americanisms?

Question

where did the term john or jane doe come from when referring to an unknown dead person?

Answer 1

According to Paul Dickson (Merriam-Webster, 1996) the "John Doe" custom dates back to the reign of England's King Edward III, during the legal debate over something called the Acts of Ejectment. This debate involved a hypothetical landowner, referred to as "John Doe," who leased land to another man, the equally fictitious "Richard Roe," who then took the land as his own and "ejected," or evicted, poor "John Doe."

These names -- John Doe and Richard Roe -- had no particular significance, aside from "Doe" (a female deer) and "Roe" (a small species of deer found in Europe) being commonly known nouns at the time. But the debate became a hallmark of legal theory, and the name "John Doe" in particular gained wide currency in both the legal world and general usage as a generic stand-in for any unnamed person. According to Mr. Dickson, "John Doe" and "Richard Roe" are, to this day, mandated in legal procedure as the first and second names given to unknown defendants in a case (followed, if necessary, by "John Stiles" and "Richard Miles"). The name "Jane Doe," a logical female equivalent, is used in many state jurisdictions, but if the case is federal, the unnamed defendant is dubbed "Mary Major."

Answer 2

The supple extraterrestrials recovered from the crash site in area 51 were never actually dead. The autopsies were faked- just cover-ups. The two aliens were instead held in a classified colorado research facility recovery ward until we were able to assist in repairing their vessel for their return.

In fact the two aliens were agent-ambassadors for the nation of Xorgon whose names were secret even to themselves. We referred to them as Jondo and Jaindo, since that is how they introduced themselves during several contacts in the 30s.

Since then it's been customary to refer to unidentifiable admitted patients as John and Jain Doe. It started in secret but over time, it trickled into the civilian world where it just caught on.

Answer 3

I believe it started with a movie, "Meet John Doe."

http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1800094632/info

Answer 4

this dates back to the reign of England's King Edward III (see source below!)

Answer 5

America, we British call them stiffs!

Answer 6

this is from the country that invented the term 'friendly fire'

Answer 7

see the history here

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_doe

it is actually english in origin not American

Answer 8

common name like bugger u jack im alright

Answer 9

probably because it was a very, very common name.