Seroco, acronym (1902)

[Jesse Sheidlower]

On Sat, Aug 23, 2003 at 03:06:42PM -0400, Dave Wilton wrote:
> I found the following citation for the trade name "Seroco", an acronym for
> Sears, Roebuck, & Company in a 1902 Washington Post classified ad. To my
> knowledge, it's the earliest instance of an acronymic origin for a word.
> Beats "ANZAC" by some 13 years.

I think you'll find _Nabisco_ from the same era, or slightly
earlier (1898 is the date that sticks in mind, but I'm too
lazy to look it up).

Richard Bailey cites an example of _colinda_ for the _Colonial
and Indian Exhibition_ in 1886 in his book _Nineteenth-Century
English._

Best

Jesse Sheidlower