Did Shakespeare Invent Jessica?

Moniker: The Histories and Mysteries of Names

Apr 25 2022 • 14 mins

Ah the immortal Bard.  We can credit Shakespeare with many things: shaping the English language, bringing theatre to the common man, giving High School drama departments something to perform that's in the public domain.

But can we credit Shakespeare for names like Jessica?

We'll look at the complex (and racist) relationship between Britain and Judaism as we unravel the mystery behind  Shakespeare's Semitic ingenue.

Sources:

Articles:
Barkey, K., & Katznelson, I. (2011). States, regimes, and decisions: why Jews were expelled from Medieval England and France. Theory and Society, 40(5), 475–503. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11186-011-9150-8

Halio, J. L., & Gross, J. (1993). Shylock: Four Hundred Years in the Life of a Legend. Shakespeare Quarterly, 44(3), 364. https://doi.org/10.2307/2871425


Books:
Gross, K. (2006). Shylock Is Shakespeare (Annotated ed.). University of Chicago Press.

Shapiro, J. (2016). Shakespeare and the Jews (twentieth anniversary edition). Columbia University Press.

Websites:
CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: Giangiorgio Trissino (newadvent.org)

www.etymologyonline.com

Meet The Man Responsible For The Letter "J" - Dictionary.com


Music:

Market by PeriTune | http://peritune.com

Music promoted by https://www.free-stock-music.com

Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0


Psalm 23 Toyohiko Santoh
https://archive.org/details/cd_lute-music-from-the-netherlands_toyohiko-satoh



Bransle Gay Claude Gervais
https://archive.org/details/lp_french-dances-of-the-renaissance-and-other_le-groupe-des-instruments-anciens-de-paris_0






You Might Like

History Daily
History Daily
Airship | Noiser | Wondery
Lore
Lore
Aaron Mahnke
Dark History
Dark History
Audioboom Studios
History That Doesn't Suck
History That Doesn't Suck
Prof. Greg Jackson
The Ancients
The Ancients
History Hit
The Rest Is History
The Rest Is History
Goalhanger Podcasts
Noble Blood
Noble Blood
iHeartPodcasts and Grim & Mild
Ridiculous History
Ridiculous History
iHeartPodcasts
Aaron Mahnke's Cabinet of Curiosities
Aaron Mahnke's Cabinet of Curiosities
iHeartPodcasts and Grim & Mild
Rachel Maddow Presents: Ultra
Rachel Maddow Presents: Ultra
Rachel Maddow, MSNBC
Tides of History
Tides of History
Wondery / Patrick Wyman
You're Wrong About
You're Wrong About
Sarah Marshall
Gone Medieval
Gone Medieval
History Hit