Re:Systemd-free Devuan announces its first stable release ca...
by dane-pgp on Saturday April 22, 2017 @07:17PM
(#14175435)
Devuan "jessie" is designed to match Debian "jessie" as much as possible, and is a one-off copying of the release name in order to mark the branching point in the histories of the two distros as they diverge slightly over time.
As the release announcement says:
"Devuan is the Debian that was and could have been. Our goal is to provide a viable and sustainable alternative. It is a new path, nurtured with your help and support."
so Devuan could be considered the true inheritor of the "jessie" name, and of the name "Debian", for that matter, although keeping that would obviously be too confusing.
... but I actually agree with duskwuff. It's hugely confusing and possibly even disingenuous to call it "jessie".