|häbsən|jäbsən noun
( -s )
Usage: usually capitalized H&J
Etymology: Anglo-Indian modification (influenced by the English surnames Hobson and Jobson ) of Arabic yā Ḥasan! yā Ḥusayn! O Hasan! O Husain! (cry repeated at the Muharram festival as an expression of mourning for Hasan and Husain, grandsons of Muhammad, killed in the early struggles between the Sunni and Shi'a parties)
: assimilation of the sounds of a word or words foreign to a language into the sounds of a word or words coined or already existent in the language (as Spanish cucaracha has become English cockroach or as English riding coat has become French redingote )
the law of Hobson-Jobson has played a great role in the evolution of surnames — R.F.Barton
— compare folk etymology