Dear John

A "Dear John letter" is a letter written to a husband or boyfriend to inform him their relationship is over, usually because the author has found another lover. Dear John Letters are often written out of an inability or unwillingness to inform the man in person. The reverse situation, in which someone writes to his wife or girlfriend to break off the relationship, is referred to as a "Dear Jane letter".

關於Dear John等於分手信的來歷其實説法不一，但是人們普遍認為這個説法是從美國流傳而來的。在第二次世界大戰期間，無數的美國士兵遠赴重洋去打仗，一去就是好幾個月甚至幾年。隨着時間的流逝，很多士兵的妻子或者女朋友都決定不再等待他們的迴歸，而選擇開始一段新的愛情。

（While the exact origins of the phrase are unknown, it is commonly believed to have been coined by Americans during World War II. Large numbers of American troops were stationed overseas for many months or years, and as time passed many of their wives or girlfriends decided to begin a relationship with a new man rather than wait for their old one to return.）

確切的起源還真不可考證，但人們普遍認為這個詞由美國人締造於二戰時期。當時大量的美軍部隊被派往海外，短則數月，長則多年。光陰流轉，軍嫂們或者在家的女朋友不願再獨守空閨，盼着良人歸來，決定開始一段全新的感情。

As letters to servicemen from wives or girlfriends back home would typically contain affectionate language (such as "Dear Johnny", "My dearest John", or simply "Darling"), a serviceman receiving a note beginning with a curt "Dear John" would instantly be aware of the letter's purpose.

而這些服役軍人們的妻子女友通常都是以充滿愛意的稱謂，比方“親愛的強尼”、“我最親愛的約翰”或者“達令”，開始她們殘酷的分手信，軍人們收到這樣子生硬開頭的信件，往往都有所警覺：是不是要分手了？

A writer in the Democrat and Chronicle of Rochester, NY, summed it up in August 1945:1945年八月，一位作家總結道："Dear John," the letter began. "I have found someone else whom I think the world of. I think the only way out is for us to get a divorce," it said. They usually began like that, those letters that told of infidelity on the part of the wives of servicemen... The men called them "Dear Johns".“

親愛的約翰，”信是這麼開頭的，“我找到了另一個人，我願意與他共度一生。唯一的解決方案就是，咱倆離婚吧。”這類信通常都是這麼寫的，這些軍嫂們婉轉坦白自己背叛的信件。而那些被一腳踢開的男人們，稱自己為“親愛的約翰們。”

There are a number of theories on why the name John is used rather than any other. John was a common name in America at the time the term was coined. John is also the name used in many other terms that refer to an anonymous man or men, such as "John Doe" or "John Smith".

為什麼偏偏是約翰而不是邁克或者理查德呢？因為約翰在美國實在是一個超級大眾的名字，尤其在這個詞組誕生的時候格外普遍。另外呢，約翰這個名字也往往被用來指示無名人士，比方很常見的John Doe或者John Smith。