How "Iesus" became "Jesus"

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ

The English alphabet was invented in spurts and stages as different civilisations borrowed ideas about writing from their peers.  The practical effect of this is that some letters are older or younger than others, the youngest of them being the letter “J”, which did not appear until some time in the Middle Ages.

The letter “J” was originally a modified “I”.  These long “I”, J-looking things would have still been pronounced as “I” for a while, but at some point, in the Middle Ages, they took on that “J” sound we are familiar with.  Once that process began, all sorts of “I” words were given the new, trendy “J” sound for no real reason.  The most notable of these was the name of Jesus (a.s.), who was previously known to English speakers as “Iesus”, and “Yeshua” way before that.  This was more in line with the Ancient Hebrew and Aramaic.  And that is how “Iesus” became “Jesus”.


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