Jessyka

Meaning & origin

Jessyka is a modern respelling of Jessica, a name that first appeared in Shakespeare's *The Merchant of Venice*. The variation Jessyka first appeared in U.S. records in 1977, and its peak year of usage was 1993, when it saw modest popularity among parents seeking a distinctive spelling. Since then, its use has declined and it has not ranked in the top 1000 nationally. The name reflects the late 20th-century trend of creating personalized spellings of established names. Although Jessyka's trajectory has remained stable at low usage, it continues to be chosen for its familiar sound and unique orthography. No states had particularly high concentrations of this spelling.

Jessyka is a respelling of Jessica, a name first used by William Shakespeare in his play *The Merchant of Venice* (c. 1596). Shakespeare likely adapted the biblical name Iscah (Hebrew יִסְכָּה), which appears in Genesis as a niece of Abraham. The name gained popularity in the late 20th century, with the Jessica variant reaching peak usage in the 1980s. The spelling Jessyka emerged as a modern variation, first recorded in 1977, and saw its peak usage in 1993.