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jeep (n.)

early 1941, American English military slang, acronym from G.P., abbreviation of General Purpose (car), but certainly influenced by Eugene the Jeep (who had extraordinary powers but said only "jeep"), from E.C. Segar's comic strip "Thimble Theater" (home of Popeye the Sailor). Eugene the Jeep first appeared in the strip March 13, 1936. The vehicle was in development from 1940, and the Army planners' initial term for it was light reconnaissance and command car.

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(wiki/en) Jeep

Prior to 1940 the term "jeep" had been used as U.S. Army slang for new recruits or vehicles,[8][9] but the World War II "jeep" that went into production in 1941 specifically tied the name to this light military 4x4, arguably making them the oldest four-wheel drive mass-production vehicles now known as SUVs.[10] The Jeep became the primary light 4-wheel-drive vehicle of the United States Army and the Allies during World War II, as well as the postwar period. The term became common worldwide in the wake of the war. Doug Stewart noted:[11] "The spartan, cramped, and unstintingly functional jeep became the ubiquitous World War II four-wheeled personification of Yankee ingenuity and cocky, can-do determination."

The Jeep marque has been headquartered in Toledo, Ohio, ever since Willys-Overland launched production of the first CJ or Civilian Jeep branded models there in 1945.