Jensen \'yen-son\, Georg (b. Aug. 31, 1866, Raadvad, Den.—d. Oct. 2, 1935, Copenhagen) Danish silversmith and designer. At age 14 he was apprenticed to a goldsmith, and in 1904 he opened his own workshop in Copenhagen. Exhibiting his silverware and jewelry at major foreign exhi¬ bitions, he quickly built a reputation as an outstanding and original sil¬ versmith. He was the first to realize a profit from the manufacture of modern silverware and among the first to fashion steel into handsome, serviceable cutlery. By 1935 his firm had stores all over the world and carried more than 3,000 patterns. After his death the business was con¬ tinued by his son, Spren Georg Jensen (b. 1917).
Jensen \'yen-son\, Johannes V(ilhelm) (b. Jan. 20, 1873, Farsp, Den.—d. Nov. 25, 1950, Copenhagen) Danish novelist, poet, and essay¬ ist. He initially studied medicine but later turned to writing. He first made an impression as a writer of tales, including the more than 100 published under the recurring title Myths. His early writings also include a histori¬ cal trilogy. The Fall of the King (1900-01), about Christian II of Denmark. His best-known work is The Long Journey (1908-22), a series of six nov¬ els that chronicles humanity’s rise from primitive times to the time of Christopher Columbus’s arrival in the Americas. He received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1944.
Jephtha \'jef-tho\ One of the judges in ancient Israel. According to the Book of Judges, he was the son of a Gileadite and a prostitute. After being cast out by his father’s legitimate sons, he joined a band of brigands. When the Gileadites were oppressed by an Ammonite army, they asked Jephtha to aid them. He led them to victory, having first promised God a sacrifice of whatever he first saw when he left his house; his first sight happened to be his daughter. His significance in the Book of Judges is as an exem¬ plar of Israel’s fidelity to God.
Jeremiah (b. probably after 650, Anathoth, Judah—d. c. 570 bc, Egypt) Hebrew prophet and reformer, author of the book of Jeremiah. Born into a priestly family in a village near Jerusalem, he began to preach c. 627 bc, charging his fellow citizens with injustice and false worship and call¬ ing on them to reform. He accurately predicted the destruction of Judah by Babylonia. After Jerusalem fell in 586 and much of its population was carried into exile, he remained behind under the protection of its new governor. When the governor was assassinated, Jeremiah was taken to
1749, Berkeley, Gloucestershire,
Edward Jenner, detail of an oil painting by James Northcote, 1803; in the National Portrait Gallery, London.
COURTESY OF THE NATIONAL PORTRAIT GALLERY,
LONDON
© 2006 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.
Jericho ► Jespersen I 985
Egypt by Jews who feared reprisals, and he remained there until he died.
His most significant prophecy looked to a time when God would make a new covenant with Israel.
Jericho Arabic Ariha Town (pop.,
1997: 14,674), West Bank territory.
Inhabited since c. 9000 bc, it is famous in biblical tradition as the first town attacked by the Israelites under Joshua after they crossed the Jordan River. It was abandoned or destroyed several times and rebuilt in the same area. Captured by the British in 1918, it became part of the British mandate of Palestine. Incor¬ porated into Jordan in 1950, it became the site of two huge camps of Arab refugees following the first Arab-Israeli war (1948). In the Six- Day War (1967), the town was occu¬ pied by Israel, and much of the refugee population was dispersed. In 1994 it was turned over to the Palestinian Authority under an Israeli- Palestinian self-rule agreement.
Jerome, Chauncey (b. June 10, 1793, Canaan, Conn., U.S.—d. April 20, 1868, New Haven, Conn.) U.S. inventor and clockmaker. In 1824 he designed a popular bronze looking-glass clock, and he formed a company that soon became the leading U.S. clockmaker. He invented the one-day brass movement, an improvement over the wood clock. Applying mass- production techniques, he flooded the U.S. with low-priced brass clocks, which quickly spread to Europe and so astonished the English that “Yan¬ kee ingenuity” became a byword.
