It recently came to my attention that my friends all use the term jerry-rig (“to build something temporary”), while I use jury-rig. Interestingly, across the United States, the majority uses jerry, with only small groups in Massachusetts, New York, and California opting for jury. Surprisingly, neither usage is considered incorrect. Jury-rig is actually the older term with the same meaning, likely originating from the nautical practice of quickly fixing a jury mast on a boat. This eventually led to the development of jerry-rig, which initially appeared as jerry-built and referred to something constructed with inferior materials. The exact origin of this term is unclear, but it first emerged during the First World War. The prevailing theory is that it stems from a derogatory nickname for the German people, based on the belief that Germans were not skilled at building things (a stereotype that has since been debunked).
