From jack (“common man or sailor”) + tar (“tarpaulin”), used for a common sailor dating back to the 1600s.
Formed from jack ‘common man or sailor’ + tar ‘tarpaulin’
Middle Dutch Jan ‘John’
Middle Dutch Janke
Anglo-Norman Jakke
Middle English Jakke
English Jack
English jack
Proto-Indo-European *dór
Proto-Germanic *terwą
Proto-West Germanic *teru ‘tar, resin’
Old English teoru ‘tar, resin’
Middle English ter ‘Tar or a similar substance’
English tar
Today it means
noun A sailor; especially, one in the Royal Navy.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / jacktar
Shirt and support for this word