Jessica (given name)

For other uses, see Jessica (disambiguation).

Jessica
Shylock and Jessica by Maurycy Gottlieb. The first use of the name Jessica is found in William Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice.
Gender	Female
Origin
Word/Name	English derived from Hebrew
Meaning	foresighted, God's Grace, or wealthy

Jessica (sometimes spelled Jesica ^[1]) is a female given name.

The oldest written record of the name with its current spelling is found as the name of a character in Shakespeare's play The Merchant of Venice, where it belongs to the daughter of Shylock. The name may have been an Anglicisation of the Biblical Iskah (from the Hebrew: יִסְכָּה : yiskāh), the name of a daughter of Haran briefly mentioned in the Book of Genesis in the Bible. Iskah was rendered "Jeska" in English Bibles available in Shakespeare's day.^[2]

The original Hebrew name Yiskāh (יִסְכָּה), means "foresight", or being able to see the potential in the future. The Hebrew root sakhah (ס.כ.ה) means "to see," so the name Yiskah, with the added yod, implies foresight or clairvoyance. Yiskah is the niece of Abraham.

"Jessica" was the most popular female baby name throughout the 1980s^[3] and 1990s^[4] in the United States, with popularity waning starting in 1998 through the early 2000s and falling out of the Top 20 by 2004.^[5] It also rose to # 1 in England and Wales in 2005, dropping to # 3 in 2006.^[6] Common abbreviations of the name Jessica include "Jess" and "Jessie."

People

• Jessica Abel (born 1969), American comic book writer and artist
• Jessica Alba (born 1981), American television and film actress
• Jessica Biel (born 1982), American actress and former model
• Jessica Burciaga (born 1983), American model
• Jessica Caban (born 1982), American model, dancer and actress
• Jessica Capshaw (born 1976), American actress
• Jessica DiCicco (born 1980), American actress
• Jessica Drake (born 1974), American pornographic actress
• Jessica Dubroff (1988–1996), American pilot trainee
• Jessica Fodera (Jessicka, born 1975), American musician and artist, singer of Scarling. and Formerly of Jack Off Jill
• Jessica Gomes (born 1985), Australian model
• Jessica Harp (born 1982), American country singer-songwriter and guitarist
• Jessica Honor Carleton (born 1983), American entertainer and one of the stars in Green Screen Adventures
• Jessica Hynes (born 1972), British actress, writer and comedienne
• Jessica Jaymes (born 1979), Drake's American compatriot and pornographic actress
• Jessica Jung (born 1989), US-born Korean pop singer, member of Girls' Generation
• Jessica Lange (born 1949), American actress
• Jessica Lee Rose (born 1987), American actress
• Jessica Lowndes (born 1988), Canadian actress and singer-songwriter
• Jessica Martin (actor and comedian) (born 1962), British actor and comedian
• Jessica Mauboy (born 1989), Australian singer
• Jessica McClure (born 1986), known as "Baby Jessica" when rescued from a well as a toddler
• Jessica Mitford (1917–1996), Anglo-American writer
• Jessica Moore (basketball) (born 1982), American basketball player in WNBA for the Indiana Fever
• Jessica Moore (tennis) (born 1990), Australian tennis player
• Jessica Origliasso (born 1984), Australian musician, member of The Veronicas
• Jessica Paré (born 1982), Canadian actress
• Jessica Savitch (1947–1983), American TV News Reporter
• Jessica Serfaty (born 1990), American model
• Jessica Simpson (born 1980), American pop singer and actress
• Jessica Stam (born 1986), Canadian model
• Jessica Steinhauser (known as Asia Carrera, born 1973), Lynn's American compatriot and former pornographic actress
• Jessica Stroup (born 1986), American actress and model
• Jessica Sutta (born 1982), American dancer and singer, member of Pussycat Dolls
• Jessica Szohr (born 1985), American actress
• Jessica Tandy (1909–1994), British-American actress
• Jessica Taylor (born 1980), English singer, former member of Liberty X
• Jessica Walter (born 1941), USA Actress

Name variations and nicknames

Jes, Jess, Jessi, ssica, Jessa, Jessie, Jessy, Jeska, Jessika, Jessicka, Jessyka, Yessika, Yesika, Jazz, Jase. Also in many Asian countries Jessica is spelled Jassica.

• Catalan: Jèssica
• Chinese: 哲斯卡 （je1 si1 ka3）
• Frisian: Jesca
• Hebrew: Yiskah (יִסְכָּה)
• Hungarian: Dzseszika
• Italian: Gessica
• Japanese: Jeshika (Hiragana: じぇしか, Katakana: ジェシカ)
• Lithuania: Džesika
• Polish: Dżesika, Jesica
• Russian: Джессика
• Spanish: Yésica, Jésica

Usage in Scotland

The Scottish variant of Jessie is Seasaidh/Teasaidh, (respectively pronounced "SHAY-cee" and "CHEH-cee"). It is important to note, however, that in Scotland the name Jessie is not related to Jessica. Instead, it is considered a pet form of the name Jean (from John), expressed in Gaelic variant as the names Seana (Shawna) or Sìne (Sheena). Related feminine names taken from John are Jane/Joan (Sìne), Janie (Sìneag), and Janet/Janice (Seònaid); all are considered equated.

An additional nickname for Jessie, heard in Scotland, is Jinty. This may or may not be the case in Ireland or Northern Ireland.

Fictional characters

• Jessica Fletcher in the American television mystery series Murder, She Wrote
• Jessica Buchanan in the American soap opera One Life to Live
• Jessi in the American drama television series Kyle XY
• Jessica Rabbit in the Roger Rabbit film-and-novel franchise.
• Lady Jessica in the Sci-fi novels, mini-series and movies of Dune (franchise)

See also

• All pages beginning with "Jessica"
• Jessie
• Jess
• Baby Jessica case
• Jessi

Notes

1. ^ http://www.thinkbabynames.com/meaning/0/Jesica
2. ^ Hanks, P. & Hodges, F. A Dictionary of First Names. (1990). Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-211651-7.
3. ^ Most Popular 1000 Names of the 1980s. Social Security Administration (SSA), United States. Retrieved February 22, 2007.
4. ^ Most Popular 1000 Names of the 1990s. Social Security Administration (SSA), United States. Retrieved February 22, 2007.
5. ^ http://www.ssa.gov/cgi-bin/popularnames.cgi
6. ^ Top 100 names for baby girls in England and Wales. Office for National Statistics (ONS), United Kingdom. Retrieved February 22, 2007.

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