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Acronym - Wikipedia
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id="toc-Nomenclature-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Pronounceability_controversy" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Pronounceability_controversy"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">3</span> <span>Pronounceability controversy</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Pronounceability_controversy-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Examples" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Examples"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">4</span> <span>Examples</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Examples-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Historical_and_current_use" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Historical_and_current_use"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">5</span> <span>Historical and current use</span> </div> </a> <button aria-controls="toc-Historical_and_current_use-sublist" class="cdx-button cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only vector-toc-toggle"> <span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-expand"></span> <span>Toggle Historical and current use subsection</span> </button> <ul id="toc-Historical_and_current_use-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> <li id="toc-Early_examples_in_English" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Early_examples_in_English"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">5.1</span> <span>Early examples in English</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Early_examples_in_English-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Current_use" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Current_use"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">5.2</span> <span>Current use</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Current_use-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> <li id="toc-Expansion_at_first_use" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Expansion_at_first_use"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">5.2.1</span> <span>Expansion at first use</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Expansion_at_first_use-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Jargon" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Jargon"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">5.2.2</span> <span>Jargon</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Jargon-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-As_mnemonics" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#As_mnemonics"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">5.2.3</span> <span>As mnemonics</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-As_mnemonics-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Acronyms_as_legendary_etymology" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Acronyms_as_legendary_etymology"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">5.2.4</span> <span>Acronyms as legendary etymology</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Acronyms_as_legendary_etymology-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Orthographic_styling" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Orthographic_styling"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">6</span> <span>Orthographic styling</span> </div> </a> <button aria-controls="toc-Orthographic_styling-sublist" class="cdx-button cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only vector-toc-toggle"> <span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-expand"></span> <span>Toggle Orthographic styling subsection</span> </button> <ul id="toc-Orthographic_styling-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> <li id="toc-Punctuation" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Punctuation"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">6.1</span> <span>Punctuation</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Punctuation-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> <li id="toc-Showing_the_ellipsis_of_letters" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Showing_the_ellipsis_of_letters"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">6.1.1</span> <span>Showing the ellipsis of letters</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Showing_the_ellipsis_of_letters-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> <li id="toc-Ellipsis-is-understood_style" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-4"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Ellipsis-is-understood_style"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">6.1.1.1</span> <span>Ellipsis-is-understood style</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Ellipsis-is-understood_style-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Pronunciation-dependent_style_and_periods" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-4"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Pronunciation-dependent_style_and_periods"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">6.1.1.2</span> <span>Pronunciation-dependent style and periods</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Pronunciation-dependent_style_and_periods-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Other_conventions" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-4"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Other_conventions"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">6.1.1.3</span> <span>Other conventions</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Other_conventions-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Representing_plurals_and_possessives" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Representing_plurals_and_possessives"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">6.1.2</span> <span>Representing plurals and possessives</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Representing_plurals_and_possessives-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Case" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Case"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">6.2</span> <span>Case</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Case-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> <li id="toc-All-caps_style" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#All-caps_style"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">6.2.1</span> <span>All-caps style</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-All-caps_style-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Normal_case_and_anacronyms" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Normal_case_and_anacronyms"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">6.2.2</span> <span>Normal case and anacronyms</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Normal_case_and_anacronyms-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Mixed-case_variant" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Mixed-case_variant"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">6.2.3</span> <span>Mixed-case variant</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Mixed-case_variant-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Pronunciation-dependent_style_and_case" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Pronunciation-dependent_style_and_case"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">6.2.4</span> <span>Pronunciation-dependent style and case</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Pronunciation-dependent_style_and_case-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Numerals_and_constituent_words" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Numerals_and_constituent_words"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">6.3</span> <span>Numerals and constituent words</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Numerals_and_constituent_words-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Casing_of_expansions" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Casing_of_expansions"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">6.4</span> <span>Casing of expansions</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Casing_of_expansions-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Changes_to_(or_wordplay_on)_the_expanded_meaning" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Changes_to_(or_wordplay_on)_the_expanded_meaning"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">7</span> <span>Changes to (or wordplay on) the expanded meaning</span> </div> </a> <button aria-controls="toc-Changes_to_(or_wordplay_on)_the_expanded_meaning-sublist" class="cdx-button cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only vector-toc-toggle"> <span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-expand"></span> <span>Toggle Changes to (or wordplay on) the expanded meaning subsection</span> </button> <ul id="toc-Changes_to_(or_wordplay_on)_the_expanded_meaning-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> <li id="toc-Pseudo-acronyms_and_orphan_initialisms" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Pseudo-acronyms_and_orphan_initialisms"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">7.1</span> <span>Pseudo-acronyms and orphan initialisms</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Pseudo-acronyms_and_orphan_initialisms-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Redundant_acronyms_and_RAS_syndrome" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Redundant_acronyms_and_RAS_syndrome"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">7.2</span> <span>Redundant acronyms and RAS syndrome</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Redundant_acronyms_and_RAS_syndrome-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Redefined_acronyms" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Redefined_acronyms"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">7.3</span> <span>Redefined acronyms</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Redefined_acronyms-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Backronyms" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Backronyms"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">7.4</span> <span>Backronyms</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Backronyms-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Contrived_acronyms" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Contrived_acronyms"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">7.5</span> <span>Contrived acronyms</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Contrived_acronyms-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Macronyms/nested_acronyms" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Macronyms/nested_acronyms"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">7.6</span> <span>Macronyms/nested acronyms</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Macronyms/nested_acronyms-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> <li id="toc-Recursive_acronyms" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Recursive_acronyms"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">7.6.1</span> <span>Recursive acronyms</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Recursive_acronyms-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Non-English_languages" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Non-English_languages"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">8</span> <span>Non-English languages</span> </div> </a> <button aria-controls="toc-Non-English_languages-sublist" class="cdx-button cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only vector-toc-toggle"> <span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-expand"></span> <span>Toggle Non-English languages subsection</span> </button> <ul id="toc-Non-English_languages-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> <li id="toc-Specific_languages" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Specific_languages"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">8.1</span> <span>Specific languages</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Specific_languages-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> <li id="toc-Chinese" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Chinese"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">8.1.1</span> <span>Chinese</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Chinese-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Korean" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Korean"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">8.1.2</span> <span>Korean</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Korean-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Japanese" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Japanese"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">8.1.3</span> <span>Japanese</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Japanese-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-German" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#German"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">8.1.4</span> <span>German</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-German-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Hebrew" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Hebrew"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">8.1.5</span> <span>Hebrew</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Hebrew-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Indonesian" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Indonesian"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">8.1.6</span> <span>Indonesian</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Indonesian-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Malay" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Malay"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">8.1.7</span> <span>Malay</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Malay-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Russian" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Russian"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">8.1.8</span> <span>Russian</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Russian-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Swahili" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Swahili"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">8.1.9</span> <span>Swahili</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Swahili-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Vietnamese" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Vietnamese"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">8.1.10</span> <span>Vietnamese</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Vietnamese-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-General_grammatical_considerations" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#General_grammatical_considerations"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">8.2</span> <span>General grammatical considerations</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-General_grammatical_considerations-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> <li id="toc-Declension" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Declension"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">8.2.1</span> <span>Declension</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Declension-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Lenition" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Lenition"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">8.2.2</span> <span>Lenition</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Lenition-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-See_also" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#See_also"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">9</span> <span>See also</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-See_also-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Explanatory_notes" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Explanatory_notes"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">10</span> <span>Explanatory notes</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Explanatory_notes-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-References" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#References"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">11</span> <span>References</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-References-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-External_links" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#External_links"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">12</span> <span>External links</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-External_links-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </div> </div> </nav> </div> </div> <div class="mw-content-container"> <main id="content" class="mw-body"> <header class="mw-body-header vector-page-titlebar"> <nav aria-label="Contents" class="vector-toc-landmark"> <div id="vector-page-titlebar-toc" class="vector-dropdown vector-page-titlebar-toc vector-button-flush-left" > <input type="checkbox" id="vector-page-titlebar-toc-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-vector-page-titlebar-toc" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox " aria-label="Toggle the table of contents" > <label id="vector-page-titlebar-toc-label" for="vector-page-titlebar-toc-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only " aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-listBullet mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-listBullet"></span> <span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">Toggle the table of contents</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div id="vector-page-titlebar-toc-unpinned-container" class="vector-unpinned-container"> </div> </div> </div> </nav> <h1 id="firstHeading" class="firstHeading mw-first-heading"><span class="mw-page-title-main">Acronym</span></h1> <div id="p-lang-btn" class="vector-dropdown mw-portlet mw-portlet-lang" > <input type="checkbox" id="p-lang-btn-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-p-lang-btn" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox mw-interlanguage-selector" aria-label="Go to an article in another language. Available in 76 languages" > <label id="p-lang-btn-label" for="p-lang-btn-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--action-progressive mw-portlet-lang-heading-76" aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-language-progressive mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-language-progressive"></span> <span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">76 languages</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-af mw-list-item"><a href="https://af.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akroniem" title="Akroniem – Afrikaans" lang="af" hreflang="af" data-title="Akroniem" data-language-autonym="Afrikaans" data-language-local-name="Afrikaans" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Afrikaans</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-als mw-list-item"><a href="https://als.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akronym" title="Akronym – Alemannic" lang="gsw" hreflang="gsw" data-title="Akronym" data-language-autonym="Alemannisch" data-language-local-name="Alemannic" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Alemannisch</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ar mw-list-item"><a href="https://ar.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D9%84%D9%81%D8%B8%D8%A9_%D8%A3%D9%88%D8%A7%D8%A6%D9%84%D9%8A%D8%A9" title="لفظة أوائلية – Arabic" lang="ar" hreflang="ar" data-title="لفظة أوائلية" data-language-autonym="العربية" data-language-local-name="Arabic" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>العربية</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ast mw-list-item"><a href="https://ast.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acr%C3%B3nimu" title="Acrónimu – Asturian" lang="ast" hreflang="ast" data-title="Acrónimu" data-language-autonym="Asturianu" data-language-local-name="Asturian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Asturianu</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-zh-min-nan mw-list-item"><a href="https://zh-min-nan.wikipedia.org/wiki/Th%C3%A2u-j%C4%AB-g%C3%AD" title="Thâu-jī-gí – Minnan" lang="nan" hreflang="nan" data-title="Thâu-jī-gí" data-language-autonym="閩南語 / Bân-lâm-gú" data-language-local-name="Minnan" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>閩南語 / Bân-lâm-gú</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-be mw-list-item"><a href="https://be.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%90%D0%BA%D1%80%D0%BE%D0%BD%D1%96%D0%BC" title="Акронім – Belarusian" lang="be" hreflang="be" data-title="Акронім" data-language-autonym="Беларуская" data-language-local-name="Belarusian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Беларуская</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-be-x-old mw-list-item"><a href="https://be-tarask.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%90%D0%BA%D1%80%D0%BE%D0%BD%D1%96%D0%BC" title="Акронім – Belarusian (Taraškievica orthography)" lang="be-tarask" hreflang="be-tarask" data-title="Акронім" data-language-autonym="Беларуская (тарашкевіца)" data-language-local-name="Belarusian (Taraškievica orthography)" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Беларуская (тарашкевіца)</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-bg mw-list-item"><a href="https://bg.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%90%D0%BA%D1%80%D0%BE%D0%BD%D0%B8%D0%BC" title="Акроним – Bulgarian" lang="bg" hreflang="bg" data-title="Акроним" data-language-autonym="Български" data-language-local-name="Bulgarian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Български</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-bs mw-list-item"><a href="https://bs.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akronim" title="Akronim – Bosnian" lang="bs" hreflang="bs" data-title="Akronim" data-language-autonym="Bosanski" data-language-local-name="Bosnian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Bosanski</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-br mw-list-item"><a href="https://br.