If you ask four 4×4 fans where the Jeep name came from, you might get four separate answers. A popular theory is that WWII GIs nicknamed their 1/4-ton 4×4 Jeeps after Popeye’s cartoon sidekick: Eugene-the-Jeep. The only problem is that the military used the word jeep years before Popeye’s comic books – but even within the military it meant something completely different than it does today.
What is the original meaning of Jeep?
The word jeep was originally military slang for a new, untried soldier. It also came to mean a new, untested vehicle. The first records of its use date from World War I, according to MotorTrend. So the word jeep actually preceded the WWII 1/4-ton 4×4 that would become synonymous with it.
RELATED: What’s the Best-Selling Car of All Time?
Willys and Ford jointly designed the 1/4-ton 4×4 that carried Allied troops during World War II. After the new “Quad” won the government contract, Willys held a press event in February 1941. To introduce its 4×4, the company actually drove one up the steps of the US Capitol. When test driver Irving “Red” Housman referred to the vehicle as a “jeep”, the press printed the new name and it stuck.
One reason the GIs may have continued to say “jeep” throughout the war was that the Ford version of the 1/4-ton 4×4 was actually named the “Ford GP.” In this case, GP did not mean the “general purpose” vehicle. Instead, the G stood for “Government Contract” and the P was Ford’s designation for an 80-inch wheelbase.
After the war, Willys-Overland began building a “civilian jeep” or CJ for short. The automaker requested a trademark for Jeep, which the government finally granted in 1950.
What kind of animal is Eugene the Jeep?
A 1936 Popeye comic introduced “Eugene-the-Jeep”. In this case, a jeep was some kind of magical, interdimensional dog. The clever little helper could walk through walls, teleport and climb almost anything. But he could only say the word “jeep”.
Meet Eugene in the video below:
RELATED: Are the Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer Jeeps?
Eugene appeared in many Popeye comic books and even in the television adaptation. By the time the United States entered World War II, Eugene-the-Jeep was part of popular culture.
In the 1940s, the military still used “jeep” to describe an unproven vehicle. But the word had also become civilian slang for something extraordinary.
When the average American opened a magazine in February 1941 to see a picture of the military’s miraculous new “Jeep” 4×4, they probably assumed this name came from Popeye’s witty buddy. Decades later, the myth persists that GIs named the Jeep after Popeye’s sidekick.
Is Jeep a real name?
Jeep is a unique word, as it appears in the dictionary as both a proper and an improper noun. Uppercase “Jeep” refers to the modern SUV brand. But lower-case jeep is slang for 4×4 vehicles, and the slang word predates the brand’s 1950 trademark.
RELATED: When Did Jeep Build the First Wrangler?
In some parts of the world where Jeep does not sell SUVs, any 4×4 is called a Jeep. In North America, fans of the Jeep brand are a bit more selective in how they use the word. You wouldn’t hear an American refer to a track-ready Ford Bronco as their “jeep.” That would be downright confusing.
So there you have it. Some Jeep fans say their beloved SUV is named after a cartoon character, others claim it’s a spoof of “GP,” and still others attribute it to World War I slang. What is the true origin of the Jeep? You can decide for yourself.
Then learn the origin of the Wrangler name or watch the evolution of the Jeep in the video below:
Learn more about the Jeep brand in this next video:
RELATED: Wrangler Is Obsolete, Here’s Why Jeep Fans Don’t Care