2273: jewel Mar 7, 2021

The word 'jewel' being associated exclusively with precious stones and other gems only began in the 14th century. The word's origins are not certain, but it is generally associated either with the same root as 'joy', or as 'joke'; either way originally having the meaning of something to cause happiness. Along the first line, the Latin gaudium (joy) is the root of the French 'joie' which these days has a rather carefree and innocent sense, but historically related to physical pleasures and sometimes materialism. Alternatively, this word might be related to the word 'joke', from the Latin 'iocus' which also had a more general sense historically. Either way, the word has surely diverged in its meaning over time.