Does the Russian word “майка” really come from “Jamaica”?

In the clip, the speaker admits: “В детстве я думала, что слово майка происходит от слова ямайка” — as a kid, she thought майка (“undershirt, tank top”) came from Ямайка (“Jamaica”). It doesn’t. Linguists aren’t fully sure where майка comes from either — candidates include Italian maglia, French maillot, or even the month май (“May”), for a shirt worn once the weather warms. No version is settled, which makes the Jamaica guess a forgivable, very logical mistake.

The maillot theory ties майка to the same French root as English “maillot” (swimsuit) and the cycling term “yellow jersey.” The May theory fits a pattern Russian uses elsewhere — clothing named for when you start wearing it. Whichever is right, майка today just means a sleeveless undershirt or tank top, no island required.