Jerome, Saint' (b. c. 347, Stridon, Dalmatia—d. 419/420, Bethlehem, Palestine) Church Father and biblical translator. Born into a wealthy Christian family in Dalmatia, he was educated there and in Rome. Bap¬ tized c. 366, he spent most of the next 20 years in travel. He lived two years as a hermit in the desert of Chalcis. From 377 to 379 Jerome was in Antioch, where he studied biblical texts and translated the works of Origen and Eusebius. He lived in Rome (382-85), but theological contro¬ versy and opposition to his ascetic views led him to depart for the Holy Land, and he settled in Bethlehem, where he lived until his death. Tra¬ ditionally regarded as the most learned of the Latin Fathers, he wrote numerous biblical commentaries and theological tracts on Pelagianism and other heresies. In 406 he completed his translation of the Bible into Latin, including his own translation of the Old Testament from Hebrew; Jer¬ ome’s Latin Bible is known as the Vulgate.
Jersey Largest and southernmost of the Channel Islands, in the English Channel. Area: 44.9 sq mi (116.2 sq km). Population (2002 est.): 87,400. Capitaclass="underline" St. Helier (pop., 2001: 28,310). Separated from Normandy in 1204, it kept its Norman law and local customs but was administered for the British king by a warden. It was given legislative authority in 1771. It is now governed by a popularly elected assembly, which is presided over by a royally appointed bailiff. There is also a lieutenant governor, who represents the British monarch. Jersey fabric and Jersey cattle take their names from the island.
Jersey Breed of small, short-horned dairy cattle that originated on Jer¬ sey in the English Channel. They are believed to have descended from French cattle. Jerseys are usually fawn- or cream-coulored, but darker shades are common. They were introduced in large numbers into England c. 1811 and into the U.S. in 1850. Adaptable to a wide range of condi¬ tions, the Jersey is found worldwide. Its milk is remarkably high in but- terfat, and it is an important breed wherever butter is produced (including New Zealand and Denmark).
Jersey City City (pop., 2000: 240,055), northeastern New Jersey, U.S. It lies opposite New York City. First settled by Dutch trappers (1618) and known as Paulus Hook, it was purchased from the Delaware Indians and established as a permanent settlement by 1660. In 1779, during the Ameri¬ can Revolution, Henry Lee won a victory there over the British. Renamed Jersey City in 1820, it is a manufacturing centre.
Jerusalem Hebrew Yerushalayim \ye- 1 rii-sha- , ll-im\ Arabic Al-Quds \al-'kiits\ City (pop., 2005 est.: 704,900), capital of Israel (see below). Located in the heart of historic Palestine, it is nestled between the West Bank and Israel. The Old City is a typical walled Middle Eastern enclosure; the modern city is an urban agglomeration of high-rises and housing complexes. It is holy to Judaism as the site of the Temple of Jerus¬ alem, to Christianity because of its association with Jesus, and to Islam because of its connection with the Mi'raj (the Prophet Muhammad’s ascension to heaven). Jewish shrines include the Western Wall. Islamic holy places include the Dome of the Rock. In 1000 bc David made it the capital of Israel. Razed by the Babylonians in the 6th century bc, it there¬ after enjoyed only brief periods of independence. The Romans devastated it in the 1st and 2nd centuries ad, banishing the Jewish population. From 638 it was ruled by various Muslim dynasties, except for short periods during the Crusades when it was controlled by Christians. Rule by the Ottoman Empire ended in 1917, and the city became the capital of the Brit¬ ish mandate of Palestine. It was thereafter the subject of competing Zion¬ ist and Palestinian national aspirations. Israel claimed the city as its capital after the Arab-Israeli War in 1948 and took the entire city during the Six- Day War of 1967. Its status as Israel’s capital has remained a point of contention: official recognition by the international community has largely been withheld pending final settlement of regional territorial rights.