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gwreskanv" title="Gwreskanv – Breton" lang="br" hreflang="br" data-title="Gwreskanv" data-language-autonym="Brezhoneg" data-language-local-name="Breton" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Brezhoneg</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ca mw-list-item"><a href="https://ca.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acr%C3%B2nim" title="Acrònim – Catalan" lang="ca" hreflang="ca" data-title="Acrònim" data-language-autonym="Català" data-language-local-name="Catalan" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Català</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-cs mw-list-item"><a href="https://cs.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akronym" title="Akronym – Czech" lang="cs" hreflang="cs" data-title="Akronym" data-language-autonym="Čeština" data-language-local-name="Czech" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Čeština</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-cy mw-list-item"><a href="https://cy.wikipedia.org/wiki/Llythrenw" title="Llythrenw – Welsh" lang="cy" hreflang="cy" data-title="Llythrenw" data-language-autonym="Cymraeg" data-language-local-name="Welsh" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Cymraeg</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-da mw-list-item"><a href="https://da.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akronym" title="Akronym – Danish" lang="da" hreflang="da" data-title="Akronym" data-language-autonym="Dansk" data-language-local-name="Danish" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Dansk</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-de mw-list-item"><a href="https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akronym" title="Akronym – German" lang="de" hreflang="de" data-title="Akronym" data-language-autonym="Deutsch" data-language-local-name="German" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Deutsch</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-et mw-list-item"><a href="https://et.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akron%C3%BC%C3%BCm" title="Akronüüm – Estonian" lang="et" hreflang="et" data-title="Akronüüm" data-language-autonym="Eesti" data-language-local-name="Estonian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Eesti</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-el mw-list-item"><a href="https://el.wikipedia.org/wiki/%CE%91%CF%81%CE%BA%CF%84%CE%B9%CE%BA%CF%8C%CE%BB%CE%B5%CE%BE%CE%BF" title="Αρκτικόλεξο – Greek" lang="el" hreflang="el" data-title="Αρκτικόλεξο" data-language-autonym="Ελληνικά" data-language-local-name="Greek" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Ελληνικά</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-es mw-list-item"><a href="https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acr%C3%B3nimo" title="Acrónimo – Spanish" lang="es" hreflang="es" data-title="Acrónimo" data-language-autonym="Español" data-language-local-name="Spanish" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Español</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-eo mw-list-item"><a href="https://eo.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akronimo" title="Akronimo – Esperanto" lang="eo" hreflang="eo" data-title="Akronimo" data-language-autonym="Esperanto" data-language-local-name="Esperanto" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Esperanto</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-eu mw-list-item"><a href="https://eu.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akronimo" title="Akronimo – Basque" lang="eu" hreflang="eu" data-title="Akronimo" data-language-autonym="Euskara" data-language-local-name="Basque" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Euskara</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-fa mw-list-item"><a href="https://fa.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D8%B3%D8%B1%D9%88%D8%A7%DA%98%D9%87" title="سرواژه – Persian" lang="fa" hreflang="fa" data-title="سرواژه" data-language-autonym="فارسی" data-language-local-name="Persian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>فارسی</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-fr mw-list-item"><a href="https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acronymie" title="Acronymie – French" lang="fr" hreflang="fr" data-title="Acronymie" data-language-autonym="Français" data-language-local-name="French" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Français</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ga mw-list-item"><a href="https://ga.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acrainm" title="Acrainm – Irish" lang="ga" hreflang="ga" data-title="Acrainm" data-language-autonym="Gaeilge" data-language-local-name="Irish" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Gaeilge</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-gl mw-list-item"><a href="https://gl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acr%C3%B3nimo" title="Acrónimo – Galician" lang="gl" hreflang="gl" data-title="Acrónimo" data-language-autonym="Galego" data-language-local-name="Galician" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Galego</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ko mw-list-item"><a href="https://ko.wikipedia.org/wiki/%EB%91%90%EB%AC%B8%EC%9E%90%EC%96%B4" title="두문자어 – Korean" lang="ko" hreflang="ko" data-title="두문자어" data-language-autonym="한국어" data-language-local-name="Korean" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>한국어</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-hi mw-list-item"><a href="https://hi.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E0%A4%AA%E0%A4%B0%E0%A4%BF%E0%A4%B5%E0%A4%B0%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%A3%E0%A5%80_%E0%A4%B6%E0%A4%AC%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%A6" title="परिवर्णी शब्द – Hindi" lang="hi" hreflang="hi" data-title="परिवर्णी शब्द" data-language-autonym="हिन्दी" data-language-local-name="Hindi" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>हिन्दी</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-hr mw-list-item"><a href="https://hr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pokrata" title="Pokrata – Croatian" lang="hr" hreflang="hr" data-title="Pokrata" data-language-autonym="Hrvatski" data-language-local-name="Croatian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Hrvatski</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-io mw-list-item"><a href="https://io.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akronimo" title="Akronimo – Ido" lang="io" hreflang="io" data-title="Akronimo" data-language-autonym="Ido" data-language-local-name="Ido" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Ido</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-id mw-list-item"><a href="https://id.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akronim" title="Akronim – Indonesian" lang="id" hreflang="id" data-title="Akronim" data-language-autonym="Bahasa Indonesia" data-language-local-name="Indonesian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Bahasa Indonesia</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ia mw-list-item"><a href="https://ia.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acronymo" title="Acronymo – Interlingua" lang="ia" hreflang="ia" data-title="Acronymo" data-language-autonym="Interlingua" data-language-local-name="Interlingua" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Interlingua</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-is mw-list-item"><a href="https://is.wikipedia.org/wiki/Upphafsstafaheiti" title="Upphafsstafaheiti – Icelandic" lang="is" hreflang="is" data-title="Upphafsstafaheiti" data-language-autonym="Íslenska" data-language-local-name="Icelandic" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Íslenska</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-it mw-list-item"><a href="https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acronimo" title="Acronimo – Italian" lang="it" hreflang="it" data-title="Acronimo" data-language-autonym="Italiano" data-language-local-name="Italian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Italiano</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-he mw-list-item"><a href="https://he.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D7%A8%D7%90%D7%A9%D7%99_%D7%AA%D7%99%D7%91%D7%95%D7%AA" title="ראשי תיבות – Hebrew" lang="he" hreflang="he" data-title="ראשי תיבות" data-language-autonym="עברית" data-language-local-name="Hebrew" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>עברית</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ka mw-list-item"><a href="https://ka.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E1%83%90%E1%83%99%E1%83%A0%E1%83%9D%E1%83%9C%E1%83%98%E1%83%9B%E1%83%98" title="აკრონიმი – Georgian" lang="ka" hreflang="ka" data-title="აკრონიმი" data-language-autonym="ქართული" data-language-local-name="Georgian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>ქართული</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-kk mw-list-item"><a href="https://kk.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%A8%D0%B0%D1%80%D1%82%D1%82%D1%8B_%D0%B1%D0%B5%D0%BB%D0%B3%D1%96" title="Шартты белгі – Kazakh" lang="kk" hreflang="kk" data-title="Шартты белгі" data-language-autonym="Қазақша" data-language-local-name="Kazakh" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Қазақша</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-sw mw-list-item"><a href="https://sw.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akronimu" title="Akronimu – Swahili" lang="sw" hreflang="sw" data-title="Akronimu" data-language-autonym="Kiswahili" data-language-local-name="Swahili" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Kiswahili</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-la mw-list-item"><a href="https://la.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acronymum" title="Acronymum – Latin" lang="la" hreflang="la" data-title="Acronymum" data-language-autonym="Latina" data-language-local-name="Latin" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Latina</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-lv mw-list-item"><a href="https://lv.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akron%C4%ABms" title="Akronīms – Latvian" lang="lv" hreflang="lv" data-title="Akronīms" data-language-autonym="Latviešu" data-language-local-name="Latvian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Latviešu</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-lb mw-list-item"><a href="https://lb.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akronym" title="Akronym – Luxembourgish" lang="lb" hreflang="lb" data-title="Akronym" data-language-autonym="Lëtzebuergesch" data-language-local-name="Luxembourgish" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Lëtzebuergesch</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-lt mw-list-item"><a href="https://lt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akronimas" title="Akronimas – Lithuanian" lang="lt" hreflang="lt" data-title="Akronimas" data-language-autonym="Lietuvių" data-language-local-name="Lithuanian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Lietuvių</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-hu mw-list-item"><a href="https://hu.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mozaiksz%C3%B3" title="Mozaikszó – Hungarian" lang="hu" hreflang="hu" data-title="Mozaikszó" data-language-autonym="Magyar" data-language-local-name="Hungarian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Magyar</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-mk mw-list-item"><a href="https://mk.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%90%D0%BA%D1%80%D0%BE%D0%BD%D0%B8%D0%BC" title="Акроним – Macedonian" lang="mk" hreflang="mk" data-title="Акроним" data-language-autonym="Македонски" data-language-local-name="Macedonian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Македонски</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ms mw-list-item"><a href="https://ms.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akronim" title="Akronim – Malay" lang="ms" hreflang="ms" data-title="Akronim" data-language-autonym="Bahasa Melayu" data-language-local-name="Malay" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Bahasa Melayu</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-nl mw-list-item"><a href="https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acroniem" title="Acroniem – Dutch" lang="nl" hreflang="nl" data-title="Acroniem" data-language-autonym="Nederlands" data-language-local-name="Dutch" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Nederlands</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ja mw-list-item"><a href="https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%A0%AD%E5%AD%97%E8%AA%9E" title="頭字語 – Japanese" lang="ja" hreflang="ja" data-title="頭字語" data-language-autonym="日本語" data-language-local-name="Japanese" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>日本語</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-no mw-list-item"><a href="https://no.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akronym" title="Akronym – Norwegian Bokmål" lang="nb" hreflang="nb" data-title="Akronym" data-language-autonym="Norsk bokmål" data-language-local-name="Norwegian Bokmål" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Norsk bokmål</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-nn mw-list-item"><a href="https://nn.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akronym" title="Akronym – Norwegian Nynorsk" lang="nn" hreflang="nn" data-title="Akronym" data-language-autonym="Norsk nynorsk" data-language-local-name="Norwegian Nynorsk" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Norsk nynorsk</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-oc mw-list-item"><a href="https://oc.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acronim" title="Acronim – Occitan" lang="oc" hreflang="oc" data-title="Acronim" data-language-autonym="Occitan" data-language-local-name="Occitan" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Occitan</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-pnb mw-list-item"><a href="https://pnb.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D8%AA%D8%B1%D8%AE%DB%8C%D9%85%DB%81" title="ترخیمہ – Western Punjabi" lang="pnb" hreflang="pnb" data-title="ترخیمہ" data-language-autonym="پنجابی" data-language-local-name="Western Punjabi" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>پنجابی</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-nds mw-list-item"><a href="https://nds.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akronym" title="Akronym – Low German" lang="nds" hreflang="nds" data-title="Akronym" data-language-autonym="Plattdüütsch" data-language-local-name="Low German" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Plattdüütsch</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-pl mw-list-item"><a href="https://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skr%C3%B3towiec" title="Skrótowiec – Polish" lang="pl" hreflang="pl" data-title="Skrótowiec" data-language-autonym="Polski" data-language-local-name="Polish" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Polski</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-pt mw-list-item"><a href="https://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acr%C3%B3nimo" title="Acrónimo – Portuguese" lang="pt" hreflang="pt" data-title="Acrónimo" data-language-autonym="Português" data-language-local-name="Portuguese" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Português</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ro mw-list-item"><a href="https://ro.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acronim" title="Acronim – Romanian" lang="ro" hreflang="ro" data-title="Acronim" data-language-autonym="Română" data-language-local-name="Romanian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Română</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ru mw-list-item"><a href="https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%90%D0%BA%D1%80%D0%BE%D0%BD%D0%B8%D0%BC" title="Акроним – Russian" lang="ru" hreflang="ru" data-title="Акроним" data-language-autonym="Русский" data-language-local-name="Russian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Русский</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-sah mw-list-item"><a href="https://sah.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%90%D0%BA%D1%80%D0%BE%D0%BD%D0%B8%D0%BC" title="Акроним – Yakut" lang="sah" hreflang="sah" data-title="Акроним" data-language-autonym="Саха тыла" data-language-local-name="Yakut" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Саха тыла</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-sc mw-list-item"><a href="https://sc.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acr%C3%B2nimu" title="Acrònimu – Sardinian" lang="sc" hreflang="sc" data-title="Acrònimu" data-language-autonym="Sardu" data-language-local-name="Sardinian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Sardu</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-sco mw-list-item"><a href="https://sco.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acronym" title="Acronym – Scots" lang="sco" hreflang="sco" data-title="Acronym" data-language-autonym="Scots" data-language-local-name="Scots" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Scots</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-sq mw-list-item"><a href="https://sq.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akronimi" title="Akronimi – Albanian" lang="sq" hreflang="sq" data-title="Akronimi" data-language-autonym="Shqip" data-language-local-name="Albanian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Shqip</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-scn mw-list-item"><a href="https://scn.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acr%C3%B2nimu" title="Acrònimu – Sicilian" lang="scn" hreflang="scn" data-title="Acrònimu" data-language-autonym="Sicilianu" data-language-local-name="Sicilian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Sicilianu</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-simple mw-list-item"><a href="https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acronym" title="Acronym – Simple English" lang="en-simple" hreflang="en-simple" data-title="Acronym" data-language-autonym="Simple English" data-language-local-name="Simple English" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Simple English</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-sk mw-list-item"><a href="https://sk.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akronym" title="Akronym – Slovak" lang="sk" hreflang="sk" data-title="Akronym" data-language-autonym="Slovenčina" data-language-local-name="Slovak" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Slovenčina</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-sl mw-list-item"><a href="https://sl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akronim" title="Akronim – Slovenian" lang="sl" hreflang="sl" data-title="Akronim" data-language-autonym="Slovenščina" data-language-local-name="Slovenian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Slovenščina</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-sr mw-list-item"><a href="https://sr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akronim" title="Akronim – Serbian" lang="sr" hreflang="sr" data-title="Akronim" data-language-autonym="Српски / srpski" data-language-local-name="Serbian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Српски / srpski</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-sh mw-list-item"><a href="https://sh.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akronim" title="Akronim – Serbo-Croatian" lang="sh" hreflang="sh" data-title="Akronim" data-language-autonym="Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски" data-language-local-name="Serbo-Croatian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-fi mw-list-item"><a href="https://fi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akronyymi_ja_kirjainlyhenne" title="Akronyymi ja kirjainlyhenne – Finnish" lang="fi" hreflang="fi" data-title="Akronyymi ja kirjainlyhenne" data-language-autonym="Suomi" data-language-local-name="Finnish" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Suomi</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-sv mw-list-item"><a href="https://sv.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akronym" title="Akronym – Swedish" lang="sv" hreflang="sv" data-title="Akronym" data-language-autonym="Svenska" data-language-local-name="Swedish" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Svenska</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-th mw-list-item"><a href="https://th.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E0%B8%AD%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%A9%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%A2%E0%B9%88%E0%B8%AD" title="อักษรย่อ – Thai" lang="th" hreflang="th" data-title="อักษรย่อ" data-language-autonym="ไทย" data-language-local-name="Thai" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>ไทย</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-tr mw-list-item"><a href="https://tr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akronim" title="Akronim – Turkish" lang="tr" hreflang="tr" data-title="Akronim" data-language-autonym="Türkçe" data-language-local-name="Turkish" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Türkçe</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-uk mw-list-item"><a href="https://uk.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%90%D0%BA%D1%80%D0%BE%D0%BD%D1%96%D0%BC" title="Акронім – Ukrainian" lang="uk" hreflang="uk" data-title="Акронім" data-language-autonym="Українська" data-language-local-name="Ukrainian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Українська</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ur mw-list-item"><a href="https://ur.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D8%AA%D8%B1%D8%AE%DB%8C%D9%85%DB%81" title="ترخیمہ – Urdu" lang="ur" hreflang="ur" data-title="ترخیمہ" data-language-autonym="اردو" data-language-local-name="Urdu" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>اردو</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-vec mw-list-item"><a href="https://vec.