Jewel is an English given name often given in reference to the English vocabulary word meaning gemstone. The word jewel comes from the Old French word jouel, meaning toy or delight, and was ultimately derived from the Latin term jocus. The name might have originated as an affectionate pet name or been inspired by other gemstone names also in fashion in the Anglosphere during the 19th century.[1] The name is also sometimes a transferred use of the surname Jewel or Jewell, which comes from the Breton surname Judicaël. Some parents might have named their children after John Jewel, a 16th-century Bishop of Salisbury.[2]
Usage
Jewel was among the top 1,000 most popular names for girls in the United States between 1880 and 1968 and again between 1997 and 2019. It was at the height of its popularity between 1898 and 1930, when it was among the top 250 names for American girls. It peaked in 1904, when it was ranked in 198th position on the popularity chart. The name also ranked among the top 1,000 names for American boys at different times between 1880 and 1952.[3]
Women
Jewel Amoah, South African feminist and human rights scholar and activist
Jewel Blanch (born 1958), Australian country singer-songwriter
Jewel H. Bronaugh, American government official who served as the 14th Deputy Secretary of Agriculture of the United States
Jewel Plummer Cobb (1924–2017), American biologist, cancer researcher, professor, dean, and academic administrator
Jewel Coburn (née Blanch) (born 1958), Australian music publisher, singer and former actress
Jewel De'Nyle, American pornographic actress and director
Jewel Ens (1889–1950), American baseball player, manager, and coach
Jewel Ponferada (born 1988), Filipino professional basketball player
Jewel Raja (born 1990), Indian professional footballer
Jewel Rana (born 1995), Bangladeshi professional footballer
Notes
^ Hanks, Patrick; Hardcastle, Kate; Hodges, Flavia (2006). Oxford Dictionary of First Names. Oxford University Press. p. 143. ISBN0-19-861060-2.
^ Campbell, Mike. "Jewel". behindthename.com. Behind the Name. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
^"Most Popular Names". ssa.gov. United States Social Security Administration. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
Name list
This page or section lists people that share the same given name. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change that link to point directly to the intended article.