Antedating of "First World War"

[Jonathan Lighter]

Better under "world war," without brackets.

According to some publicity-seeking theorists, next up will be WW IV or
greater, III having been the Cold War.

(The Seven Years War, for example, is now sometimes referred to as a "world
war." And the Napoleonic Wars too!
http://www.amazon.com/Dreams-Empire-Napoleon-First-1792-1814/dp/1559720360
)

 Fun!

JL


On Mon, Jun 16, 2014 at 8:17 AM, Shapiro, Fred <fred.shapiro at yale.edu>
wrote:

> ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> -----------------------
> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       "Shapiro, Fred" <fred.shapiro at YALE.EDU>
> Subject:      Antedating of "First World War"
>
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> The OED's first use for "First World War" is dated 1918.  It seems that
> the=
>  following citation, which I have previously posted, should be mentioned
> at=
>  least in square brackets:
>
>
> 1914 Ernst Haeckel in _Indianapolis Star_ 20 Sept. 37/1 (Newspaperarchive)
> =
>  There is no doubt that the course and character of the feared "European
> wa=
> r" ... will become the
>
> first world war in the full sense of the word.
>
>
> Fred Shapiro
>
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