Jessica (originally Iessica, also Jesica, Jesika, Jessicah, Jessika, or Jessikah) is a female given name of English origin.
The oldest written record of the name with its current spelling is found as the name of the Shakespearean character Jessica, from the play The Merchant of Venice. The name may have been an anglicisation of the biblical Iscah (from Hebrew: יִסְכָּה, romanized: yiskā́), the name of a daughter of Haran briefly mentioned in the Book of Genesis. Iscah was rendered as "Iesca" (Jeska) in the Matthew Bible version available in Shakespeare's day. Alternately, Shakespeare might have derived the name from a feminine version of the name Jesse, or from jess, a thin leather strap used to tether a bird such as a falcon in falconry.
"Jessica" was the first- or second-most popular female baby name in the United States from 1981 to 1998 before falling out of the Top 20 in 2004. It also rose to No. 1 in England and Wales in 2005, dropping to No. 3 in 2006. Common nicknames of the name Jessica include "Jess", "Jessi" and "Jessie".
Contents
People with the middle name
Sarah Jessica Parker (born 1965), American actress, model, singer, and producer
Fictional characters
Jessica Andrews, character in The Karate Kid Part III
Jessica (The Merchant of Venice), in William Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice
Jessica Cruz (Green Lantern), a superhero in DC Comics universe
Jessica Darling, in a novel series by Megan McCafferty
Jessica Day, in the sitcom New Girl
Jessica Drew (Spider-Woman), a superhero in Marvel Comics
Jessica Edwards, in the manga series and anime Legend of the Galactic Heroes
Jessica Fletcher, in the American television mystery series Murder, She Wrote
Jessica Hamby, in the HBO series True Blood
Jessica Huang, one of the leading characters in ABC comedy Fresh Off the Boat
Jessica Jones, a superhero in the Marvel Comics Universe
Jessica Lovejoy, in the American television comedy series The Simpsons
Jessica Moore, in the TV series Supernatural
Jessica Olson, from the 2010 Disney Channel Original film Starstruck
Jessica Pearson, in the NBC drama series Suits
Jessica Jane "Jessie" Pride, in the Toy Story animated film franchise
Jessica Rabbit, in the Who Framed Roger Rabbit series
Jessica Miriam Reeves, in the 2002 film Queen of the Damned
Jessica Ruiz, in the television series The Electric Company
Jessica Sanders, in the NBC science fiction drama Heroes
Jessica Stanley, in the Twilight Saga written by Stephenie Meyer
Jessica Stiehl, fictional character in the German soap opera Verbotene Liebe (Forbidden Love)
Jessica Wakefield, in the Sweet Valley High and Sweet Valley Twins novels
Jessica Warren, in the television series Bones
Lady Jessica, in the Dune science fiction universe
Jessica the Jazz Fairy, in the Rainbow Magic novel series
Red Jessica, in the preschool animated series Jake and the Never Land Pirates