J
the letter is a late modification of Roman -i-, originally a scribal creation in continental Medieval Latin to distinguish small -i- in cursive writing from the strokes of other letters, especially in the final positions of words. But in English, -y- was used for this, and -j- was introduced c.1600-1640 to take up the consonantal sound that had evolved from -i- since Late Latin times. This usage first was attested in Spanish, where it was in place before 1600. English dictionaries continued to lump together words beginning in -i- and -j- until 19c., and -j- formerly was skipped when letters were used to express serial order.
"Sometime back, I noticed as I played around in the Greek New Testament, (I'm not a Greek scholar by the way) that the book of James was missing in the Greek. James was called "Jacobus" which is the Greek form of the Hebrew "Iacob" which should come into the English as "Jacob." In the Old Testament "Iacob" was translated "Jacob." The question arose in my mind. Why didn't the translators stay consistent and translate "Iacobus" as "Jacob." How did this word "James" get into the Bible?
At the time I started this fun little dig, I looked up the word "James" and discovered it came from a French word "Jamnes" which seemed to refer to the leg. The Biblical story of Jacob grabbing Esau's "heel" or "leg" may have been the connection to "Jamnes." My little French-English dictionary has an entry for "jambe" which means leg or shank.
The Oxford English dictionary seems to trace James through the Spanish "Jaime." James the Greater was the patron saint of Spain. In the Spanish, the closest meaning I could get to the meaning connected with Jacob was "jamon" which meant "ham, or leg of ham." (The "leg" part is what I am referring to, not the ham.)
Few of us realize the English language is primarily German which has been modified by Latin, Danish, and French.
In the thirteenth century, the Normans of France gained control of the English government. At that time, according to a wonderful little book I purchased entitled The Handbook of the English Tongue printed in 1862, "English boys were taught French in grammar schools and had to construe their Latin into French. Members of universities were ordered to converse in Latin or French. Proceedings of parliament and the minutes of the corporation of London were recorded in French. And of all the authorities who wrote in the three centuries following the Norman Conquest, nearly all use the French language" (Handbook of the English Tongue, Joseph Angus, 1862, Page 51) Most of the populace did not switch over to the degree the aristocracy did.
At this point in time, I haven't completely discovered when Jacob, the heel grabber, the one who trips people up through his natural wisdom, became James, referring to the time when his strength left him and he was forced to lean on Yahweh. I know that the Roman Catholic Vulgate has as the title for the book of James Beati Jacobi Apostoli. Clearly, here Jacob has not become James. I am not a Latin scholar, but if apostoli means "apostle," then the Vulgate seems to have added this to the Greek text because I don't think it is there. It is just amazing how church tradition gets added to Bibles, including Protestant ones. The Geneva Bible has Iames, the "J" not coming into English until later.
I still have to play with this some more. Unfortunately, I don't have in my library enough of the older English translations prior to the King James Version. I called one of the leading seminary libraries in the country prior to publishing this edition of Dew and they couldn't nail it down for me. Perhaps by the next Dew someone will find the time period where Jacob became James."
Ok im listening.
"Sometime back, I noticed as I played around in the Greek New Testament, (I'm not a Greek scholar by the way) that the book of James was missing in the Greek. James was called "Jacobus" which is the Greek form of the Hebrew "Iacob" which should come into the English as "Jacob." In the Old Testament "Iacob" was translated "Jacob." The question arose in my mind. Why didn't the translators stay consistent and translate "Iacobus" as "Jacob." How did this word "James" get into the Bible?
At the time I started this fun little dig, I looked up the word "James" and discovered it came from a French word "Jamnes" which seemed to refer to the leg. The Biblical story of Jacob grabbing Esau's "heel" or "leg" may have been the connection to "Jamnes." My little French-English dictionary has an entry for "jambe" which means leg or shank.
The Oxford English dictionary seems to trace James through the Spanish "Jaime." James the Greater was the patron saint of Spain. In the Spanish, the closest meaning I could get to the meaning connected with Jacob was "jamon" which meant "ham, or leg of ham." (The "leg" part is what I am referring to, not the ham.)
Few of us realize the English language is primarily German which has been modified by Latin, Danish, and French.
In the thirteenth century, the Normans of France gained control of the English government. At that time, according to a wonderful little book I purchased entitled The Handbook of the English Tongue printed in 1862, "English boys were taught French in grammar schools and had to construe their Latin into French. Members of universities were ordered to converse in Latin or French. Proceedings of parliament and the minutes of the corporation of London were recorded in French. And of all the authorities who wrote in the three centuries following the Norman Conquest, nearly all use the French language" (Handbook of the English Tongue, Joseph Angus, 1862, Page 51) Most of the populace did not switch over to the degree the aristocracy did.
At this point in time, I haven't completely discovered when Jacob, the heel grabber, the one who trips people up through his natural wisdom, became James, referring to the time when his strength left him and he was forced to lean on Yahweh. I know that the Roman Catholic Vulgate has as the title for the book of James Beati Jacobi Apostoli. Clearly, here Jacob has not become James. I am not a Latin scholar, but if apostoli means "apostle," then the Vulgate seems to have added this to the Greek text because I don't think it is there. It is just amazing how church tradition gets added to Bibles, including Protestant ones. The Geneva Bible has Iames, the "J" not coming into English until later.
I still have to play with this some more. Unfortunately, I don't have in my library enough of the older English translations prior to the King James Version. I called one of the leading seminary libraries in the country prior to publishing this edition of Dew and they couldn't nail it down for me. Perhaps by the next Dew someone will find the time period where Jacob became James."
Ok im listening.