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acr%C3%B2nemo" title="Acrònemo – Venetian" lang="vec" hreflang="vec" data-title="Acrònemo" data-language-autonym="Vèneto" data-language-local-name="Venetian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Vèneto</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-vi mw-list-item"><a href="https://vi.wikipedia.org/wiki/T%E1%BB%AB_vi%E1%BA%BFt_t%E1%BA%AFt_t%E1%BB%AB_ch%E1%BB%AF_%C4%91%E1%BA%A7u" title="Từ viết tắt từ chữ đầu – Vietnamese" lang="vi" hreflang="vi" data-title="Từ viết tắt từ chữ đầu" data-language-autonym="Tiếng Việt" data-language-local-name="Vietnamese" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Tiếng Việt</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-wuu mw-list-item"><a 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class="vector-body" aria-labelledby="firstHeading" data-mw-ve-target-container> <div class="vector-body-before-content"> <div class="mw-indicators"> </div> <div id="siteSub" class="noprint">From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia</div> </div> <div id="contentSub"><div id="mw-content-subtitle"></div></div> <div id="mw-content-text" class="mw-body-content"><div class="mw-content-ltr mw-parser-output" lang="en" dir="ltr"><div class="shortdescription nomobile noexcerpt noprint searchaux" style="display:none">Abbreviation consisting of initial letters of a phrase</div> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1236090951">.mw-parser-output .hatnote{font-style:italic}.mw-parser-output div.hatnote{padding-left:1.6em;margin-bottom:0.5em}.mw-parser-output .hatnote i{font-style:normal}.mw-parser-output .hatnote+link+.hatnote{margin-top:-0.5em}@media print{body.ns-0 .mw-parser-output .hatnote{display:none!important}}</style><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">This article is about linguistic abbreviation. For the HTML element, see <a href="/wiki/ACRONYM_tag" class="mw-redirect" title="ACRONYM tag">ACRONYM tag</a>. For the political advocacy group, see <a href="/wiki/Acronym_(organization)" title="Acronym (organization)">Acronym (organization)</a>.</div> <p class="mw-empty-elt"> </p> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:NASA_logo.svg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e5/NASA_logo.svg/220px-NASA_logo.svg.png" decoding="async" width="220" height="184" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e5/NASA_logo.svg/330px-NASA_logo.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e5/NASA_logo.svg/440px-NASA_logo.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="110" data-file-height="92" /></a><figcaption>The name of <a href="/wiki/NASA" title="NASA">NASA</a> is an acronym that expands to National Aeronautics and Space Administration.</figcaption></figure> <p>An <b>acronym</b> is a type of <a href="/wiki/Abbreviation" title="Abbreviation">abbreviation</a> consisting of a phrase whose only pronounced elements are the initial letters or initial sounds of words inside that phrase. Acronyms are often spelled with the initial <a href="/wiki/Letter_(alphabet)" title="Letter (alphabet)">letter</a> of each <a href="/wiki/Word" title="Word">word</a> in <a href="/wiki/All_caps" title="All caps">all caps</a> with no <a href="/wiki/Punctuation" title="Punctuation">punctuation</a>. </p><p><span class="anchor" id="initialism"></span> For some, an <b>initialism</b><sup id="cite_ref-Brinton_Page_110_1-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Brinton_Page_110-1"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>1<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> or <b>alphabetism</b>, <a href="/wiki/Connote" class="mw-redirect" title="Connote">connotes</a> this general meaning, and an <i>acronym</i> is a <a href="/wiki/Subset" title="Subset">subset</a> with a narrower definition: an initialism pronounced as a word rather than as a sequence of letters. In this sense, <i><a href="/wiki/NASA" title="NASA">NASA</a></i> <span class="rt-commentedText nowrap"><span class="IPA nopopups noexcerpt" lang="en-fonipa"><a href="/wiki/Help:IPA/English" title="Help:IPA/English">/<span style="border-bottom:1px dotted"><span title="/ˈ/: primary stress follows">ˈ</span><span title="'n' in 'nigh'">n</span><span title="/æ/: 'a' in 'bad'">æ</span><span title="'s' in 'sigh'">s</span><span title="/ə/: 'a' in 'about'">ə</span></span>/</a></span></span> is an acronym but <i><a href="/wiki/United_States" title="United States">USA</a></i> <span class="rt-commentedText nowrap"><span class="IPA nopopups noexcerpt" lang="en-fonipa"><a href="/wiki/Help:IPA/English" title="Help:IPA/English">/<span style="border-bottom:1px dotted"><span title="/j/: 'y' in 'yes'">j</span><span title="/uː/: 'oo' in 'goose'">uː</span><span title="/ɛ/: 'e' in 'dress'">ɛ</span><span title="'s' in 'sigh'">s</span><span title="/ˈ/: primary stress follows">ˈ</span><span title="/eɪ/: 'a' in 'face'">eɪ</span></span>/</a></span></span> is not.<sup id="cite_ref-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-2"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>2<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-3" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-3"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>3<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>The broader sense of <i>acronym</i>, ignoring pronunciation, is its original meaning<sup id="cite_ref-OED_4-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-OED-4"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>4<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> and in common use.<sup id="cite_ref-Merriam-Webster_note_5-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Merriam-Webster_note-5"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>5<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Dictionary and style-guide editors dispute whether the term <i>acronym</i> can be legitimately applied to abbreviations which are not pronounced as words, and they do not agree on acronym <a href="/wiki/Space_(punctuation)" title="Space (punctuation)">spacing</a>, <a href="/wiki/Letter_case" title="Letter case">casing</a>, and <a href="/wiki/Punctuation" title="Punctuation">punctuation</a>. </p><p><span class="anchor" id="Expansion"></span> The phrase that the acronym stands for is called its <i>expansion</i>. The <i>meaning</i> of an acronym includes both its expansion and the meaning of its expansion. </p> <meta property="mw:PageProp/toc" /> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Etymology">Etymology</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=1" title="Edit section: Etymology"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>The word <i>acronym</i> is formed from the <a href="/wiki/Greek_root" class="mw-redirect" title="Greek root">Greek roots</a> <span title="Ancient Greek (to 1453)-language text"><i lang="grc-Latn">akro-</i></span>, meaning 'height, summit, or tip', and <span title="Ancient Greek (to 1453)-language text"><i lang="grc-Latn">-nym</i></span>, 'name'.<sup id="cite_ref-Wiktionary_6-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Wiktionary-6"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>6<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup class="noprint Inline-Template" style="white-space:nowrap;">[<i><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Reliable_sources" title="Wikipedia:Reliable sources"><span title="The material near this tag relies on an unreliable source. (December 2023)">unreliable source</span></a></i>]</sup> This <a href="/wiki/Neoclassical_compound" title="Neoclassical compound">neoclassical compound</a> appears to have originated in <a href="/wiki/German_language" title="German language">German</a>, with attestations for the German form <span title="German-language text"><i lang="de">Akronym</i></span> appearing as early as 1921.<sup id="cite_ref-Brockhaus_Handbuch_7-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Brockhaus_Handbuch-7"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>7<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Citations in English date to a 1940 translation of a novel by the German writer <a href="/wiki/Lion_Feuchtwanger" title="Lion Feuchtwanger">Lion Feuchtwanger</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-Paris_Gazette_8-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Paris_Gazette-8"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>8<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Nomenclature">Nomenclature</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=2" title="Edit section: Nomenclature"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1251242444">.mw-parser-output .ambox{border:1px solid #a2a9b1;border-left:10px solid #36c;background-color:#fbfbfb;box-sizing:border-box}.mw-parser-output .ambox+link+.ambox,.mw-parser-output .ambox+link+style+.ambox,.mw-parser-output .ambox+link+link+.ambox,.mw-parser-output .ambox+.mw-empty-elt+link+.ambox,.mw-parser-output .ambox+.mw-empty-elt+link+style+.ambox,.mw-parser-output .ambox+.mw-empty-elt+link+link+.ambox{margin-top:-1px}html body.mediawiki .mw-parser-output .ambox.mbox-small-left{margin:4px 1em 4px 0;overflow:hidden;width:238px;border-collapse:collapse;font-size:88%;line-height:1.25em}.mw-parser-output .ambox-speedy{border-left:10px solid #b32424;background-color:#fee7e6}.mw-parser-output .ambox-delete{border-left:10px solid #b32424}.mw-parser-output .ambox-content{border-left:10px solid #f28500}.mw-parser-output .ambox-style{border-left:10px solid #fc3}.mw-parser-output .ambox-move{border-left:10px solid #9932cc}.mw-parser-output .ambox-protection{border-left:10px solid #a2a9b1}.mw-parser-output .ambox .mbox-text{border:none;padding:0.25em 0.5em;width:100%}.mw-parser-output .ambox .mbox-image{border:none;padding:2px 0 2px 0.5em;text-align:center}.mw-parser-output .ambox .mbox-imageright{border:none;padding:2px 0.5em 2px 0;text-align:center}.mw-parser-output .ambox .mbox-empty-cell{border:none;padding:0;width:1px}.mw-parser-output .ambox .mbox-image-div{width:52px}@media(min-width:720px){.mw-parser-output .ambox{margin:0 10%}}@media print{body.ns-0 .mw-parser-output .ambox{display:none!important}}</style><table class="box-Unreferenced_section plainlinks metadata ambox ambox-content ambox-Unreferenced" role="presentation"><tbody><tr><td class="mbox-image"><div class="mbox-image-div"><span typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/File:Question_book-new.svg" class="mw-file-description"><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/50px-Question_book-new.svg.png" decoding="async" width="50" height="39" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/75px-Question_book-new.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/100px-Question_book-new.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="512" data-file-height="399" /></a></span></div></td><td class="mbox-text"><div class="mbox-text-span">This section <b>does not <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Citing_sources" title="Wikipedia:Citing sources">cite</a> any <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Verifiability" title="Wikipedia:Verifiability">sources</a></b>.<span class="hide-when-compact"> Please help <a href="/wiki/Special:EditPage/Acronym" title="Special:EditPage/Acronym">improve this section</a> by <a href="/wiki/Help:Referencing_for_beginners" title="Help:Referencing for beginners">adding citations to reliable sources</a>. Unsourced material may be challenged and <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Verifiability#Burden_of_evidence" title="Wikipedia:Verifiability">removed</a>.</span> <span class="date-container"><i>(<span class="date">August 2024</span>)</i></span><span class="hide-when-compact"><i> (<small><a href="/wiki/Help:Maintenance_template_removal" title="Help:Maintenance template removal">Learn how and when to remove this message</a></small>)</i></span></div></td></tr></tbody></table> <p>In general, <a href="/wiki/Abbreviation" title="Abbreviation">abbreviation</a>, including acronyms, can be any shortened form of a word or phrase. This includes letters removed from the end of a word such as <i>prof.</i> for <i>professor</i>, letters removed from the middle of a word such as <i>rd.</i> for <i>road</i> and a contraction such as <i>I'm</i> for <i>I am</i>. </p><p>An acronym in its general sense, a.k.a. initialism, is the first letter of each word of a phrase, such as <i>NBC</i> for <i>National Broadcasting Company</i>, with each letter pronounced individually, sometimes because the string of letters can be hard or impossible to pronounce as a word. In its narrow sense, an acronym is an initialism that is pronounced as a word. For example, <i>NASA</i>, <i>National Aeronautics and Space Administration</i>, is generally pronounced as a word. </p><p>Less significant words such as <i>in</i>, <i>of</i>, and <i>the</i> are usually dropped (<i>NYT</i> for <i><a href="/wiki/The_New_York_Times" title="The New York Times">The New York Times</a></i>, <i>DMV</i> for <i><a href="/wiki/Department_of_Motor_Vehicles" class="mw-redirect" title="Department of Motor Vehicles">Department of Motor Vehicles</a></i>), but not always (<i>DOJ</i> for <i><a href="/wiki/United_States_Department_of_Justice" title="United States Department of Justice">Department of Justice</a></i>). </p><p>Sometimes the first letter of a <a href="/wiki/Morpheme" title="Morpheme">morpheme</a> is used instead of a first letter of a word. For example <i><a href="/wiki/AIDS" class="mw-redirect" title="AIDS">AIDS</a></i>, <i>acquired immunodeficiency syndrome</i>, uses the <i>d</i> from the word <i>immuno-deficiency</i>.<sup id="cite_ref-Brinton_Page_109_9-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Brinton_Page_109-9"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>9<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>Sometimes it uses a letter from the middle or end of a word, or from only a few key words in a long phrase. </p><p>Occasionally, some letter other than the first is chosen, most often when the pronunciation of the name of the letter coincides with the pronunciation of the beginning of the word (example: <i>BX</i> for <i><a href="/wiki/Base_exchange" title="Base exchange">base exchange</a></i>). </p><p>An acronym that is pronounced as a word, such as <i>NASA</i>, is sometimes called a <i>word acronym</i>. This term is over-qualified to those who use <i>acronym</i> to mean "pronounced as a word", but is useful for those who consider acronym and initialism to be synonymous. </p><p>Some acronyms are partially pronounced as a word and otherwise pronounced as letters. For example, <i><a href="/wiki/JPEG" title="JPEG">JPEG</a></i> (<span class="rt-commentedText nowrap"><span class="IPA nopopups noexcerpt" lang="en-fonipa"><a href="/wiki/Help:IPA/English" title="Help:IPA/English">/<span style="border-bottom:1px dotted"><span title="/ˈ/: primary stress follows">ˈ</span><span title="/dʒ/: 'j' in 'jam'">dʒ</span><span title="/eɪ/: 'a' in 'face'">eɪ</span><span title="'p' in 'pie'">p</span><span title="/ɛ/: 'e' in 'dress'">ɛ</span><span title="/ɡ/: 'g' in 'guy'">ɡ</span></span>/</a></span></span> <a href="/wiki/Help:Pronunciation_respelling_key" title="Help:Pronunciation respelling key"><i title="English pronunciation respelling"><span style="font-size:90%">JAY</span>-peg</i></a>) and <i><a href="/wiki/MS-DOS" title="MS-DOS">MS-DOS</a></i> (<span class="rt-commentedText nowrap"><span class="IPA nopopups noexcerpt" lang="en-fonipa"><a href="/wiki/Help:IPA/English" title="Help:IPA/English">/<span style="border-bottom:1px dotted"><span title="/ˌ/: secondary stress follows">ˌ</span><span title="/ɛ/: 'e' in 'dress'">ɛ</span><span title="'m' in 'my'">m</span><span title="/ɛ/: 'e' in 'dress'">ɛ</span><span title="'s' in 'sigh'">s</span><span title="/ˈ/: primary stress follows">ˈ</span><span title="'d' in 'dye'">d</span><span title="/ɒ/: 'o' in 'body'">ɒ</span><span title="'s' in 'sigh'">s</span></span>/</a></span></span> <a href="/wiki/Help:Pronunciation_respelling_key" title="Help:Pronunciation respelling key"><i title="English pronunciation respelling">em-ess-<span style="font-size:90%">DOSS</span></i></a>). </p><p>Some abbreviations are a mixture of <i><a href="/wiki/Abbreviation#Syllabic_abbreviation" title="Abbreviation">syllabic abbreviation</a></i> and acronym. These are usually pronounced as words and considered to be acronyms overall. For example, <i><a href="/wiki/Radar" title="Radar">radar</a></i> for <i>radio detection and ranging</i>, consisting of syllabic abbreviation <i>ra</i> for <i>radio</i> and acronym <i>dar</i> for <i>detection and ranging.</i>. </p><p>Some acronyms are pronounced as letters or as a word based on speaker preference or context. For example, <i>URL</i> (<a href="/wiki/Uniform_resource_locator" class="mw-redirect" title="Uniform resource locator">uniform resource locator</a>) and <i>IRA</i> (<a href="/wiki/Individual_retirement_account" title="Individual retirement account">individual retirement account</a>) are pronounced as letters or as a word: <span class="rt-commentedText nowrap"><span class="IPA nopopups noexcerpt" lang="en-fonipa"><a href="/wiki/Help:IPA/English" title="Help:IPA/English">/<span style="border-bottom:1px dotted"><span title="/ɜːr/: 'ur' in 'fur'">ɜːr</span><span title="'l' in 'lie'">l</span></span>/</a></span></span> <a href="/wiki/Help:Pronunciation_respelling_key" title="Help:Pronunciation respelling key"><i title="English pronunciation respelling"><span style="font-size:90%">URL</span></i></a> and <span class="rt-commentedText nowrap"><span class="IPA nopopups noexcerpt" lang="en-fonipa"><a href="/wiki/Help:IPA/English" title="Help:IPA/English">/<span style="border-bottom:1px dotted"><span title="/ˈ/: primary stress follows">ˈ</span><span title="/aɪ/: 'i' in 'tide'">aɪ</span><span title="'r' in 'rye'">r</span><span title="/ə/: 'a' in 'about'">ə</span></span>/</a></span></span> <a href="/wiki/Help:Pronunciation_respelling_key" title="Help:Pronunciation respelling key"><i title="English pronunciation respelling"><span style="font-size:90%">EYE</span>-rə</i></a>, respectively. When <i>IRA</i> is used to mean <a href="/wiki/Irish_Republican_Army" title="Irish Republican Army">Irish Republican Army</a> it is always pronounced as letters. Speakers may use different pronunciation as a way to <a href="/wiki/Disambiguate" class="mw-redirect" title="Disambiguate">disambiguate</a> overloaded abbreviations. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Pronounceability_controversy">Pronounceability controversy</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=3" title="Edit section: Pronounceability controversy"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>It is an unsettled question in English <a href="/wiki/Lexicography" title="Lexicography">lexicography</a> and <a href="/wiki/Style_guide" title="Style guide">style guides</a> whether it is legitimate to use the word <i>acronym</i> to describe forms that use initials but are not pronounced as a word. While there is plenty of evidence that <i>acronym</i> is used widely in this way, some sources do not acknowledge this usage, reserving the term <i>acronym</i> only for forms pronounced as a word, and using <i>initialism</i> or <i>abbreviation</i> for those that are not. Some sources acknowledge the usage, but vary in whether they criticize or forbid it, allow it without comment, or explicitly advocate it. </p><p>Some mainstream English dictionaries from across the English-speaking world affirm a <a href="/wiki/Word_sense" title="Word sense">sense</a> of <i>acronym</i> which does not require being pronounced as a word. American English dictionaries such as <i><a href="/wiki/Merriam-Webster" title="Merriam-Webster">Merriam-Webster</a></i>,<sup id="cite_ref-Merriam-Webster_10-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Merriam-Webster-10"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>10<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Dictionary.com's <i><a href="/wiki/Random_House_Webster%27s_Unabridged_Dictionary" title="Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary">Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary</a></i><sup id="cite_ref-Dictionary.com_11-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Dictionary.com-11"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>11<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> and the <i><a href="/wiki/American_Heritage_Dictionary" class="mw-redirect" title="American Heritage Dictionary">American Heritage Dictionary</a></i><sup id="cite_ref-AHD5_12-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-AHD5-12"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>12<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> as well as the British <i><a href="/wiki/Oxford_English_Dictionary" title="Oxford English Dictionary">Oxford English Dictionary</a></i><sup id="cite_ref-OED_4-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-OED-4"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>4<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> and the Australian <i><a href="/wiki/Macquarie_Dictionary" title="Macquarie Dictionary">Macquarie Dictionary</a></i><sup id="cite_ref-Macquarie_13-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Macquarie-13"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>13<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> all include a sense in their entries for <i>acronym</i> equating it with <i>initialism</i>, although <i>The American Heritage Dictionary</i> criticizes it with the label "usage problem".