-entertainment/local/cleveland-evans-shakespeare-is-the-author-of-the-name-jessica/article_a4c40d54-e712-11ee-bad4-1b98c7a4e7e5.html
There wasn't enough space to give Grant Smith's full argument about his belief that Jessica was created from the falconry term "jess". He believes that in the play Shylock refers in a punning way to his servant Launcelot (who also runs away) as a "haggard", which was a term for a wild or unmanageable hawk. Smith notes that hunting falcons or hawks were ususually female, and says the -ica ending of Jessica is the same Latin suffix found in words like Judaica and erotica, indicating "collective information about a subject", so that Jessica's name would mean "information about jesses" to someone who knew Latin grammar -- as Shakespeare probably did, as part of normal schooling in England in his day was learning Latin and having drills in its grammar.
Personally I am not convinced Shakespeare was ONLY thinking about jesses when he created the name. However, it is certainly true that his audience would have been much more familiar with falconry and with the word "jess" than modern audiences are, and surely he would have known many of the viewers of the play in his day would make an association between the name Jessica and the word "jesses". I think it is part of Shakespeare's brilliance that he was able to come up with a name for the character with combines Jewish, Italian, and falconry associations to make a completely appropriate name for her.
And I was certainly surprised that the first Jessicas who were born in the USA in the early 19th century were Jewish. I suppose the fact that Shylock and Jessica were some of the very few Jewish characters educated people would have known at the time overcame the fact that Shakespeare's Jessica converts to Christianity to run off with her lover.
https://omaha.com/life-entertainment/local/cleveland-evans-shakespeare-is-the-author-of-the-name-jessica/article_a4c40d54-e712-11ee-bad4-1b98c7a4e7e5.html
There wasn't enough space to give Grant Smith's full argument about his belief that Jessica was created from the falconry term "jess". He believes that in the play Shylock refers in a punning way to his servant Launcelot (who also runs away) as a "haggard", which was a term for a wild or unmanageable hawk. Smith notes that hunting falcons or hawks were ususually female, and says the -ica ending of Jessica is the same Latin suffix found in words like Judaica and erotica, indicating "collective information about a subject", so that Jessica's name would mean "information about jesses" to someone who knew Latin grammar -- as Shakespeare probably did, as part of normal schooling in England in his day was learning Latin and having drills in its grammar.
Personally I am not convinced Shakespeare was ONLY thinking about jesses when he created the name. However, it is certainly true that his audience would have been much more familiar with falconry and with the word "jess" than modern audiences are, and surely he would have known many of the viewers of the play in his day would make an association between the name Jessica and the word "jesses". I think it is part of Shakespeare's brilliance that he was able to come up with a name for the character with combines Jewish, Italian, and falconry associations to make a completely appropriate name for her.
And I was certainly surprised that the first Jessicas who were born in the USA in the early 19th century were Jewish. I suppose the fact that Shylock and Jessica were some of the very few Jewish characters educated people would have known at the time overcame the fact that Shakespeare's Jessica converts to Christianity to run off with her lover.
This message was edited 3/25/2024, 8:10 AM
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