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Maybe it’s because I’m not American but if you introduce yourself as Jack and then your legal name is John I would think that unusual.
by stephenr 7y ago
Maybe it’s because I’m not American but if you introduce yourself as Jack and then your legal name is John I would think that unusual.
- grzm 7y agoJack is indeed a common nickname for John.
- retsibsi 7y agoAnd not just in America. It's common in Australia too, and apparently it dates back a long way in England. Jack has become a lot more common as an actual given name over the past few decades, though.
- maxlybbert 7y agoI thought it was a British thing. As an American, I’ve never met a John going by Jack (at least, I don’t think I have). On the other hand, C.S. Lewis apparently went by Jack, which isn’t a common nickname for Clive or Staples. But people generally don’t argue over nicknames. And they may not even realize a nickname actually is a nickname; it’s not common for people to ask for your legal ID, after all.
- ncmncm 7y agoPeople still talk about Jack Kennedy, the assassinated US president. Apparently Jack is a generic name, too, for any small boy. So inns would employ a boot-Jack to help guests get their boots off, later supplanted by a gadget.
- lazyasciiart 7y agoIt’s pretty American - I know a boy named John after his father John, who has been called Jack all his life.