<sup id="cite_ref-AHD5_12-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-AHD5-12"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>12<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> However, many English language dictionaries, such as the <i><a href="/wiki/Collins_COBUILD_Advanced_Dictionary" title="Collins COBUILD Advanced Dictionary">Collins COBUILD Advanced Dictionary</a></i>,<sup id="cite_ref-Collins_14-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Collins-14"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>14<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> <i><a href="/wiki/Cambridge_Advanced_Learner%27s_Dictionary" title="Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary">Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary</a></i>,<sup id="cite_ref-Cambridge_15-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Cambridge-15"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>15<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> <i><a href="/wiki/Macmillan_Dictionary" class="mw-redirect" title="Macmillan Dictionary">Macmillan Dictionary</a></i>,<sup id="cite_ref-Macmillan_16-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Macmillan-16"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>16<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> <i><a href="/wiki/Longman_Dictionary_of_Contemporary_English" title="Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English">Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English</a></i>,<sup id="cite_ref-Longman_17-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Longman-17"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>17<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> <i><a href="/wiki/New_Oxford_American_Dictionary" title="New Oxford American Dictionary">New Oxford American Dictionary</a></i>,<sup id="cite_ref-NOAD_18-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-NOAD-18"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>18<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> <i><a href="/wiki/Webster%27s_New_World_Dictionary" title="Webster's New World Dictionary">Webster's New World Dictionary</a></i>,<sup id="cite_ref-Websters-New-World_19-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Websters-New-World-19"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>19<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> and <i><a href="/wiki/Lexico" title="Lexico">Lexico</a></i> from Oxford University Press<sup id="cite_ref-Lexico_20-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Lexico-20"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>20<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> do not acknowledge such a sense. </p><p>Most of the dictionary entries and style guide recommendations regarding the term <i>acronym</i> through the twentieth century did not explicitly acknowledge or support the expansive sense. The <a href="/wiki/Merriam%E2%80%93Webster%27s_Dictionary_of_English_Usage" class="mw-redirect" title="Merriam–Webster's Dictionary of English Usage">Merriam–Webster's Dictionary of English Usage</a> from 1994 is one of the earliest publications to advocate for the expansive sense,<sup id="cite_ref-MWDEU_21-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-MWDEU-21"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>21<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> and all the major dictionary editions that include a sense of <i>acronym</i> equating it with <i>initialism</i> were first published in the twenty-first century. The trend among dictionary editors appears to be towards including a sense defining <i>acronym</i> as <i>initialism</i>: the <i><a href="/wiki/Merriam-Webster%27s_Collegiate_Dictionary" class="mw-redirect" title="Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary">Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary</a></i> added such a sense in its 11th edition in 2003,<sup id="cite_ref-MW10_22-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-MW10-22"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>22<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-MW11_23-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-MW11-23"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>23<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> and both the <i><a href="/wiki/Oxford_English_Dictionary" title="Oxford English Dictionary">Oxford English Dictionary</a></i><sup id="cite_ref-OED1989_24-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-OED1989-24"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>24<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-OED_4-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-OED-4"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>4<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> and <i><a href="/wiki/The_American_Heritage_Dictionary" class="mw-redirect" title="The American Heritage Dictionary">The American Heritage Dictionary</a></i><sup id="cite_ref-AHD4_25-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-AHD4-25"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>25<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-AHD5_12-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-AHD5-12"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>12<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> added such senses in their 2011 editions. The 1989 edition of the <i>Oxford English Dictionary</i> only included the exclusive sense for <i>acronym</i> and its earliest citation was from 1943.<sup id="cite_ref-OED1989_24-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-OED1989-24"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>24<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> In early December 2010, <a href="/wiki/Duke_University" title="Duke University">Duke University</a> researcher Stephen Goranson published a citation for <i>acronym</i> to the <a href="/wiki/American_Dialect_Society" title="American Dialect Society">American Dialect Society</a> e-mail discussion list which refers to <i>PGN</i> being pronounced "pee-gee-enn", <a href="/wiki/Antedating_(lexicography)" title="Antedating (lexicography)">antedating</a> English language usage of the word to 1940.<sup id="cite_ref-26" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-26"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>26<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Linguist <a href="/wiki/Ben_Zimmer" title="Ben Zimmer">Ben Zimmer</a> then mentioned this citation in his December 16, 2010 "<a href="/wiki/On_Language" title="On Language">On Language</a>" column about acronyms in <i><a href="/wiki/The_New_York_Times_Magazine" title="The New York Times Magazine">The New York Times Magazine</a></i>.<sup id="cite_ref-27" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-27"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>27<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> By 2011, the publication of the 3rd edition of the <i>Oxford English Dictionary</i> added the expansive sense to its entry for <i>acronym</i> and included the 1940 citation.<sup id="cite_ref-OED_4-3" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-OED-4"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>4<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> As the <i>Oxford English Dictionary</i> structures the senses in order of chronological development,<sup id="cite_ref-28" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-28"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>28<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> it now gives the "initialism" sense first. </p><p>English language usage and style guides which have entries for <i>acronym</i> generally criticize the usage that refers to forms that are not pronounceable words. <i><a href="/wiki/Fowler%27s_Dictionary_of_Modern_English_Usage" class="mw-redirect" title="Fowler's Dictionary of Modern English Usage">Fowler's Dictionary of Modern English Usage</a></i> says that <i>acronym</i> "denotes abbreviations formed from initial letters of other words and pronounced as a single word, such as <i>NATO</i> (as distinct from <i>B-B-C</i>)" but adds later "In everyday use, <i>acronym</i> is often applied to abbreviations that are technically initialisms, since they are pronounced as separate letters."<sup id="cite_ref-Fowler2015_29-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Fowler2015-29"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>29<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> <i><a href="/wiki/The_Chicago_Manual_of_Style" title="The Chicago Manual of Style">The Chicago Manual of Style</a></i> acknowledges the complexity ("Furthermore, an acronym and initialism are occasionally combined (JPEG), and the line between initialism and acronym is not always clear") but still defines the terms as mutually exclusive.<sup id="cite_ref-CMOS16_30-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-CMOS16-30"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>30<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Other guides outright deny any legitimacy to the usage: <i><a href="/wiki/Bryson%27s_Dictionary_of_Troublesome_Words" title="Bryson's Dictionary of Troublesome Words">Bryson's Dictionary of Troublesome Words</a></i> says "Abbreviations that are not pronounced as words (IBM, ABC, NFL) are not acronyms; they are just abbreviations."<sup id="cite_ref-Bryson2002_31-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Bryson2002-31"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>31<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> <i><a href="/wiki/Garner%27s_Modern_American_Usage" class="mw-redirect" title="Garner's Modern American Usage">Garner's Modern American Usage</a></i> says "An acronym is made from the first letters or parts of a compound term. It's read or spoken as a single word, not letter by letter."<sup id="cite_ref-Garner2009_32-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Garner2009-32"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>32<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> <i><a href="/wiki/The_New_York_Times_Manual_of_Style_and_Usage" title="The New York Times Manual of Style and Usage">The New York Times Manual of Style and Usage</a></i> says "Unless pronounced as a word, an abbreviation is not an acronym."<sup id="cite_ref-SiegalConnolly2015_33-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-SiegalConnolly2015-33"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>33<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>In contrast, some style guides do support it, whether explicitly or implicitly. The 1994 edition of <i><a href="/wiki/Merriam-Webster%27s_Dictionary_of_English_Usage" title="Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of English Usage">Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of English Usage</a></i> defends the usage on the basis of a claim that dictionaries do not make a distinction.<sup id="cite_ref-MWDEU_21-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-MWDEU-21"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>21<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The <a href="/wiki/BuzzFeed" title="BuzzFeed">BuzzFeed</a> style guide describes CBS and PBS as "acronyms ending in S".<sup id="cite_ref-BuzzFeed_34-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-BuzzFeed-34"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>34<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Examples">Examples</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=4" title="Edit section: Examples"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236090951"><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">Main article: <a href="/wiki/Lists_of_acronyms" title="Lists of acronyms">Lists of acronyms</a></div> <ul><li>Pronounced as letters <ul><li><a href="/wiki/British_Broadcasting_Corporation" class="mw-redirect" title="British Broadcasting Corporation">BBC</a>: "British Broadcasting Corporation"</li> <li><a href="/wiki/DVD" title="DVD">DVD</a>: "Digital Video Disc"</li> <li><a href="/wiki/OEM" class="mw-redirect" title="OEM">OEM</a>: "original equipment manufacturer"</li> <li><a href="/wiki/United_States" title="United States">USA</a>: "United States of America"</li> <li><a href="/wiki/VHF" class="mw-redirect" title="VHF">VHF</a>: "very high frequency"</li></ul></li> <li>Pronounced as word; initials only <ul><li><a href="/wiki/NATO" title="NATO">NATO</a>: "North Atlantic Treaty Organization"</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Scuba_set" title="Scuba set">Scuba</a>: "self-contained underwater breathing apparatus"</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Laser" title="Laser">Laser</a>: "light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation"</li> <li><a href="/wiki/GIF" title="GIF">GIF</a>: "graphics interchange format"</li></ul></li> <li>Pronounced as word; initials and non-initials <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Amphetamine" title="Amphetamine">Amphetamine</a>: "alpha-methyl-phenethylamine"</li> <li><span title="German-language text"><i lang="de"><a href="/wiki/Gestapo" title="Gestapo">Gestapo</a></i></span>: German <span title="German-language text"><i lang="de">Geheime Staatspolizei</i></span> ('secret state police')</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Radar" title="Radar">Radar</a>: "radio detection and ranging"</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Lidar" title="Lidar">Lidar</a>: "light detection and ranging"</li></ul></li> <li>Pronounced as combination of word and letters <ul><li><a href="/wiki/CD-ROM" title="CD-ROM">CD-ROM</a>: (<i>cee-dee-</i><span class="rt-commentedText nowrap"><span class="IPA nopopups noexcerpt" lang="en-fonipa"><a href="/wiki/Help:IPA/English" title="Help:IPA/English">/<span style="border-bottom:1px dotted"><span title="'r' in 'rye'">r</span><span title="/ɒ/: 'o' in 'body'">ɒ</span><span title="'m' in 'my'">m</span></span>/</a></span></span>) "compact disc read-only memory"</li> <li><a href="/wiki/IUPAC" class="mw-redirect" title="IUPAC">IUPAC</a>: (<i>i-u-</i><span class="rt-commentedText nowrap"><span class="IPA nopopups noexcerpt" lang="en-fonipa"><a href="/wiki/Help:IPA/English" title="Help:IPA/English">/<span style="border-bottom:1px dotted"><span title="'p' in 'pie'">p</span><span title="/æ/: 'a' in 'bad'">æ</span><span title="'k' in 'kind'">k</span></span>/</a></span></span> or <i>i-u-pee-a-cee</i>) "International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry"</li> <li><a href="/wiki/JPEG" title="JPEG">JPEG</a>: (<i>jay-</i><span class="rt-commentedText nowrap"><span class="IPA nopopups noexcerpt" lang="en-fonipa"><a href="/wiki/Help:IPA/English" title="Help:IPA/English">/<span style="border-bottom:1px dotted"><span title="'p' in 'pie'">p</span><span title="/ɛ/: 'e' in 'dress'">ɛ</span><span title="/ɡ/: 'g' in 'guy'">ɡ</span></span>/</a></span></span> or <i>jay-pee-e-gee</i>) "Joint Photographic Experts Group"</li> <li><a href="/wiki/San_Francisco_Museum_of_Modern_Art" title="San Francisco Museum of Modern Art">SFMOMA</a>: (<i>ess-ef-</i><span class="rt-commentedText nowrap"><span class="IPA nopopups noexcerpt" lang="en-fonipa"><a href="/wiki/Help:IPA/English" title="Help:IPA/English">/<span style="border-bottom:1px dotted"><span title="/ˈ/: primary stress follows">ˈ</span><span title="'m' in 'my'">m</span><span title="/oʊ/: 'o' in 'code'">oʊ</span><span title="'m' in 'my'">m</span><span title="/ə/: 'a' in 'about'">ə</span></span>/</a></span></span> or <i>ess-ef-em-o-em-a</i>) "San Francisco Museum of Modern Art"</li></ul></li> <li>Pronounced as shortcut phrase of letters <ul><li>AAA: <ul><li>(<i>Triple-A</i>) "<a href="/wiki/American_Automobile_Association" title="American Automobile Association">American Automobile Association</a>"; "<a href="/wiki/Abdominal_aortic_aneurysm" title="Abdominal aortic aneurysm">abdominal aortic aneurysm</a>"; "<a href="/wiki/Anti-aircraft_artillery" class="mw-redirect" title="Anti-aircraft artillery">anti-aircraft artillery</a>"; "<a href="/wiki/Asistencia,_Asesor%C3%ADa_y_Administraci%C3%B3n" class="mw-redirect" title="Asistencia, Asesoría y Administración">Asistencia, Asesoría y Administración</a>"</li> <li>(<i>Three-As</i>) "<a href="/wiki/Amateur_Athletic_Association" class="mw-redirect" title="Amateur Athletic Association">Amateur Athletic Association</a>"</li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Institute_of_Electrical_and_Electronics_Engineers" title="Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers">IEEE</a>: (<i>I triple-E</i>) "Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers"</li> <li><a href="/wiki/National_Association_for_the_Advancement_of_Colored_People" class="mw-redirect" title="National Association for the Advancement of Colored People">NAACP</a>: (<i>N double-A C P</i> or <i>N A A C P</i>) "National Association for the Advancement of Colored People"</li> <li><a href="/wiki/National_Collegiate_Athletic_Association" title="National Collegiate Athletic Association">NCAA</a>: (<i>N C double-A</i> or <i>N C two-A</i> or <i>N C A A</i>) "National Collegiate Athletic Association"</li></ul></li> <li>Shortcut incorporated into spelling <ul><li><a href="/wiki/3M" title="3M">3M</a>: (<i>three M</i>) originally "Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company"</li> <li><a href="/wiki/W3C" class="mw-redirect" title="W3C">W3C</a>: (<i>W-three C</i>) "World Wide Web Consortium"</li> <li><a href="/wiki/A2DP" class="mw-redirect" title="A2DP">A2DP</a>: (<i>A-two D P</i>) "Advanced Audio Distribution Profile"</li> <li><a href="/wiki/I18N" class="mw-redirect" title="I18N">I18N</a>: (<i>"18" stands in for the word's middle eighteen letters, "nternationalizatio"</i>) "Internationalization"</li> <li><a href="/wiki/C4ISTAR" class="mw-redirect" title="C4ISTAR">C4ISTAR</a>: (<i>C-four Istar</i>) "Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition, and Reconnaissance"<sup id="cite_ref-35" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-35"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>35<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup></li></ul></li> <li>Mnemonic (memory-aid) <ul><li><a href="/wiki/KISS_principle" title="KISS principle">KISS</a> "Keep it simple, stupid", a design principle preferring simplicity</li> <li><a href="/wiki/SMART_criteria" title="SMART criteria">SMART</a> "Specific, Measurable, Assignable, Realistic, Time-related", A principle of setting of goals and objectives</li> <li><a href="/wiki/FAST_(stroke)" title="FAST (stroke)">FAST</a> "Facial drooping, Arm weakness, Speech difficulties, Time", helps detect and enhance responsiveness to the needs of a person having a <a href="/wiki/Stroke" title="Stroke">stroke</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Don%27t_repeat_yourself" title="Don't repeat yourself">DRY</a> "Don't repeat yourself", A principle of software development aimed at reducing repetition of software patterns</li></ul></li> <li>Multi-layered <ul><li><a href="/wiki/AIM_(software)" title="AIM (software)">AIM</a>: "AOL Instant Messenger", in which "<a href="/wiki/AOL" title="AOL">AOL</a>" originally stood for "America Online"</li> <li><a href="/wiki/ASEAN_Free_Trade_Area" title="ASEAN Free Trade Area">AFTA</a>: "ASEAN Free Trade Area", where <a href="/wiki/ASEAN" title="ASEAN">ASEAN</a> stands for "Association of Southeast Asian Nations"</li> <li><a href="/wiki/GIMP" title="GIMP">GIMP</a>: "<a href="/wiki/GNU" title="GNU">GNU</a> image manipulation program"</li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Recursive_acronyms" class="mw-redirect" title="Recursive acronyms">Recursive</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/GNU" title="GNU">GNU</a>: "GNU's not Unix!"</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Wine_(software)" title="Wine (software)">Wine</a>: "Wine is not an emulator" (originally, "Windows emulator")</li> <li><a href="/wiki/GNU_Hurd" title="GNU Hurd">HURD</a>: "HIRD of Unix-replacing daemons", where "HIRD" stands for "HURD of interfaces representing depth"</li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Gramogram" title="Gramogram">Gramograms</a>, pseudo-acronyms<sup id="cite_ref-36" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-36"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>36<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/CQ_(call)" title="CQ (call)">CQ</a>: <i>cee-cue</i> for "seek you", a code used by radio operators</li> <li><a href="/wiki/IOU_(debt)" class="mw-redirect" title="IOU (debt)">IOU</a>: <i>i-o-u</i> for "I owe you"</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Police_dog" title="Police dog">K9</a>: <i>kay-nine</i> for "canine", used to designate police units using dogs</li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/RAS_syndrome" title="RAS syndrome">RAS syndrome</a> phrases <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Automated_teller_machine" class="mw-redirect" title="Automated teller machine">ATM</a> machine: "automated teller machine machine"</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Human_immunodeficiency_virus" class="mw-redirect" title="Human immunodeficiency virus">HIV</a> virus: "human immunodeficiency virus virus"</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Liquid-crystal_display" title="Liquid-crystal display">LCD</a> display: "liquid-crystal display display"</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Personal_identification_number" title="Personal identification number">PIN</a> number: "personal identification number number"</li></ul></li></ul> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Historical_and_current_use">Historical and current use</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=5" title="Edit section: Historical and current use"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1251242444"><table class="box-More_citations_needed_section plainlinks metadata ambox ambox-content ambox-Refimprove" role="presentation"><tbody><tr><td class="mbox-image"><div class="mbox-image-div"><span typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/File:Question_book-new.svg" class="mw-file-description"><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/50px-Question_book-new.svg.png" decoding="async" width="50" height="39" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/75px-Question_book-new.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/100px-Question_book-new.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="512" data-file-height="399" /></a></span></div></td><td class="mbox-text"><div class="mbox-text-span">This section <b>needs additional citations for <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Verifiability" title="Wikipedia:Verifiability">verification</a></b>.<span class="hide-when-compact"> Please help <a href="/wiki/Special:EditPage/Acronym" title="Special:EditPage/Acronym">improve this article</a> by <a href="/wiki/Help:Referencing_for_beginners" title="Help:Referencing for beginners">adding citations to reliable sources</a> in this section. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.</span> <span class="date-container"><i>(<span class="date">January 2015</span>)</i></span><span class="hide-when-compact"><i> (<small><a href="/wiki/Help:Maintenance_template_removal" title="Help:Maintenance template removal">Learn how and when to remove this message</a></small>)</i></span></div></td></tr></tbody></table> <p>Acronymy, like <a href="/wiki/Retronym" title="Retronym">retronymy</a>, is a linguistic process that has existed throughout history but for which there was little to no <a href="/wiki/Metalanguage" title="Metalanguage">naming</a>, conscious attention, or <a href="/wiki/Linguistics" title="Linguistics">systematic analysis</a> until relatively recent times. Like retronymy, it became much more common in the twentieth century than it had formerly been. </p><p>Ancient examples of acronymy (before the term "acronym" was invented) include the following: </p> <ul><li>Acronyms were used in Rome before the Christian era. For example, the official name for the Roman Empire, and the Republic before it, was abbreviated as <i><a href="/wiki/SPQR" title="SPQR">SPQR</a></i> (<span title="Latin-language text"><i lang="la">Senatus Populusque Romanus</i></span>). Inscriptions dating from antiquity, both on stone and on coins, use many abbreviations and acronyms to save space and work. For example, <a href="/wiki/Praenomen" title="Praenomen">Roman first names</a>, of which there was only a small set, were almost always abbreviated. Common terms were abbreviated too, such as writing just "F" for <span title="Latin-language text"><i lang="la">filius</i></span>, meaning "son", a very common part of memorial inscriptions mentioning people. Grammatical markers were abbreviated or left out entirely if they could be inferred from the rest of the text.