{"id":6412,"date":"2020-11-13T18:30:23","date_gmt":"2020-11-13T18:30:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kinneybrothers.com\/blog\/?p=6412"},"modified":"2024-08-19T03:40:37","modified_gmt":"2024-08-19T03:40:37","slug":"fun-facts-83-acronym","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kinneybrothers.com\/blog\/blog\/2020\/11\/13\/fun-facts-83-acronym\/","title":{"rendered":"Fun Facts About English #83 – Acronyms and Initialisms"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"Kinney<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The acronym POTUS<\/em> (President of the United States) also began as a telegraphic code around 1895. FLOTUS<\/em> (First Lady of the United States) didn’t appear until the 1980s, where it may have originated as the Secret Service’s code name for Nancy Reagan. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Acronyms and initialisms have been part of our language for a very long time, but it wasn’t until the 19th century that our need for more contractions began percolating. During the 20th century, they moved into the parlance of our everyday lives. Today, like telegraphers of old, we deftly tap out abbreviated messages, relaying them to recipients near and far with a device we carry in our pockets. Consider this example:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

GR8 ASAP THX IDK AZ ACCT PIN POTUS on FOX @IHOP in SF SMH USA FUBAR 2M2H ARR LAX @8AM 2MORO TTYL I\u2764\ufe0eU<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Great! As soon as possible. Thanks. I don’t know the personal identification code for the Arizona account. The President of the United States is on Fox News at the International House of Pancakes in San Francisco. I’m shaking my head. The United States of America is fucked up beyond all repair. It’s too much to handle. I will arrive at Los Angeles International Airport at 8 o’clock tomorrow morning. I’ll talk to you later. I love you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While some may look at the message as a breakdown of language in a modern world, it helps to consider its density. The code relays a lot of information in a short space. That is the simple function of acronyms. The online dictionary, Acronym Finder<\/a>, lists five million<\/em> entries divided into categories like Information Technology (IT), Military & Government Agencies, Business & Finance Agencies, and Pop Culture. Today, acronyms are so ubiquitous, linguists see their 20th and 21st-century use as a language phenomenon moving in tandem with our industrial and post-industrial ages.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Acronyms vs Initialisms vs Abbreviations<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

In general, abbreviations shorten a word or phrase but don’t always create new words, e.g., Dec.<\/em> is pronounced “December,” and N.Y.<\/em> is still “New York.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

An acronym<\/em>, on the other hand, is an abbreviation where the first letter or series of letters in a phrase create a new “pronounceable” word, e.g., NASA<\/em> (National Aeronautics and Space Administration). Today, acronym<\/em> is commonly used to include both acronyms and initialisms; a trend many grammar mavens believe should be kept distinctly separated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The term initialism<\/em> (1899) is older than acronym<\/em> (1940), but less often used. As the word implies, it’s an abbreviation consisting of initial letters that are pronounced separately, like CPU<\/em> (central processing unit), and the four-century-old AM\/PM<\/em> (ante meridiem<\/em>, “before noon”\/post meridiem<\/em>, “after noon”). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ancient Acronyms<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\"Ancient<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Two thousand years ago, when larger works required labor-intensive use of hard materials like clay, stone, metal, or parchment, which were expensive commodities, artists, engravers, and copyists were forced to use their resources efficiently. Throughout the medieval period, when writing implements and parchment were scarce, acronyms were more frequent. Terms like RIP<\/em> (requiescat in pace<\/em>; “Rest in Peace”), or the abbreviation Xmas<\/em>, (\u03a7\u03c1\u03b9\u03c3\u03c4\u03bf\u03c2, Christ<\/em>; “Christmas”), are quite ancient and served as a revered shorthand in early religious writing. More examples, both BCE<\/em> (before the Common Era) and CE<\/em> (the Common Era) include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n