2877: What the H: Jesus H Christ Nov 6, 2024

The phrase Jesus H Christ is a curious one at first glance. First of all, Christ is not a surname but rather a moniker equivalent to Messiah, from Greek, though in a sense many surnames began as titles or descriptions, like Smith or Carpenter. The bigger problem is a matter of what the H would stand for. 

It would be incorrect to assume that this is a middle name, which was not the practice until quite recently anywhere. Rather, it most likely comes from the Latin Jesus Homo Salvator meaning “Jesus, savior of man(kind)”.