</li> <li>So-called <span title="Latin-language text"><i lang="la"><a href="/wiki/Nomina_sacra" title="Nomina sacra">nomina sacra</a></i></span> ('sacred names') were used in many Greek biblical manuscripts. The common words God (<span title="Ancient Greek (to 1453)-language text"><span lang="grc">Θεός</span></span>), Jesus (<span title="Ancient Greek (to 1453)-language text"><span lang="grc">Ιησούς</span></span>), Christ (<span title="Ancient Greek (to 1453)-language text"><span lang="grc">Χριστός</span></span>), and some others, would be abbreviated by their first and last letters, marked with an overline. This was just one of many kinds of conventional scribal abbreviation, used to reduce the time-consuming workload of the scribe and save on valuable writing materials. The same convention is still commonly used in the inscriptions on religious <a href="/wiki/Icon" title="Icon">icons</a> and the stamps used to mark the eucharistic bread in <a href="/wiki/Eastern_Christianity" title="Eastern Christianity">Eastern Churches</a>.</li> <li>The early Christians in Rome, most of whom were Greek rather than Latin speakers, used the image of a fish as a symbol for <a href="/wiki/Jesus" title="Jesus">Jesus</a> in part because of an acronym (or <a href="/wiki/Backronym" title="Backronym">backronym</a>): 'fish' in Greek is <span title="Ancient Greek (to 1453)-language romanization"><i lang="grc-Latn"><a href="/wiki/Ichthys" title="Ichthys">ichthys</a></i></span> (<span title="Ancient Greek (to 1453)-language text"><span lang="grc">ΙΧΘΥΣ</span></span>), which was construed to stand for <span title="Ancient Greek (to 1453)-language text"><span lang="grc"><span title="Ancient Greek (to 1453)-language text"><span lang="grc">Ἰησοῦς Χριστός Θεοῦ Υἱός Σωτήρ</span></span></span></span> (<span title="Ancient Greek (to 1453)-language romanization"><i lang="grc-Latn">Iesous Christos Theou huios Soter</i></span>: 'Jesus Christ, God's Son, Savior'). This interpretation dates from the second and third centuries and is preserved in the <a href="/wiki/Catacombs" title="Catacombs">catacombs</a> of Rome. Another ancient acronym for Jesus is the inscription <i><a href="/wiki/INRI" class="mw-redirect" title="INRI">INRI</a></i> over the crucifix, for the Latin <span title="Latin-language text"><i lang="la">Iesus Nazarenus Rex Iudaeorum</i></span> ('Jesus the Nazarene, King of the Jews').</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Hebrew_language" title="Hebrew language">Hebrew</a> has a millennia-long history of acronyms pronounced as words. Along with theophoric parallels to the Greek described above, <a href="/wiki/Talmud" title="Talmud">Talmudic</a> sages as early as <a href="/wiki/Rabbi_Yehuda" class="mw-redirect" title="Rabbi Yehuda">Rabbi Yehuda</a> shorten the <a href="/wiki/Ten_plagues" class="mw-redirect" title="Ten plagues">ten plagues</a> to דצ"ך עד"ש באח"ב, the order of blessings to יקנה"ז, etc., for the sake of <a href="/wiki/Mnemonic" title="Mnemonic">mnemonic</a>. The <a href="/wiki/Rishonim" title="Rishonim">rishonic</a> period saw Hebrew acronymy expand to a lexicon of many hundreds, including every type of word and extending to proper nouns: almost all Medieval rabbis are known by acronyms like <i><a href="/wiki/Rashi" title="Rashi">Rashi</a></i> and <i><a href="/wiki/Maimonides" title="Maimonides">Rambam</a>.</i></li></ul> <p>During the mid- to late nineteenth century, acronyms became a trend among American and European businessmen: abbreviating <a href="/wiki/Corporation" title="Corporation">corporation</a> names, such as on the sides of <a href="/wiki/Railroad_car" title="Railroad car">railroad cars</a> (e.g., "Richmond, Fredericksburg and Potomac Railroad" → "RF&P"); on the sides of barrels and crates; and on <a href="/wiki/Ticker_tape" title="Ticker tape">ticker tape</a> and newspaper stock listings (e.g. American Telephone and Telegraph Company → AT&T). Some well-known commercial examples dating from the 1890s through 1920s include "<a href="/wiki/Nabisco" title="Nabisco">Nabisco</a>" ("National Biscuit Company"),<sup id="cite_ref-Davenport_37-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Davenport-37"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>37<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> "<a href="/wiki/Esso" title="Esso">Esso</a>" (from "S.O.", from "<a href="/wiki/Standard_Oil" title="Standard Oil">Standard Oil</a>"), and "<a href="/wiki/Sunoco" title="Sunoco">Sunoco</a>" ("Sun Oil Company"). </p><p>Another field for the adoption of acronyms was modern warfare, with its many highly technical terms. While there is no recorded use of military acronyms dating from the <a href="/wiki/American_Civil_War" title="American Civil War">American Civil War</a> (acronyms such as "ANV" for "<a href="/wiki/Army_of_Northern_Virginia" title="Army of Northern Virginia">Army of Northern Virginia</a>" post-date the war itself), they became somewhat common in <a href="/wiki/World_War_I" title="World War I">World War I</a>, and by <a href="/wiki/World_War_II" title="World War II">World War II</a> they were widespread even in the slang of soldiers,<sup id="cite_ref-38" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-38"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>38<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> who referred to themselves as <a href="/wiki/G.I._(military)" class="mw-redirect" title="G.I. (military)">G.I.s</a>. </p><p>The widespread, frequent use of acronyms across the whole range of linguistic <a href="/wiki/Register_(sociolinguistics)" title="Register (sociolinguistics)">registers</a> is relatively new in most languages, becoming increasingly evident since the mid-twentieth century. As literacy spread and technology produced a constant stream of new and complex terms, abbreviations became increasingly convenient. The <i><a href="/wiki/Oxford_English_Dictionary" title="Oxford English Dictionary">Oxford English Dictionary</a></i> (<i>OED</i>) records the first printed use of the word <i>initialism</i> as occurring in 1899, but it did not come into general use until 1965, well after <i>acronym</i> had become common. </p><p>In English, acronyms <em>pronounced as words</em> may be a twentieth-century phenomenon. Linguist David Wilton in <i>Word Myths: Debunking Linguistic Urban Legends</i> claims that "forming words from acronyms is a distinctly twentieth- (and now twenty-first-) century phenomenon. There is only one known pre-twentieth-century [English] word with an acronymic origin and it was in vogue for only a short time in 1886. The word is <i>colinderies</i> or <i>colinda</i>, an acronym for the <a href="/wiki/Colonial_and_Indian_Exposition" class="mw-redirect" title="Colonial and Indian Exposition">Colonial and Indian Exposition</a> held in London in that year."<sup id="cite_ref-Wilton_39-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Wilton-39"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>39<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-40" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-40"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>40<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> However, although acronymic words seem not to have been <em>employed in general vocabulary</em> before the twentieth century (as Wilton points out), the <em>concept of their formation</em> is treated as effortlessly understood (and evidently not novel) in an <a href="/wiki/Edgar_Allan_Poe" title="Edgar Allan Poe">Edgar Allan Poe</a> story of the 1830s, "<a href="/wiki/How_to_Write_a_Blackwood_Article" class="mw-redirect" title="How to Write a Blackwood Article">How to Write a Blackwood Article</a>", which includes the contrived acronym "P.R.E.T.T.Y.B.L.U.E.B.A.T.C.H." </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Early_examples_in_English">Early examples in English</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=6" title="Edit section: Early examples in English"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>The use of Latin and Neo-Latin terms in <a href="/wiki/Vernacular" title="Vernacular">vernaculars</a> has been pan-European and pre-dates modern English. Some examples of acronyms in this class are: </p> <ul><li><i><a href="/wiki/12-hour_clock" title="12-hour clock">A.M.</a></i> (from Latin <span title="Latin-language text"><i lang="la">ante meridiem</i></span>, 'before noon') and <i><a href="/wiki/12-hour_clock" title="12-hour clock">P.M.</a></i> (from Latin <span title="Latin-language text"><i lang="la">post meridiem</i></span>, 'after noon')</li> <li><i>A.D.</i> (from Latin <span title="Latin-language text"><i lang="la"><a href="/wiki/Anno_Domini" title="Anno Domini">Anno Domini</a></i></span>, 'in the year of our Lord'), whose complement in English, <i>B.C.</i> (<a href="/wiki/Before_Christ" class="mw-redirect" title="Before Christ">Before Christ</a>), is English-sourced</li></ul> <p>The earliest example of a word derived from an acronym listed by the <i><a href="/wiki/Oxford_English_Dictionary" title="Oxford English Dictionary">OED</a></i> is "abjud" (now "<a href="/wiki/Abjad" title="Abjad">abjad</a>"), formed from the original first four letters of the <a href="/wiki/Arabic_alphabet" title="Arabic alphabet">Arabic alphabet</a> in the late eighteenth century.<sup id="cite_ref-41" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-41"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>41<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Some <a href="/wiki/Acrostics" class="mw-redirect" title="Acrostics">acrostics</a> pre-date this, however, such as the <a href="/wiki/English_Restoration" class="mw-redirect" title="English Restoration">Restoration</a> witticism arranging the names of some members of <a href="/wiki/Charles_II_of_England" title="Charles II of England">Charles II</a>'s Committee for Foreign Affairs to produce the <a href="/wiki/Cabal_ministry" title="Cabal ministry">"CABAL" ministry</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-42" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-42"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>42<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p><i><a href="/wiki/Okay" class="mw-redirect" title="Okay">OK</a></i>, a term of disputed origin, dates back at least to the early nineteenth century and is now used around the world. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Current_use">Current use</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=7" title="Edit section: Current use"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Acronyms are used most often to abbreviate names of organizations and long or frequently referenced terms. The <a href="/wiki/Military" title="Military">armed forces</a> and government agencies frequently employ acronyms; some well-known examples from the United States are among the "<a href="/wiki/Alphabet_agencies" title="Alphabet agencies">alphabet agencies</a>" (jokingly referred to as "<a href="/wiki/Alphabet_soup_(linguistics)" title="Alphabet soup (linguistics)">alphabet soup</a>") created under the <a href="/wiki/New_Deal" title="New Deal">New Deal</a> by <a href="/wiki/Franklin_D._Roosevelt" title="Franklin D. Roosevelt">Franklin D. Roosevelt</a> (himself known as "FDR"). Business and industry also coin acronyms prolifically. The rapid advance of science and technology also drives the usage, as new inventions and concepts with multiword names create a demand for shorter, more pronounceable names.<sup class="noprint Inline-Template Template-Fact" style="white-space:nowrap;">[<i><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed" title="Wikipedia:Citation needed"><span title="This claim needs references to reliable sources. (January 2015)">citation needed</span></a></i>]</sup> One representative example, from the U.S. Navy, is "COMCRUDESPAC", which stands for "commander, cruisers destroyers Pacific"; it is also seen as "ComCruDesPac". Inventors are encouraged to anticipate the formation of acronyms by making new terms "YABA-compatible" ("yet another bloody acronym"), meaning the term's acronym can be pronounced and is not an offensive word: "When choosing a new name, be sure it is 'YABA-compatible'."<sup id="cite_ref-43" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-43"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>43<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>Acronym use has been further popularized by text messaging on mobile phones with <a href="/wiki/Short_message_service" class="mw-redirect" title="Short message service">short message service</a> (SMS), and <a href="/wiki/Instant_messenger" class="mw-redirect" title="Instant messenger">instant messenger</a> (IM). To fit messages into the 160-character SMS limit, and to save time, acronyms such as "GF" ("girlfriend"), "LOL" ("laughing out loud"), and "DL" ("download" or "down low") have become popular.<sup id="cite_ref-44" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-44"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>44<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Some <a href="/wiki/Linguistic_prescription" title="Linguistic prescription">prescriptivists</a> disdain texting acronyms and abbreviations as decreasing clarity, or as failure to use "pure" or "proper" English. Others point out that languages have always <a href="/wiki/Language_change" title="Language change">continually changed</a>, and argue that acronyms should be embraced as inevitable, or as innovation that adapts the language to changing circumstances. In this view, the modern practice is just the "proper" English of the current generation of speakers, much like the earlier abbreviation of corporation names on ticker tape or newspapers. </p><p>Exact pronunciation of "word acronyms" (those pronounced as words rather than sounded out as individual letters) often vary by speaker population. These may be regional, occupational, or generational differences, or simply personal preference. For instance, there have been decades of online debate about how to pronounce <a href="/wiki/GIF" title="GIF">GIF</a> (<span class="rt-commentedText nowrap"><span class="IPA nopopups noexcerpt" lang="en-fonipa"><a href="/wiki/Help:IPA/English" title="Help:IPA/English">/<span style="border-bottom:1px dotted"><span title="/ɡ/: 'g' in 'guy'">ɡ</span><span title="/ɪ/: 'i' in 'kit'">ɪ</span><span title="'f' in 'find'">f</span></span>/</a></span></span> or <span class="rt-commentedText nowrap"><span class="IPA nopopups noexcerpt" lang="en-fonipa"><a href="/wiki/Help:IPA/English" title="Help:IPA/English">/<span style="border-bottom:1px dotted"><span title="/dʒ/: 'j' in 'jam'">dʒ</span><span title="/ɪ/: 'i' in 'kit'">ɪ</span><span title="'f' in 'find'">f</span></span>/</a></span></span>) and <a href="/wiki/BIOS" title="BIOS">BIOS</a> (<span class="rt-commentedText nowrap"><span class="IPA nopopups noexcerpt" lang="en-fonipa"><a href="/wiki/Help:IPA/English" title="Help:IPA/English">/<span style="border-bottom:1px dotted"><span title="/ˈ/: primary stress follows">ˈ</span><span title="'b' in 'buy'">b</span><span title="/aɪ/: 'i' in 'tide'">aɪ</span><span title="/oʊ/: 'o' in 'code'">oʊ</span><span title="'s' in 'sigh'">s</span></span>/</a></span></span>, <span class="rt-commentedText nowrap"><span class="IPA nopopups noexcerpt" lang="en-fonipa"><a href="/wiki/Help:IPA/English" title="Help:IPA/English">/<span style="border-bottom:1px dotted"><span title="/ˈ/: primary stress follows">ˈ</span><span title="'b' in 'buy'">b</span><span title="/aɪ/: 'i' in 'tide'">aɪ</span><span title="/oʊ/: 'o' in 'code'">oʊ</span><span title="'z' in 'zoom'">z</span></span>/</a></span></span>, or <span class="rt-commentedText nowrap"><span class="IPA nopopups noexcerpt" lang="en-fonipa"><a href="/wiki/Help:IPA/English" title="Help:IPA/English">/<span style="border-bottom:1px dotted"><span title="/ˈ/: primary stress follows">ˈ</span><span title="'b' in 'buy'">b</span><span title="/aɪ/: 'i' in 'tide'">aɪ</span><span title="/ɒ/: 'o' in 'body'">ɒ</span><span title="'s' in 'sigh'">s</span></span>/</a></span></span>). Similarly, some letter-by-letter initialisms may become word acronyms over time, especially in combining forms: <i>IP</i> for <i><a href="/wiki/Internet_Protocol" title="Internet Protocol">Internet Protocol</a></i> is generally said as two letters, but <i><a href="/wiki/IPsec" title="IPsec">IPsec</a></i> for <i>Internet Protocol Security</i> is usually pronounced as <span class="rt-commentedText nowrap"><span class="IPA nopopups noexcerpt" lang="en-fonipa"><a href="/wiki/Help:IPA/English" title="Help:IPA/English">/<span style="border-bottom:1px dotted"><span title="/ˌ/: secondary stress follows">ˌ</span><span title="/aɪ/: 'i' in 'tide'">aɪ</span><span title="/ˈ/: primary stress follows">ˈ</span><span title="'p' in 'pie'">p</span><span title="/iː/: 'ee' in 'fleece'">iː</span><span title="'s' in 'sigh'">s</span><span title="/ɛ/: 'e' in 'dress'">ɛ</span><span title="'k' in 'kind'">k</span></span>/</a></span></span> or <span class="rt-commentedText nowrap"><span class="IPA nopopups noexcerpt" lang="en-fonipa"><a href="/wiki/Help:IPA/English" title="Help:IPA/English">/<span style="border-bottom:1px dotted"><span title="/ˈ/: primary stress follows">ˈ</span><span title="/ɪ/: 'i' in 'kit'">ɪ</span><span title="'p' in 'pie'">p</span><span title="'s' in 'sigh'">s</span><span title="/ɛ/: 'e' in 'dress'">ɛ</span><span title="'k' in 'kind'">k</span></span>/</a></span></span>, along with variant capitalization like "IPSEC" and "Ipsec". Pronunciation may even vary within a single speaker's vocabulary, depending on narrow contexts. As an example, the database programming language <a href="/wiki/SQL" title="SQL">SQL</a> is usually said as three letters, but in reference to <a href="/wiki/Microsoft_SQL_Server" title="Microsoft SQL Server">Microsoft's implementation</a> is traditionally pronounced like the word <i><a href="/wiki/Sequel" title="Sequel">sequel</a></i>. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Expansion_at_first_use">Expansion at first use</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=8" title="Edit section: Expansion at first use"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1251242444"><table class="box-More_citations_needed_section plainlinks metadata ambox ambox-content ambox-Refimprove" role="presentation"><tbody><tr><td class="mbox-image"><div class="mbox-image-div"><span typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/File:Question_book-new.svg" class="mw-file-description"><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/50px-Question_book-new.svg.png" decoding="async" width="50" height="39" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/75px-Question_book-new.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/100px-Question_book-new.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="512" data-file-height="399" /></a></span></div></td><td class="mbox-text"><div class="mbox-text-span">This section <b>needs additional citations for <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Verifiability" title="Wikipedia:Verifiability">verification</a></b>.<span class="hide-when-compact"> Please help <a href="/wiki/Special:EditPage/Acronym" title="Special:EditPage/Acronym">improve this article</a> by <a href="/wiki/Help:Referencing_for_beginners" title="Help:Referencing for beginners">adding citations to reliable sources</a> in this section. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.</span> <span class="date-container"><i>(<span class="date">January 2015</span>)</i></span><span class="hide-when-compact"><i> (<small><a href="/wiki/Help:Maintenance_template_removal" title="Help:Maintenance template removal">Learn how and when to remove this message</a></small>)</i></span></div></td></tr></tbody></table> <p>In writing for a broad audience, the words of an acronym are typically written out in full at its first occurrence within a given text. Expansion At First Use (EAFU) benefits readers unfamiliar with the acronym.<sup id="cite_ref-45" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-45"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>45<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>Another text aid is an abbreviation key which lists and expands all acronyms used, a reference for readers who skipped past the first use. (This is especially important for paper media, where no search utility is available to find the first use.) It also gives students a convenient review list to memorize the important acronyms introduced in a textbook chapter. </p><p>Expansion at first use and abbreviation keys originated in the print era, but they are equally useful for <a href="/wiki/E-text" title="E-text">electronic text</a>. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Jargon">Jargon</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=9" title="Edit section: Jargon"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>While acronyms provide convenience and succinctness for specialists, they often degenerate into confusing <a href="/wiki/Jargon" title="Jargon">jargon</a>. This may be intentional, to exclude readers without domain-specific knowledge. New acronyms may also confuse when they coincide with an already existing acronym having a different meaning. </p><p>Medical literature has been struggling to control the proliferation of acronyms, including efforts by the American Academy of Dermatology.<sup id="cite_ref-PMID19150279_46-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-PMID19150279-46"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>46<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="As_mnemonics">As mnemonics</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=10" title="Edit section: As mnemonics"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Acronyms are often taught as <a href="/wiki/Mnemonic" title="Mnemonic">mnemonic</a> devices: for example the colors of the rainbow are <a href="/wiki/ROY_G._BIV" class="mw-redirect" title="ROY G. BIV">ROY G. BIV</a> (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet). They are also used as mental checklists: in aviation <a href="/wiki/GUMPS" title="GUMPS">GUMPS</a> stands for gas-undercarriage-mixture-propeller-seat belts. Other mnemonic acronyms include <a href="/wiki/CAN_SLIM" title="CAN SLIM">CAN SLIM</a> in finance, PAVPANIC in English grammar, and <a href="/wiki/PEMDAS" class="mw-redirect" title="PEMDAS">PEMDAS</a> in mathematics. