Where did genies come from?

My oldest daughter, Jazmine, was named after a disney princess ;) You guessed it from the movie, Aladdin. Both my husband and I apparently both loved the name right off the bat.

So therefore, she has a copy of the original Aladdin, and now we love to watch the "real life" one, too.
And therefore came the question.. where do genie's come from.
So me, being me, decided to research it.
The links below are great resources for this burning question. :)


A Brief History of Jinn or Genies | Circa71

• Genies (also called Jinn or genii) are spirits in cultures of the Middle East and Africa. The term genie comes from the Arabic word jinni, which referred to an evil spirit that could take the shape of an animal or person. It could be found in every kind of nonliving thing, even air and fire.

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The Origin of the Genie in the Lamp – Writing from John ...

How did 4,500 year old demons turn into blue guys singing songs about friendship? It took a few thousand years of city conquering and myth twisting to divorce the old from the new, but thanks to pop culture and 17th century France, ancient and terrifying creatures of the desert became docile cartoon characters and spunky blondes engaging in classic televised hijinks.