Jehovah’s Witnesses as a distinct movement emerged from late-19th century Bible student groups in the United States, with Charles Taze Russell playing a pivotal leadership and publishing role in the early development of the movement. The group’s formal organization later took shape under the Watch Tower Society, and the name “Jehovah’s Witnesses” was adopted in 1931 under the leadership of Joseph Franklin Rutherford. These points reflect the commonly cited historical sequence, though there is debate about whether Russell should be considered the “founder” of a new religion or the early leader of a Bible-student movement that eventually became Jehovah’s Witnesses. For clarity:

• Origins: A Pittsburgh-based Bible study movement in the 1870s-1880s led by Charles Taze Russell, producing the journal The Watch Tower and founding the Zion’s Watch Tower Tract Society, which evolved into the Watch Tower Society. This group laid the doctrinal and organizational foundations for what would become Jehovah’s Witnesses.

• Name and leadership: The term “Jehovah’s Witnesses” was officially adopted in 1931 during the presidency of Joseph Franklin Rutherford, who expanded evangelism and instituted distinctive practices.

• Doctrine and organization: Under Rutherford and his successors, the movement formalized training for office bearers and produced the New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures (1961, revised later), shaping the modern practice and governance of Jehovah’s Witnesses.

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