Why Is The Bathroom Called The John
Sir john was an inventor both of bathroom accessories and controversial rhymes.
Why is the bathroom called the john. Thus a toilet is called a john to honor his contribution. Sir john harington today i found out why the toilet is sometimes called a john. From jake to john before they got their modern name toilets in england were called jakes or sometimes cousin johns no relation to sir harrington.
The modern toilet was designed by john harington. Why is a bathroom called a john. He was an important figure in the court of queen elizabeth i and he made the device for the queen.
John as slang for toilet probably derived from jakes or jacks medieval english terms for what was then a small smelly loo inside the house if you were very fancy and outside the house if you were slightly less so. We ll get the basic etymology out of the way. He primarily served in the courts of queen elizabeth i and her son james i.
Actually it is because the invention of the modern toilet is credited to john crapper of the uk. If you use bathroom as a synonym of loo it is called les toilettes fem. The invention of the flush toilet is credited to him thus the pet name john is given to toilets.
John along with an older term cousin john is probably related to the jakes which goes back to 16th century england and apparently is a shortened form of jake s house jake was a generic term for a yokel but that s about all i can offer in the way of etymological wisdom. John harrington of kelston was born on august 4 1591 and was a master of art a literary author and a courtier. Eventually the toilet became known as the john.
The term is thought to derive from sir john harrington or at the least to have been popularized due to harrington. Looking at the history of the bathroom the facts show that john harrington invented a device similar to the toilet in 1596. There is some dispute over whether or not he actually did invent it but that is the legend.
He is best known for poetry and other writings. His poetry would often get him exiled though he always came back and one piece is particularly important. And why it is sometimes referred to as the crapper.
