jeep

[Probably pronunciation of the letters GP, designation for this vehicle in the manufacturer's parts numbering system : G(overnment) + P, designator for 80-inch wheelbase reconnaissance car.]

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Jeep was a term that carried humor before it carried soldiers. It also carried a wide variety of other military meanings before it became the designation for the "half-ton four-by-four command-reconnaissance car" first manufactured for the U.S. Army in September 1940.

Both the design and the name had their beginnings in the 1930s, years before they came together in the first production models. The design of the as yet unnamed vehicle apparently originated with a tank captain in 1932, and its development involved three different manufacturers over the rest of the decade. Meanwhile, the term jeep was undergoing its own development. In the military, jeep could mean "a recruit," "a poorly-fitting coat," or the Link Trainer for pilots. In civilian life, Eugene the Jeep was introduced March 16, 1936, as a new character in the Popeye comic strip. Eugene was a small but mighty creature whose cry was "jeep, jeep."

The combination of connotations, military and civilian, little and yet powerful, inspired somebody to call the new military vehicle a jeep and thereby fix the word's meaning for future generations. In World War II American soldiers brought the modern meaning of jeep with them to all corners of the globe. After the war the jeep gained a civilian dimension; the sturdy box with four-wheel drive, open to nature and the elements, became popular for civilian recreation and scientific adventures; the word was even capitalized and trademarked by one manufacturer. The vehicle remains popular today, more than half a century after it first appeared.

Jeep is the Chrysler automotive brand.

Jeep or JEEP may also refer to:

• Eugene the Jeep, fictional character in the Thimble Theatre comic strip
• Jeep Swenson, a.k.a. Robert Swenson (1957–1997), American wrestler & actor
• Just Enough Education to Perform, a 2001 album by rock band Stereophonics

In transportation:

• Jeep, WWII military vehicle Willys MB & equivalents
• Jeep CJ/Jeep Wrangler, road-legal variants
• Mini SUV, class of sport utility vehicles
• Curtiss AT-9, an aircraft

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Dansk (Danish)
n. - jeep, bil

Nederlands (Dutch)
jeep, per jeep reizen

Français (French)
n. - jeep

Deutsch (German)
n. - Jeep

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - τζιπ

Italiano (Italian)
jeep

Português (Portuguese)
n. - jipe (m)

Русский (Russian)
джип, небольшой разведывательный самолет, новобранец

Español (Spanish)
n. - jeep, jip, todo terreno, coche campero

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - jeep

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
吉普车

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 吉普車

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 지프차, (상표) 지프, 신병, 호위 항공모함

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - ジープ

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) سيارة جيب‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮ג'יפ‬

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