The jackfruit (菠萝蜜) is a delicious fruit in Asia. When thinking about the fruit's English name, you may ask, "Who is Jack? Why does he have his fruit?"
Jackfruit isn't a person's name at all. The fruit's name first comes from the Indian word "Chakka Pazham". Later, Portuguese (葡萄牙) travelers came to India and called it "Jaca". This brings us to its English name of jackfruit, said NPR.
There is another food, however, named after a person—the sandwich. In the 1900s, playing card games late into the night became popular in Britain. John Montagu, the 4th Earl of Sandwich, started to eat pieces of cold beef between two pieces of bread. This was a late-night meal without leaving the gaming table.
There are more names named after people. Long Johns are warm trousers that keep us warm in winter. It's said that they were named after the US boxer John L. Sullivan who liked wearing a similar kind of clothing in the games.
So, the next time you find an interesting name in the English language, why not go into its history?