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Acronyms_as_legendary_etymology">Acronyms as legendary etymology</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=11" title="Edit section: Acronyms as legendary etymology"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236090951"><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">See also: <a href="/wiki/Backronym" title="Backronym">Backronym</a></div> <p>It is not uncommon for acronyms to be cited in a kind of <a href="/wiki/False_etymology" title="False etymology">false etymology</a>, called a <a href="/wiki/Folk_etymology" title="Folk etymology">folk etymology</a>, for a word. Such etymologies persist in popular culture but have no factual basis in <a href="/wiki/Historical_linguistics" title="Historical linguistics">historical linguistics</a>, and are examples of language-related <a href="/wiki/Urban_legend" title="Urban legend">urban legends</a>. For example, "<a href="/wiki/Police_officer" title="Police officer">cop</a>" is commonly cited as being derived, it is presumed, from "constable on patrol",<sup id="cite_ref-47" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-47"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>47<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> and "<a href="/wiki/Posh_(nautical_term)" class="mw-redirect" title="Posh (nautical term)">posh</a>" from "<a href="/wiki/Port_outward,_starboard_home" class="mw-redirect" title="Port outward, starboard home">port outward, starboard home</a>".<sup id="cite_ref-posh_48-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-posh-48"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>48<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> With some of these specious expansions, the "belief" that the etymology is acronymic has clearly been <a href="/wiki/Tongue-in-cheek" title="Tongue-in-cheek">tongue-in-cheek</a> among many citers, as with "gentlemen only, ladies forbidden" for "<a href="/wiki/Golf" title="Golf">golf</a>", although many other (more <a href="https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/credulous" class="extiw" title="wikt:credulous">credulous</a>) people have uncritically taken it for fact.<sup id="cite_ref-posh_48-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-posh-48"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>48<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-49" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-49"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>49<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> <a href="/wiki/Taboo_word" class="mw-redirect" title="Taboo word">Taboo words</a> in particular commonly have such false etymologies: "<a href="/wiki/Shit" title="Shit">shit</a>" from "ship/store high in transit"<sup id="cite_ref-Wilton_39-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Wilton-39"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>39<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-etymonline.com2_50-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-etymonline.com2-50"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>50<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> or "special high-intensity training" and "<a href="/wiki/Fuck" title="Fuck">fuck</a>" from "for unlawful carnal knowledge", or "fornication under consent/command of the king".<sup id="cite_ref-etymonline.com2_50-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-etymonline.com2-50"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>50<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Orthographic_styling">Orthographic styling</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=12" title="Edit section: Orthographic styling"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Punctuation">Punctuation</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=13" title="Edit section: Punctuation"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Showing_the_ellipsis_of_letters">Showing the ellipsis of letters</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=14" title="Edit section: Showing the ellipsis of letters"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>In English, abbreviations have previously been marked by a wide variety of <a href="/wiki/English_punctuation" title="English punctuation">punctuation</a>. Obsolete forms include using an <a href="/wiki/Overbar" class="mw-redirect" title="Overbar">overbar</a> or <a href="/wiki/Colon_(punctuation)" title="Colon (punctuation)">colon</a> to show the <a href="/wiki/Ellipsis" title="Ellipsis">ellipsis</a> of letters following the initial part. The <a href="/wiki/Forward_slash" class="mw-redirect" title="Forward slash">forward slash</a> is still common in many dialects for some fixed expressions—such as in <i>w/</i> for "with" or <i>A/C</i> for "<a href="/wiki/Air_conditioning" title="Air conditioning">air conditioning</a>"—while only infrequently being used to abbreviate new terms. The <a href="/wiki/Apostrophe" title="Apostrophe">apostrophe</a> is common for <a href="/wiki/Contraction_(grammar)#English" title="Contraction (grammar)">grammatical contractions</a> (e.g. <i>don't</i>, <i><a href="/wiki/Y%27all" title="Y'all">y'all</a></i>, and <i><a href="/wiki/Ain%27t" title="Ain't">ain't</a></i>) and for contractions marking unusual pronunciations (e.g. <i>a'ight</i>, <i>cap'n</i>, and <i>fo'c'sle</i> for "all right", "captain", and "forecastle"). By the early twentieth century, it was standard to use a <a href="/wiki/Full_stop" title="Full stop">full stop/period/point</a>, especially in the cases of initialisms and acronyms. Previously, especially for <a href="/wiki/Latin_abbreviations" class="mw-redirect" title="Latin abbreviations">Latin abbreviations</a>, this was done with a full space between every full word (e.g. <span title="Latin-language text"><i lang="la">A. D.</i></span>, <span title="Latin-language text"><i lang="la">i. e.</i></span>, and <span title="Latin-language text"><i lang="la">e. g.</i></span> for "<a href="/wiki/Anno_Domini" title="Anno Domini">Anno Domini</a>", "<a href="/wiki/Id_est" class="mw-redirect" title="Id est">id est</a>", and "<a href="/wiki/Exempli_gratia" class="mw-redirect" title="Exempli gratia">exempli gratia</a>"). This even included punctuation after both <a href="/wiki/Roman_numerals" title="Roman numerals">Roman</a> and <a href="/wiki/Arabic_numerals" title="Arabic numerals">Arabic numerals</a> to indicate their use in place of the full names of each number (e.g. <i>LII.</i> or <i>52.</i> in place of "fifty-two" and "1/4." or "1./4." to indicate "one-fourth"). Both conventions have fallen out of common use in all dialects of English, except in places where an Arabic <a href="/wiki/Decimal_number" class="mw-redirect" title="Decimal number">decimal</a> includes a medial <a href="/wiki/Decimal_point" class="mw-redirect" title="Decimal point">decimal point</a>. </p><p>Particularly in <a href="/wiki/British_English" title="British English">British</a> and <a href="/wiki/Commonwealth_English" class="mw-redirect" title="Commonwealth English">Commonwealth English</a>, all such punctuation marking acronyms and other capitalized abbreviations is now uncommon and considered either unnecessary or incorrect. The presence of all-capital letters is now thought sufficient to indicate the nature of the <i><a href="/wiki/United_Kingdom" title="United Kingdom">UK</a></i>, the <i><a href="/wiki/European_Union" title="European Union">EU</a></i>, and the <i><a href="/wiki/United_Nations" title="United Nations">UN</a></i>. Forms such as <i>the U.S.A.</i> for "the <a href="/wiki/United_States_of_America" class="mw-redirect" title="United States of America">United States of America</a>" are now considered to indicate <a href="/wiki/American_English" title="American English">American</a> or <a href="/wiki/North_American_English" title="North American English">North American English</a>. Even within those dialects, such punctuation is becoming increasingly uncommon.<sup id="cite_ref-51" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-51"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>51<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading5"><h5 id="Ellipsis-is-understood_style">Ellipsis-is-understood style</h5><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=15" title="Edit section: Ellipsis-is-understood style"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Some <a href="/wiki/Style_guide" title="Style guide">style guides</a>, such as that of the <a href="/wiki/BBC" title="BBC">BBC</a>, no longer require punctuation to show <a href="/wiki/Ellipsis" title="Ellipsis">ellipsis</a>; some even proscribe it. <a href="/wiki/Larry_Trask" title="Larry Trask">Larry Trask</a>, American author of <i>The <a href="/wiki/Penguin_Books" title="Penguin Books">Penguin</a> Guide to Punctuation</i>, states categorically that, in <a href="/wiki/British_English" title="British English">British English</a>, "this tiresome and unnecessary practice is now obsolete."<sup id="cite_ref-52" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-52"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>52<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading5"><h5 id="Pronunciation-dependent_style_and_periods">Pronunciation-dependent style and periods</h5><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=16" title="Edit section: Pronunciation-dependent style and periods"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Nevertheless, some influential <a href="/wiki/Style_guide" title="Style guide">style guides</a>, many of them <a href="/wiki/American_English" title="American English">American</a>, still require periods in certain instances. For example, <i><a href="/wiki/The_New_York_Times_Manual_of_Style_and_Usage" title="The New York Times Manual of Style and Usage">The New York Times Manual of Style and Usage</a></i> recommends following each segment with a period when the letters are pronounced individually, as in "<a href="/wiki/KGB" title="KGB">K.G.B.</a>", but not when pronounced as a word, as in "<a href="/wiki/NATO" title="NATO">NATO</a>".<sup id="cite_ref-NY_Times_53-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-NY_Times-53"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>53<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The logic of this style is that the pronunciation is reflected graphically by the punctuation scheme. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading5"><h5 id="Other_conventions">Other conventions</h5><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=17" title="Edit section: Other conventions"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>When a multiple-letter abbreviation is formed from a single word, periods are in general not used, although they may be common in informal usage. "TV", for example, may stand for a <i>single</i> word ("television" or "transvestite", for instance), and is in general spelled without punctuation (except in the plural). Although "PS" stands for the single English word "<a href="/wiki/Postscript" title="Postscript">postscript</a>" or the Latin <i>postscriptum</i>, it is often spelled with periods ("P.S.") as if parsed as Latin <i>post scriptum</i> instead. </p><p>The <a href="/wiki/Slash_(punctuation)" title="Slash (punctuation)">slash</a> ('/', or <i>solidus</i>) is sometimes used to separate the letters in an acronym, as in "N/A" ("not applicable, not available") and "c/o" ("care of"). </p><p>Inconveniently long words used frequently in related contexts can be represented according to their letter count as a <a href="/wiki/Numeronym" title="Numeronym">numeronym</a>. For example, "i18n" abbreviates "<a href="/wiki/Internationalization" title="Internationalization">internationalization</a>", a computer-science term for adapting software for worldwide use; the "18" represents the 18 letters that come between the first and the last in "internationalization". Similarly, "localization" can be abbreviated "l10n"; "<a href="/w/index.php?title=Multilingualization&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="Multilingualization (page does not exist)">multilingualization</a>" "m17n"; and "<a href="/wiki/Accessibility" title="Accessibility">accessibility</a>" "a11y". In addition to the use of a specific number replacing that many letters, the more general "x" can be used to replace an unspecified number of letters. Examples include "Crxn" for "crystallization" and the series familiar to physicians for <a href="/wiki/Medical_history" title="Medical history">history</a>, <a href="/wiki/Medical_diagnosis" title="Medical diagnosis">diagnosis</a>, and <a href="/wiki/Therapy" title="Therapy">treatment</a> ("hx", "dx", "tx"). Terms relating to a command structure may also sometimes use this formatting, for example gold, silver, and bronze levels of command in UK policing being referred to as Gx, Sx, and Bx. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Representing_plurals_and_possessives">Representing plurals and possessives</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=18" title="Edit section: Representing plurals and possessives"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>There is a question about how to pluralize acronyms. Often a writer will add an 's' following an apostrophe, as in "PC's". However, <a href="/wiki/Kate_L._Turabian" title="Kate L. Turabian">Kate L. Turabian</a>'s <i><a href="/wiki/A_Manual_for_Writers_of_Research_Papers,_Theses,_and_Dissertations" title="A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations">A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations</a></i>, writing about style in academic writings,<sup id="cite_ref-Chicago_54-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Chicago-54"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>54<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> allows for an apostrophe to form plural acronyms "only when an abbreviation contains internal periods or both capital and lowercase letters". Turabian would therefore prefer "DVDs" and "URLs" but "Ph.D.'s". The style guides of the <a href="/wiki/Modern_Language_Association" title="Modern Language Association">Modern Language Association</a><sup id="cite_ref-MLA_55-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-MLA-55"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>55<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> and <a href="/wiki/American_Psychological_Association" title="American Psychological Association">American Psychological Association</a><sup id="cite_ref-APA_56-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-APA-56"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>56<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-autogenerated1_57-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-autogenerated1-57"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>57<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> prohibit apostrophes from being used to pluralize acronyms regardless of periods (so "compact discs" would be "CDs" or "C.D.s"), whereas <i><a href="/wiki/The_New_York_Times_Manual_of_Style_and_Usage" title="The New York Times Manual of Style and Usage">The New York Times Manual of Style and Usage</a></i> requires an apostrophe when pluralizing all abbreviations regardless of periods (preferring "PC's, TV's and VCR's").<sup id="cite_ref-58" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-58"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>58<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>Possessive plurals that also include apostrophes for mere pluralization and periods appear especially complex: for example, "the C.D.'s' labels" (the labels of the compact discs). In some instances, however, an apostrophe may increase clarity: for example, if the final letter of an abbreviation is "S", as in "SOS's" (although abbreviations ending with S can also take "-es", e.g. "SOSes"), or when pluralizing an abbreviation that has periods.<sup id="cite_ref-59" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-59"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>59<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-60" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-60"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>60<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>A particularly rich source of options arises when the plural of an acronym would normally be indicated in a word other than the final word if spelled out in full. A classic example is "Member of Parliament", which in plural is "Members of Parliament". It is possible then to abbreviate this as "M's P", which was fairly common in mid-twentieth-century Australian news writing<sup id="cite_ref-61" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-61"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>61<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-62" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-62"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>62<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> (or similar<sup id="cite_ref-63" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-63"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>63<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup>), and used by former Australian Prime Minister <a href="/wiki/Ben_Chifley" title="Ben Chifley">Ben Chifley</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-64" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-64"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>64<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-65" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-65"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>65<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-66" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-66"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>66<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> This usage is less common than forms with "s" at the end, such as "MPs", and may appear dated or pedantic. In common usage, therefore, "weapons of mass destruction" becomes "WMDs", "prisoners of war" becomes "POWs", and "runs batted in" becomes "RBIs".<sup id="cite_ref-67" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-67"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>67<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>Abbreviations that come from single, rather than multiple, words – such as "TV" ("television") – are usually pluralized without apostrophes ("two TVs"); most writers feel that the apostrophe should be reserved for the possessive ("the TV's antenna").<sup class="noprint Inline-Template Template-Fact" style="white-space:nowrap;">[<i><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed" title="Wikipedia:Citation needed"><span title="This claim needs references to reliable sources. (November 2024)">citation needed</span></a></i>]</sup> </p><p><span class="anchor" id="pp"></span><span class="anchor" id="PP"></span><span class="anchor" id="pP"></span><span class="anchor" id="Pp"></span><span class="anchor" id="page"></span><span class="anchor" id="pages"></span> In some languages, the convention of doubling the letters in the acronym is used to indicate plural words: for example, the Spanish <span title="Spanish-language text"><i lang="es">EE.UU.</i></span>, for <span title="Spanish-language text"><i lang="es">Estados Unidos</i></span> ('United States'). This old convention is still sometimes followed for a limited number of English abbreviations, such as <i>SS.</i> for <i>Saints</i>, <i>pp.</i> for the plural of 'pages', or <i>mss.</i> for <i>manuscripts</i>.<sup class="noprint Inline-Template Template-Fact" style="white-space:nowrap;">[<i><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed" title="Wikipedia:Citation needed"><span title="This claim needs references to reliable sources. (November 2024)">citation needed</span></a></i>]</sup> </p> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236090951"><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">Further information: <a href="/wiki/English_possessive" title="English possessive">English possessive</a></div> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Case">Case</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=19" title="Edit section: Case"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="All-caps_style">All-caps style</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=20" title="Edit section: All-caps style"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>The most common <a href="/wiki/Capitalization" title="Capitalization">capitalization</a> scheme seen with acronyms is all-uppercase (<a href="/wiki/All_caps" title="All caps">all caps</a>). <a href="/wiki/Small_caps" title="Small caps">Small caps</a> are sometimes used to make the run of capital letters seem less jarring to the reader. For example, the style of some American publications, including the <i><a href="/wiki/Atlantic_Monthly" class="mw-redirect" title="Atlantic Monthly">Atlantic Monthly</a></i> and <i><a href="/wiki/USA_Today" title="USA Today">USA Today</a></i>, is to use small caps for acronyms longer than three letters;<sup class="noprint Inline-Template Template-Fact" style="white-space:nowrap;">[<i><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed" title="Wikipedia:Citation needed"><span title="This claim needs references to reliable sources. (August 2007)">citation needed</span></a></i>]</sup> thus "U.S." and "<a href="/wiki/Franklin_D._Roosevelt" title="Franklin D. Roosevelt">FDR</a>" in normal caps, but "<style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r920966791">.mw-parser-output span.smallcaps{font-variant:small-caps}.mw-parser-output span.smallcaps-smaller{font-size:85%}</style><span class="smallcaps">nato</span>" in small caps. The acronyms "<a href="/wiki/Anno_Domini" title="Anno Domini">AD</a>" and "<a href="/wiki/Before_Christ" class="mw-redirect" title="Before Christ">BC</a>" are often smallcapped as well, as in: "From <span class="nowrap">4004 <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r920966791"><span class="smallcaps">bc</span> to <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r920966791"><span class="smallcaps">ad</span> 525</span>". </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Normal_case_and_anacronyms">Normal case and anacronyms<span class="anchor" id="Anacronym"></span></h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=21" title="Edit section: Normal case and anacronyms"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Where an acronym has linguistically taken on an identity as regular word, the acronym may use normal case rules, e.g. it would appear generally in lower case, but with an initial capital when starting a sentence or when in a title. Once knowledge of the words underlying such an acronym has faded from common recall, the acronym may be termed an <b>anacronym</b>.