This article discusses the phrase "Jesus H. Christ". For information about the historic and religious figure, visit Jesus.

Jesus H. Christ is an example of slang serving as a mild, joking curse. The phrase is most commonly used in a wry, sarcastic, cynical, or joking tone.

Etymology

Using the name of "Jesus Christ" as an oath has been common for centuries, but the middle initial has unknown origins. Neither the Bible nor any other early historical reference to Jesus assigns him a middle initial. Christ, in any case, is not a last name, but rather a title meaning anointed, similar to Messiah.

It is often stated, jokingly, that the H stands for "Howard", as in "Our Father, who art in Heaven, HOWARD be thy name" (supposedly a child's mispronounciation of "Hallowed" in the Lord's Prayer). Although this is an amusing speculation, it is an unlikely source for the phrase. Similarly in England, a common joke is that the H is for Henry - the letters INRI, seen on crosses and some graves, are a rough approximation of the Cockney "Henry".

Some claim that the H was seen in the "IHS" symbol and was interpreted as a middle initial. ("IHS" is a popular abbreviation of the name "Jesus" rendered in Greek letters.) This is speculation, and no definitive source gives evidence for this or any other etymology, though IHS is occasionally written IHC, representing the lunate sigma common in medieval Greek.

Another theory is that the H stands for Hell, which is often used as an oath by itself: Hell! or Oh, Hell! The juxtaposition of Hell with the name of Jesus Christ may have been intended as ironic humor.

Another possibility exists that H comes from "Himself" and is somewhat self-referential in that sometimes one hears an expression such as, "I'm the baddest dude since Jesus H. Christ Himself!", which could have easily have begun as "Jesus Christ Himself", been transposed and shortened to "Jesus H. Christ", and then the original "Himself" eventually added back in at the end.

Yet another theory says that H has been substituted for an F, and that the original form was Jesus F. Christ, short for the frequently-heard oath Jesus Fucking Christ, showing epenthesis. This too is speculation, there being little evidence either that Jesus F. Christ is anywhere near as common, or that those who use the full form feel any need for a euphemism.

Lacking solid evidence, some have opined that the H could stand for "haploid", owing to his mother's virgin birth. Although clever, this cannot be considered a likely origin for the initial.

Also, legend has it that Benjamin Franklin forgot to capitalize Jesus in a newspaper once, so the next week he put the H in just to mock the people who noticed.

The least interesting explanation is that H simply stands for either "Holy" or "Hebrew", or that it was just chosen at random.

Perhaps the simplest explanation is that the H stands for absolutely nothing.

Source

• Why do folks say "Jesus H. Christ"? (from The Straight Dope)