INRI

An abbreviation—often found in paintings and sculptures of the crucifixion—of Jesus Nazarenus Rex Iudaeorum, 'Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews," the Latin translation of the charge against Jesus written on the sign above his head on the cross (Matt 27:37; Mk 15:26; Lk 23:38; Jn 19:19).

The letter 'j' was developed from 'i' early in the 17th Cent to denote the consonantal sound dzh in English, y in German, and zh in French. Prior to this the 'i' was used to denote both the vowel and the consonant without distinction.