<sup id="cite_ref-68" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-68"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>68<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Examples of anacronyms are the words "<a href="/wiki/Scuba_set" title="Scuba set">scuba</a>", "<a href="/wiki/Radar" title="Radar">radar</a>", and "<a href="/wiki/Laser" title="Laser">laser</a>". The word "an<i>acro</i>nym" should not be confused with the word "<a href="/wiki/Misnomer#Anachronym" title="Misnomer">an<i>achro</i>nym</a>", which is a type of misnomer. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Mixed-case_variant">Mixed-case variant</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=22" title="Edit section: Mixed-case variant"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Words derived from an acronym by affixing are typically expressed in mixed case, so the root acronym is clear. For example, "pre-WWII politics", "post-NATO world", "<a href="/wiki/DNase" class="mw-redirect" title="DNase">DNase</a>". In some cases a derived acronym may also be expressed in mixed case. For example, "<a href="/wiki/Messenger_RNA" title="Messenger RNA">messenger RNA</a>" and "<a href="/wiki/Transfer_RNA" title="Transfer RNA">transfer RNA</a>" become "mRNA" and "tRNA". </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Pronunciation-dependent_style_and_case">Pronunciation-dependent style and case</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=23" title="Edit section: Pronunciation-dependent style and case"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Some publications choose to capitalize only the first letter of acronyms, reserving all-caps styling for initialisms, writing the pronounced acronyms "Nato" and "Aids" in mixed case, but the initialisms "USA" and "FBI" in all caps. For example, this is the style used in <i><a href="/wiki/The_Guardian" title="The Guardian">The Guardian</a></i>,<sup id="cite_ref-69" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-69"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>69<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> and <i><a href="/wiki/BBC_News" title="BBC News">BBC News</a></i> typically edits to this style (though its official style guide, dating from 2003, still recommends all-caps<sup id="cite_ref-70" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-70"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>70<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup>). The logic of this style is that the pronunciation is reflected graphically by the capitalization scheme. However, it conflicts with conventional English usage of first-letter upper-casing as a marker of proper names in many cases; e.g. <i>AIDS</i> stands for <i>acquired immuno-deficiency syndrome</i> which is not a proper name, while <i>Aids</i> is in the style of one. </p><p>Some style manuals also base the letters' <a href="/wiki/Letter_case" title="Letter case">case</a> on their number. <i><a href="/wiki/The_New_York_Times" title="The New York Times">The New York Times</a></i>, for example, keeps "NATO" in all capitals (while several guides in the British press may render it "Nato"), but uses lower case in "<a href="/wiki/United_Nations_Children%27s_Fund" class="mw-redirect" title="United Nations Children's Fund">Unicef</a>" (from "United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund") because it is more than four letters, and to style it in caps might look ungainly (flirting with the appearance of "shouting capitals"). </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Numerals_and_constituent_words">Numerals and constituent words</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=24" title="Edit section: Numerals and constituent words"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>While abbreviations typically exclude the initials of short <a href="/wiki/Function_word" title="Function word">function words</a> (such as "and", "or", "of", or "to"), this is not always the case. Sometimes function words are included to make a pronounceable acronym, such as CORE (<a href="/wiki/Congress_of_Racial_Equality" title="Congress of Racial Equality">Congress of Racial Equality</a>). Sometimes the letters representing these words are written in lower case, such as in the cases of "TfL" ("<a href="/wiki/Transport_for_London" title="Transport for London">Transport for London</a>") and <i>LotR</i> (<i><a href="/wiki/The_Lord_of_the_Rings" title="The Lord of the Rings">The Lord of the Rings</a></i>); this usually occurs when the acronym represents a multi-word proper noun. </p><p>Numbers (both <a href="/wiki/Cardinal_number" title="Cardinal number">cardinal</a> and <a href="/wiki/Ordinal_number" title="Ordinal number">ordinal</a>) in names are often represented by <a href="/wiki/Numerical_digit" title="Numerical digit">digits</a> rather than initial letters, as in "4GL" ("<a href="/wiki/Fourth_generation_language" class="mw-redirect" title="Fourth generation language">fourth generation language</a>") or "G77" ("<a href="/wiki/Group_of_77" title="Group of 77">Group of 77</a>"). Large numbers may use <a href="/wiki/SI_prefix#Use_outside_SI" class="mw-redirect" title="SI prefix">metric prefixes</a>, as with "<a href="/wiki/2000" title="2000">Y2K</a>" for "Year 2000". Exceptions using initials for numbers include "<a href="/wiki/Three_letter_acronym" class="mw-redirect" title="Three letter acronym">TLA</a>" ("three-letter acronym/abbreviation") and "GoF" ("<a href="/wiki/Gang_of_Four_(software)" class="mw-redirect" title="Gang of Four (software)">Gang of Four</a>"). Abbreviations using numbers for other purposes include repetitions, such as "<a href="/wiki/A2DP" class="mw-redirect" title="A2DP">A2DP</a>" ("Advanced Audio Distribution Profile"), "<a href="/wiki/W3C" class="mw-redirect" title="W3C">W3C</a>" ("World Wide Web Consortium"), and <i><a href="/wiki/WVOX#Notable_Past_Programming" title="WVOX">T3</a></i> (<i>Trends, Tips & Tools for Everyday Living</i>); pronunciation, such as "<a href="/wiki/Business-to-business" title="Business-to-business">B2B</a>" ("business to business"); and <a href="/wiki/Numeronym" title="Numeronym">numeronyms</a>, such as "i18n" ("internationalization"; "18" represents the 18 letters between the initial "i" and the final "n"). </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Casing_of_expansions">Casing of expansions</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=25" title="Edit section: Casing of expansions"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Authors of <a href="/wiki/Expository_writing" class="mw-redirect" title="Expository writing">expository writing</a> will sometimes capitalize or otherwise distinctively format the initials of the expansion for <a href="/wiki/Pedagogical" class="mw-redirect" title="Pedagogical">pedagogical</a> emphasis (for example, writing: "the onset of Congestive Heart Failure (CHF)" or "the onset of <b>c</b>ongestive <b>h</b>eart <b>f</b>ailure (CHF)"). Capitalization like this, however, conflicts with the convention of English orthography, which generally reserves capitals in the middle of sentences for proper nouns; when following the <a href="/wiki/AMA_Manual_of_Style" title="AMA Manual of Style">AMA Manual of Style</a>, this would instead be rendered as "the onset of congestive heart failure (CHF)".<sup id="cite_ref-AMA10p442_71-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-AMA10p442-71"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>71<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Changes_to_(or_wordplay_on)_the_expanded_meaning"><span id="Changes_to_.28or_wordplay_on.29_the_expanded_meaning"></span>Changes to (or wordplay on) the expanded meaning</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=26" title="Edit section: Changes to (or wordplay on) the expanded meaning"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Pseudo-acronyms_and_orphan_initialisms">Pseudo-acronyms and orphan initialisms<span class="anchor" id="Pseudo-acronyms"></span><span class="anchor" id="Orphan_initialisms"></span></h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=27" title="Edit section: Pseudo-acronyms and orphan initialisms"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Some apparent acronyms or other abbreviations do not stand for anything and cannot be expanded to some meaning. Such pseudo-acronyms may be pronunciation-based, such as "BBQ" (<i>bee-bee-cue</i>), for "barbecue", and "K9" (<i>kay-nine</i>) for "canine". Pseudo-acronyms also frequently develop as "orphan initialisms": an existing acronym is redefined as a non-acronymous name, severing its link to its previous meaning.<sup id="cite_ref-upenn_72-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-upenn-72"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>72<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-about_73-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-about-73"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>73<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> For example, the letters of the "<a href="/wiki/SAT" title="SAT">SAT</a>", a US college entrance test originally dubbed "Scholastic Aptitude Test", no longer officially stand for anything.<sup id="cite_ref-74" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-74"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>74<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-75" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-75"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>75<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The US-based <a href="/wiki/Abortion-rights_movements" class="mw-redirect" title="Abortion-rights movements">abortion-rights</a> organization "<a href="/wiki/NARAL_Pro-Choice_America" class="mw-redirect" title="NARAL Pro-Choice America">NARAL</a>" is another example of this; in that case, the organization changed its name three times, with the long-form of the name always corresponding to the letters "NARAL", before eventually opting to simply be known by the short-form, without being connected to a long-form. </p><p>This is common with companies that want to retain <a href="/wiki/Brand_recognition" class="mw-redirect" title="Brand recognition">brand recognition</a> while moving away from an outdated image: American Telephone and Telegraph became <a href="/wiki/AT%26T_Corporation" title="AT&T Corporation">AT&T</a><sup id="cite_ref-upenn_72-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-upenn-72"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>72<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> and <a href="/wiki/BP" title="BP">British Petroleum</a> became BP.<sup id="cite_ref-about_73-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-about-73"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>73<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-76" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-76"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>76<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> <i><a href="/wiki/RT_(TV_network)" title="RT (TV network)">Russia Today</a></i> has rebranded itself as <i>RT</i>. <a href="/wiki/American_Movie_Classics" class="mw-redirect" title="American Movie Classics">American Movie Classics</a> has simply rebranded itself as AMC. Genzyme Transgenics Corporation became GTC Biotherapeutics, Inc.; <a href="/wiki/The_Learning_Channel" class="mw-redirect" title="The Learning Channel">The Learning Channel</a> became TLC; <a href="/wiki/MTV" title="MTV">MTV</a> dropped the name Music Television out of its brand; and <a href="/wiki/American_District_Telegraph" class="mw-redirect" title="American District Telegraph">American District Telegraph</a> became simply known as ADT. "<a href="/wiki/KFC" title="KFC">Kentucky Fried Chicken</a>" went partway, re-branding itself with its initialism "KFC" to de-emphasize the role of frying in the preparation of its signature dishes, though they have since returned to using both interchangeably.<sup id="cite_ref-77" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-77"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>77<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-78" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-78"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>a<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The East Coast Hockey League became the <a href="/wiki/ECHL" title="ECHL">ECHL</a> when it expanded to include cities in the western United States prior to the 2003–2004 season. </p><p>Pseudo-acronyms may have advantages in international markets:<sup class="noprint Inline-Template" style="margin-left:0.1em; white-space:nowrap;">[<i><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Manual_of_Style/Words_to_watch#Unsupported_attributions" title="Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Words to watch"><span title="The material near this tag may use weasel words or too-vague attribution. (October 2017)">according to whom?</span></a></i>]</sup> for example, some national <a href="/wiki/Affiliate_(commerce)" title="Affiliate (commerce)">affiliates</a> of <a href="/wiki/International_Business_Machines" class="mw-redirect" title="International Business Machines">International Business Machines</a> are legally incorporated with "IBM" in their names (for example, IBM Canada) to avoid translating the full name into local languages.<sup class="noprint Inline-Template Template-Fact" style="white-space:nowrap;">[<i><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed" title="Wikipedia:Citation needed"><span title="This claim needs references to reliable sources. (October 2017)">citation needed</span></a></i>]</sup> Likewise, <a href="/wiki/UBS_AG" class="mw-redirect" title="UBS AG">UBS</a> is the name of the merged <a href="/wiki/Union_Bank_of_Switzerland" title="Union Bank of Switzerland">Union Bank of Switzerland</a> and <a href="/wiki/Swiss_Bank_Corporation" title="Swiss Bank Corporation">Swiss Bank Corporation</a>,<sup id="cite_ref-79" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-79"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>78<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> and <a href="/wiki/HSBC" title="HSBC">HSBC</a> has replaced the long name Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation. Some companies which have a name giving a clear indication of their place of origin will choose to use acronyms when expanding to foreign markets: for example, <a href="/wiki/Toronto-Dominion_Bank" title="Toronto-Dominion Bank">Toronto-Dominion Bank</a> continues to operate under the full name in Canada, but its U.S. subsidiary is known as <a href="/wiki/TD_Bank,_N.A." class="mw-redirect" title="TD Bank, N.A.">TD Bank</a>, just as <a href="/wiki/Royal_Bank_of_Canada" title="Royal Bank of Canada">Royal Bank of Canada</a> used its full name in Canada (a <a href="/wiki/Constitutional_monarchy" title="Constitutional monarchy">constitutional monarchy</a>), but its U.S. subsidiary is called <a href="/wiki/RBC_Bank" title="RBC Bank">RBC Bank</a>. The India-based <a href="/wiki/JSW_Group" title="JSW Group">JSW Group</a> of companies is another example of the original name (Jindal South West Group) being re-branded into a pseudo-acronym while expanding into other geographical areas in and outside of India. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Redundant_acronyms_and_RAS_syndrome">Redundant acronyms and RAS syndrome</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=28" title="Edit section: Redundant acronyms and RAS syndrome"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236090951"><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">Main article: <a href="/wiki/RAS_syndrome" title="RAS syndrome">RAS syndrome</a></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1251242444"><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1248332772">.mw-parser-output .multiple-issues-text{width:95%;margin:0.2em 0}.mw-parser-output .multiple-issues-text>.mw-collapsible-content{margin-top:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .compact-ambox .ambox{border:none;border-collapse:collapse;background-color:transparent;margin:0 0 0 1.6em!important;padding:0!important;width:auto;display:block}body.mediawiki .mw-parser-output .compact-ambox .ambox.mbox-small-left{font-size:100%;width:auto;margin:0}.mw-parser-output .compact-ambox .ambox .mbox-text{padding:0!important;margin:0!important}.mw-parser-output .compact-ambox .ambox .mbox-text-span{display:list-item;line-height:1.5em;list-style-type:disc}body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .multiple-issues-text>.mw-collapsible-toggle,.mw-parser-output .compact-ambox .ambox .mbox-image,.mw-parser-output .compact-ambox .ambox .mbox-imageright,.mw-parser-output .compact-ambox .ambox .mbox-empty-cell,.mw-parser-output .compact-ambox .hide-when-compact{display:none}</style><table class="box-Multiple_issues plainlinks metadata ambox ambox-content ambox-multiple_issues compact-ambox" role="presentation"><tbody><tr><td class="mbox-image"><div class="mbox-image-div"><span typeof="mw:File"><span><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/b/b4/Ambox_important.svg/40px-Ambox_important.svg.png" decoding="async" width="40" height="40" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/b/b4/Ambox_important.svg/60px-Ambox_important.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/b/b4/Ambox_important.svg/80px-Ambox_important.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="40" data-file-height="40" /></span></span></div></td><td class="mbox-text"><div class="mbox-text-span"><div class="multiple-issues-text mw-collapsible"><b>This section has multiple issues.</b> Please help <b><a href="/wiki/Special:EditPage/Acronym" title="Special:EditPage/Acronym">improve it</a></b> or discuss these issues on the <b><a href="/wiki/Talk:Acronym" title="Talk:Acronym">talk page</a></b>. <small><i>(<a href="/wiki/Help:Maintenance_template_removal" title="Help:Maintenance template removal">Learn how and when to remove these messages</a>)</i></small> <div class="mw-collapsible-content"> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1251242444"><table class="box-Unreferenced_section plainlinks metadata ambox ambox-content ambox-Unreferenced" role="presentation"><tbody><tr><td class="mbox-image"><div class="mbox-image-div"><span typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/File:Question_book-new.svg" class="mw-file-description"><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/50px-Question_book-new.svg.png" decoding="async" width="50" height="39" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/75px-Question_book-new.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/100px-Question_book-new.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="512" data-file-height="399" /></a></span></div></td><td class="mbox-text"><div class="mbox-text-span">This section <b>does not <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Citing_sources" title="Wikipedia:Citing sources">cite</a> any <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Verifiability" title="Wikipedia:Verifiability">sources</a></b>.<span class="hide-when-compact"> Please help <a href="/wiki/Special:EditPage/Acronym" title="Special:EditPage/Acronym">improve this section</a> by <a href="/wiki/Help:Referencing_for_beginners" title="Help:Referencing for beginners">adding citations to reliable sources</a>. Unsourced material may be challenged and <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Verifiability#Burden_of_evidence" title="Wikipedia:Verifiability">removed</a>.</span> <span class="date-container"><i>(<span class="date">October 2017</span>)</i></span><span class="hide-when-compact"><i> (<small><a href="/wiki/Help:Maintenance_template_removal" title="Help:Maintenance template removal">Learn how and when to remove this message</a></small>)</i></span></div></td></tr></tbody></table> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1251242444"><table class="box-Original_research plainlinks metadata ambox ambox-content ambox-Original_research" role="presentation"><tbody><tr><td class="mbox-image"><div class="mbox-image-div"><span typeof="mw:File"><span><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/b/b4/Ambox_important.svg/40px-Ambox_important.svg.png" decoding="async" width="40" height="40" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/b/b4/Ambox_important.svg/60px-Ambox_important.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/b/b4/Ambox_important.svg/80px-Ambox_important.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="40" data-file-height="40" /></span></span></div></td><td class="mbox-text"><div class="mbox-text-span">This section <b>possibly contains <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:No_original_research" title="Wikipedia:No original research">original research</a></b>.<span class="hide-when-compact"> Please <a class="external text" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit">improve it</a> by <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Verifiability" title="Wikipedia:Verifiability">verifying</a> the claims made and adding <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Citing_sources#Inline_citations" title="Wikipedia:Citing sources">inline citations</a>. Statements consisting only of original research should be removed.