The jack fruit is a delicious fruit found throughout certain parts of Asia. But there is more to the fruit than just its taste. When considering the fruit’s English name, it is easy to become overwhelmed with questions like: “Who is Jack? And why does he have his own fruit?”

Surprisingly, “jack fruit” isn’t a person’s name at all. The fruit’s name originally comes from the southern Indian word chakka pazham, with India thought to be the fruit’s place of origin. Portuguese explorers who journeyed to this region went on to call it jack, which leads us to the current English name of jack fruit, according to National Public Radio(NPR). Unfortunately, no one called Jack has been proven to be involved at any point in this process.

There is another food, however, that was directly named after a person—the sandwich. In the 18th century, playing card games late into the night became fashionable in British high society. John Montagu, the 4th Earl of Sandwich, started the habit of ordering pieces of cold beef between two pieces of bread in order to get a late-night snack without having to leave the gaming table or use a knife and fork.

This newly-created snack kept hands clean so card players could continue on without dirtying their cards. The midnight snack quickly became popular among everyday people, and before long everyone was making their own sandwiches. That is how the sandwich was invented and got its name.

Away from the world of food, there are more examples of names inspired by people. Long johns, the warm trousers that keep us warm in winter, are said to have been named after the US boxer John L. Sullivan who took to wearing a similar type of garment in the ring (比赛).

There are many other interesting etymologies(词源) in the English language like these. So the next time you find an interesting name, why not explore its history too?

【小题1】What does the underlined word “overwhelmed” in the first paragraph probably mean?

A．Puzzled.

B．Excited.

C．Worried.

D．Annoyed.

【小题2】Where does the jack fruit’s name come from?

A．A place in India.	B．An Indian word.
C．A Portuguese explorer.	D．A discoverer of the fruit.

【小题3】What do we know about the sandwich according to the text?

A．It was named after a popular card game.

B．It was once eaten as a snack in the daytime.

C．It was first popular among the UK’s middle class.

D．It was created for the convenience of playing cards.

【小题4】What is the author’s purpose in writing this article?

A．To raise readers’ interest in etymology.	B．To introduce things named after people.
C．To stress the importance of learning history.	D．To explain the effects of people’s names on food.