</span> <span class="date-container"><i>(<span class="date">October 2017</span>)</i></span><span class="hide-when-compact"><i> (<small><a href="/wiki/Help:Maintenance_template_removal" title="Help:Maintenance template removal">Learn how and when to remove this message</a></small>)</i></span></div></td></tr></tbody></table> </div> </div><span class="hide-when-compact"><i> (<small><a href="/wiki/Help:Maintenance_template_removal" title="Help:Maintenance template removal">Learn how and when to remove this message</a></small>)</i></span></div></td></tr></tbody></table> <p>Rebranding can lead to <a href="/wiki/RAS_syndrome" title="RAS syndrome">redundant acronym syndrome</a>, as when <a href="/wiki/Trustee_Savings_Bank" title="Trustee Savings Bank">Trustee Savings Bank</a> became TSB Bank, or when <a href="/wiki/Railway_Express_Agency" title="Railway Express Agency">Railway Express Agency</a> became REA Express. A few <a href="/wiki/High-tech" class="mw-redirect" title="High-tech">high-tech</a> companies have taken the redundant acronym to the extreme: for example, ISM Information Systems Management Corp. and SHL Systemhouse Ltd. Examples in entertainment include the television shows <i><a href="/wiki/CSI:_Crime_Scene_Investigation" title="CSI: Crime Scene Investigation">CSI: Crime Scene Investigation</a></i> and <i><a href="/wiki/NCIS_(TV_series)" title="NCIS (TV series)">Navy: NCIS</a></i> ("Navy" was dropped in the second season), where the redundancy was likely designed to educate new viewers as to what the initials stood for. The same reasoning was in evidence when the <a href="/wiki/Royal_Bank_of_Canada" title="Royal Bank of Canada">Royal Bank of Canada</a>'s Canadian operations rebranded to RBC Royal Bank, or when <a href="/wiki/Bank_of_Montreal" title="Bank of Montreal">Bank of Montreal</a> rebranded their retail banking subsidiary BMO Bank of Montreal. </p><p>Another common example is "<a href="/wiki/Random-access_memory" title="Random-access memory">RAM</a> memory", which is redundant because "RAM" ("random-access memory") includes the initial of the word "memory". "PIN" stands for "personal identification number", obviating the second word in "<a href="/wiki/Personal_identification_number" title="Personal identification number">PIN</a> number"; in this case its retention may be motivated to avoid ambiguity with the homophonous word "pin". Other examples include "<a href="/wiki/Automated_teller_machine" class="mw-redirect" title="Automated teller machine">ATM</a> machine", "<a href="/wiki/European_American_Bank" class="mw-redirect" title="European American Bank">EAB</a> bank", "<a href="/wiki/HIV" title="HIV">HIV</a> virus", Microsoft's <a href="/wiki/Windows_NT" title="Windows NT">NT</a> Technology, and the formerly redundant "<a href="/wiki/SAT" title="SAT">SAT</a> test", now simply "SAT Reasoning Test"). <a href="/wiki/Spike_(TV_network)" class="mw-redirect" title="Spike (TV network)">TNN</a> (The Nashville/National Network) also renamed itself "The New TNN" for a brief interlude. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Redefined_acronyms">Redefined acronyms</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=29" title="Edit section: Redefined acronyms"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>In some cases, while the initials in an acronym may stay the same, for what those letters stand may change. Examples include the following: </p> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/DVD" title="DVD">DVD</a> was originally an acronym for the unofficial term "digital video disc", but is now stated by the <a href="/wiki/DVD_Forum" title="DVD Forum">DVD Forum</a> as standing for "Digital Versatile Disc"<sup class="noprint Inline-Template Template-Fact" style="white-space:nowrap;">[<i><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed" title="Wikipedia:Citation needed"><span title="This claim needs references to reliable sources. (August 2022)">citation needed</span></a></i>]</sup></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Government_Accountability_Office" title="Government Accountability Office">GAO</a> changed the full form of its name from "General Accounting Office" to "Government Accountability Office"<sup id="cite_ref-80" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-80"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>79<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup></li> <li><a href="/wiki/United_States_Government_Publishing_Office" title="United States Government Publishing Office">GPO</a> changed the full form of its name from "Government Printing Office" to "Government Publishing Office"<sup id="cite_ref-81" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-81"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>80<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup></li> <li><a href="/wiki/RAID" title="RAID">RAID</a> was originally an acronym for "Redundant Array of Inexpensive Disks" but has since been redefined as "Redundant Array of Independent Disks"<sup id="cite_ref-82" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-82"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>81<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup></li> <li>The <a href="/wiki/Union_for_International_Cancer_Control" title="Union for International Cancer Control">UICC</a> was founded as the "International Union Against Cancer",<sup id="cite_ref-83" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-83"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>82<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> and its initials originally came from the <a href="/wiki/Romance_languages" title="Romance languages">Romance-language</a> versions of that name (such as French <span title="French-language text"><i lang="fr">Union Internationale Contre le Cancer</i></span>). The English expansion of its name has since been changed to "Union for International Cancer Control" so that it would also correspond to the UICC acronym.</li> <li><a href="/wiki/World_Wide_Fund_for_Nature" title="World Wide Fund for Nature">WWF</a> was originally an acronym for "World Wildlife Fund", but now stands for "World Wide Fund for Nature" (although the organization's branches in the U.S. and Canada still use the original name)<sup id="cite_ref-84" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-84"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>83<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup></li></ul> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Backronyms">Backronyms</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=30" title="Edit section: Backronyms"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236090951"><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">Main article: <a href="/wiki/Backronym" title="Backronym">Backronym</a></div> <p>A <i>backronym</i> (or <i>bacronym</i>) is a <a href="/wiki/Phrase" title="Phrase">phrase</a> that is constructed "after the fact" from a previously existing word. For example, the novelist and critic <a href="/wiki/Anthony_Burgess" title="Anthony Burgess">Anthony Burgess</a> once proposed that the word "book" ought to stand for "box of organized knowledge".<sup id="cite_ref-85" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-85"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>84<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> A classic real-world example of this is the name of the predecessor to the Apple Macintosh, the <a href="/wiki/Apple_Lisa" title="Apple Lisa">Apple Lisa</a>, which was said to refer to "Local Integrated Software Architecture", but was actually named after Steve Jobs's daughter, born in 1978. </p><p>Backronyms are oftentimes used for comedic effect<sup class="noprint Inline-Template Template-Fact" style="white-space:nowrap;">[<i><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed" title="Wikipedia:Citation needed"><span title="This claim needs references to reliable sources. (December 2018)">citation needed</span></a></i>]</sup>. An example of creating a backronym for comedic effect would be in naming a group or organization, the name "A.C.R.O.N.Y.M." stands for (among other things) "a clever regiment of nerdy young men". </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Contrived_acronyms">Contrived acronyms</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=31" title="Edit section: Contrived acronyms"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1251242444"><table class="box-Tone plainlinks metadata ambox ambox-style ambox-Tone" role="presentation"><tbody><tr><td class="mbox-image"><div class="mbox-image-div"><span typeof="mw:File"><span><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/f/f2/Edit-clear.svg/40px-Edit-clear.svg.png" decoding="async" width="40" height="40" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/f/f2/Edit-clear.svg/60px-Edit-clear.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/f/f2/Edit-clear.svg/80px-Edit-clear.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="48" data-file-height="48" /></span></span></div></td><td class="mbox-text"><div class="mbox-text-span">This section's <b>tone or style may not reflect the <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Writing_better_articles#Tone" title="Wikipedia:Writing better articles">encyclopedic tone</a> used on Wikipedia</b>.<span class="hide-when-compact"> See Wikipedia's <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Writing_better_articles#Tone" title="Wikipedia:Writing better articles">guide to writing better articles</a> for suggestions.</span> <span class="date-container"><i>(<span class="date">January 2024</span>)</i></span><span class="hide-when-compact"><i> (<small><a href="/wiki/Help:Maintenance_template_removal" title="Help:Maintenance template removal">Learn how and when to remove this message</a></small>)</i></span></div></td></tr></tbody></table> <p>Acronyms are sometimes <a href="https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/contrive#Verb" class="extiw" title="wikt:contrive">contrived</a>, that is, deliberately designed to be especially apt for the thing being named (by having a dual meaning or by borrowing the positive connotations of an existing word). Some examples of contrived acronyms are <i><a href="/wiki/USA_PATRIOT_Act" class="mw-redirect" title="USA PATRIOT Act">USA PATRIOT</a></i>, <a href="/wiki/Can_Spam_Act" class="mw-redirect" title="Can Spam Act"><i>CAN SPAM</i></a>, <i><a href="/wiki/CAPTCHA" title="CAPTCHA">CAPTCHA</a></i> and <i><a href="/wiki/AIDS_Coalition_to_Unleash_Power" class="mw-redirect" title="AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power">ACT UP</a></i>.<sup class="noprint Inline-Template Template-Fact" style="white-space:nowrap;">[<i><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed" title="Wikipedia:Citation needed"><span title="This claim needs references to reliable sources. (January 2018)">citation needed</span></a></i>]</sup> The clothing company <a href="/wiki/French_Connection_(clothing)" title="French Connection (clothing)">French Connection</a> began referring to itself as <i>fcuk</i>, standing for "French Connection United Kingdom". The company then created T-shirts and several advertising campaigns that exploit the acronym's similarity to the taboo word "<a href="/wiki/Fuck" title="Fuck">fuck</a>". Contrived acronyms find frequent use as names of <a href="/wiki/List_of_fictional_espionage_organizations" title="List of fictional espionage organizations">fictional agencies</a>, with a famous example being frequent <a href="/wiki/James_Bond" title="James Bond">James Bond</a> antagonist organization <a href="/wiki/SPECTRE" title="SPECTRE">SPECTRE</a> (SPecial Executive for Counterintelligence, Terrorism, Revenge and Extortion). </p><p>The <a href="/wiki/United_States_Department_of_Defense" title="United States Department of Defense">U.S. Department of Defense</a>'s Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (<a href="/wiki/DARPA" title="DARPA">DARPA</a>) is known for developing contrived acronyms to name projects, including <i>RESURRECT</i>, <i>NIRVANA</i>, and <i>DUDE</i>. In July 2010, <i><a href="/wiki/Wired_(magazine)" title="Wired (magazine)">Wired</a></i> magazine reported that DARPA announced programs to "transform biology from a descriptive to a predictive field of science" named <i>BATMAN</i> and <i>ROBIN</i> for "Biochronicity and Temporal Mechanisms Arising in Nature" and "Robustness of Biologically-Inspired Networks",<sup id="cite_ref-86" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-86"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>85<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> a reference to the <a href="/wiki/Batman" title="Batman">Batman</a> and <a href="/wiki/Robin_(comics)" class="mw-redirect" title="Robin (comics)">Robin</a> comic-book superheroes. </p><p>The short-form <a href="/wiki/Clinical_trial_naming_conventions" title="Clinical trial naming conventions">names of clinical trials</a> and other scientific studies constitute a large class of acronyms that includes many contrived examples, as well as many with a partial rather than complete correspondence of letters to expansion components. These trials tend to have full names that are accurately descriptive of what the trial is about but are thus also too long to serve practically as <a href="/wiki/Name" title="Name">names</a> within the syntax of a sentence, so a short name is also developed, which can serve as a syntactically useful handle and also provide at least a degree of <a href="/wiki/Mnemonic" title="Mnemonic">mnemonic</a> reminder as to the full name. Examples widely known in <a href="/wiki/Medicine" title="Medicine">medicine</a> include the ALLHAT trial (Antihypertensive and Lipid-Lowering Treatment to Prevent Heart Attack Trial) and the CHARM trial (Candesartan in Heart Failure: Assessment of Reduction in Mortality and Morbidity). The fact that <a href="/wiki/RAS_syndrome" title="RAS syndrome">RAS syndrome</a> is often involved, as well as that the letters often do not entirely match, have sometimes been pointed out by annoyed researchers preoccupied by the idea that because the <a href="/wiki/Archetype" title="Archetype">archetypal</a> form of acronyms originated with one-to-one letter matching, there must be some impropriety in their ever deviating from that form. However, the <a href="https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/raison_d%27%C3%AAtre" class="extiw" title="wikt:raison d'être">raison d'être</a> of clinical trial acronyms, as with <a href="/wiki/Gene_nomenclature#Symbol_and_name" title="Gene nomenclature">gene and protein symbols</a>, is simply to have a syntactically usable and easily <a href="/wiki/Recall_(memory)" title="Recall (memory)">recalled</a> short name to complement the long name that is often syntactically unusable and not <a href="/wiki/Memorization" title="Memorization">memorized</a>. It is useful for the short name to give a reminder of the long name, which supports the reasonable censure of "cutesy" examples that provide little to no hint of it. But beyond that reasonably close correspondence, the short name's chief utility is in functioning cognitively as a <a href="/wiki/Name" title="Name">name</a>, rather than being a <a href="https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/cryptic#Adjective" class="extiw" title="wikt:cryptic">cryptic</a> and forgettable string, albeit faithful to the matching of letters. However, other reasonable critiques have been (1) that it is irresponsible to mention trial acronyms without explaining them at least once by providing the long names somewhere in the document,<sup id="cite_ref-PMID-12767559_87-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-PMID-12767559-87"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>86<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> and (2) that the proliferation of trial acronyms has resulted in ambiguity, such as three different trials all called ASPECT, which is another reason why failing to explain them somewhere in the document is irresponsible in scientific communication.<sup id="cite_ref-PMID-12767559_87-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-PMID-12767559-87"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>86<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> At least one study has evaluated the <a href="/wiki/Citation_impact" title="Citation impact">citation impact</a> and other traits of acronym-named trials compared with others,<sup id="cite_ref-PMID-16823008_88-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-PMID-16823008-88"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>87<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> finding both good aspects (mnemonic help, name recall) and potential flaws (<a href="/wiki/Connotation" title="Connotation">connotatively</a> driven <a href="/wiki/Bias" title="Bias">bias</a>).<sup id="cite_ref-PMID-16823008_88-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-PMID-16823008-88"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>87<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>Some acronyms are chosen deliberately to avoid a name considered undesirable: For example, <span title="German-language text"><i lang="de"><a href="/wiki/Verliebt_in_Berlin" title="Verliebt in Berlin">Verliebt in Berlin</a></i></span> (<i>ViB</i>), a German <a href="/wiki/Telenovela" title="Telenovela">telenovela</a>, was first intended to be <span title="German-language text"><i lang="de">Alles nur aus Liebe</i></span> ('All for Love'), but was changed to avoid the resultant acronym <i><a href="/wiki/Anus" title="Anus">ANAL</a></i>. Likewise, the Computer Literacy and Internet Technology qualification is known as <i>CLaIT</i>,<sup id="cite_ref-CIE.org.uk_CLaIT_89-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-CIE.org.uk_CLaIT-89"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>88<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> rather than <i><a href="/wiki/Clitoris" title="Clitoris">CLIT</a></i>. In Canada, the <a href="/wiki/Canadian_Alliance" title="Canadian Alliance">Canadian Conservative Reform Alliance (Party)</a> was quickly renamed to the "Canadian Reform Conservative Alliance" when its opponents pointed out that its initials spelled CCRAP (pronounced "see <a href="/wiki/Feces" title="Feces">crap</a>"). Two Irish institutes of technology (Galway and Tralee) chose different acronyms from other institutes when they were upgraded from regional technical colleges. Tralee RTC became the Institute of Technology Tralee (ITT), as opposed to Tralee Institute of Technology (<a href="/wiki/Breast" title="Breast">TIT</a>). Galway RTC became Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology (GMIT), as opposed to Galway Institute of Technology (<a href="https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/git" class="extiw" title="wikt:git">GIT</a>). The charity sports organization <a href="/wiki/Leukemia_%26_Lymphoma_Society#Fundraising" title="Leukemia & Lymphoma Society">Team in Training</a> is known as "TNT" and not "TIT". <a href="/wiki/Technological_Institute_of_Textile_%26_Sciences" title="Technological Institute of Textile & Sciences">Technological Institute of Textile & Sciences</a>, however, is still known as "TITS". <a href="/wiki/George_Mason_University" title="George Mason University">George Mason University</a> was planning to name their law school the "Antonin Scalia School of Law" (<a href="/wiki/Asshole" title="Asshole">ASSOL</a>) in honor of the late <a href="/wiki/Antonin_Scalia" title="Antonin Scalia">Antonin Scalia</a>, only to change it to the "<a href="/wiki/Antonin_Scalia_Law_School" title="Antonin Scalia Law School">Antonin Scalia Law School</a>" later.<sup id="cite_ref-90" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-90"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>89<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Macronyms/nested_acronyms"><span id="Macronyms.2Fnested_acronyms"></span>Macronyms/nested acronyms</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=32" title="Edit section: Macronyms/nested acronyms"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1251242444"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1248332772"><table class="box-Multiple_issues plainlinks metadata ambox ambox-content ambox-multiple_issues compact-ambox" role="presentation"><tbody><tr><td class="mbox-image"><div class="mbox-image-div"><span typeof="mw:File"><span><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/b/b4/Ambox_important.svg/40px-Ambox_important.svg.png" decoding="async" width="40" height="40" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/b/b4/Ambox_important.svg/60px-Ambox_important.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/b/b4/Ambox_important.svg/80px-Ambox_important.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="40" data-file-height="40" /></span></span></div></td><td class="mbox-text"><div class="mbox-text-span"><div class="multiple-issues-text mw-collapsible"><b>This section has multiple issues.</b> Please help <b><a href="/wiki/Special:EditPage/Acronym" title="Special:EditPage/Acronym">improve it</a></b> or discuss these issues on the <b><a href="/wiki/Talk:Acronym" title="Talk:Acronym">talk page</a></b>. <small><i>(<a href="/wiki/Help:Maintenance_template_removal" title="Help:Maintenance template removal">Learn how and when to remove these messages</a>)</i></small> <div class="mw-collapsible-content"> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1251242444"><table class="box-More_citations_needed_section plainlinks metadata ambox ambox-content ambox-Refimprove" role="presentation"><tbody><tr><td class="mbox-image"><div class="mbox-image-div"><span typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/File:Question_book-new.svg" class="mw-file-description"><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/50px-Question_book-new.svg.png" decoding="async" width="50" height="39" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/75px-Question_book-new.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/100px-Question_book-new.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="512" data-file-height="399" /></a></span></div></td><td class="mbox-text"><div class="mbox-text-span">This section <b>needs additional citations for <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Verifiability" title="Wikipedia:Verifiability">verification</a></b>.<span class="hide-when-compact"> Please help <a href="/wiki/Special:EditPage/Acronym" title="Special:EditPage/Acronym">improve this article</a> by <a href="/wiki/Help:Referencing_for_beginners" title="Help:Referencing for beginners">adding citations to reliable sources</a> in this section. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.</span> <span class="date-container"><i>(<span class="date">February 2020</span>)</i></span><span class="hide-when-compact"><i> (<small><a href="/wiki/Help:Maintenance_template_removal" title="Help:Maintenance template removal">Learn how and when to remove this message</a></small>)</i></span></div></td></tr></tbody></table> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1251242444"><table class="box-Original_research plainlinks metadata ambox ambox-content ambox-Original_research" role="presentation"><tbody><tr><td class="mbox-image"><div class="mbox-image-div"><span typeof="mw:File"><span><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/b/b4/Ambox_important.svg/40px-Ambox_important.svg.png" decoding="async" width="40" height="40" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/b/b4/Ambox_important.svg/60px-Ambox_important.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/b/b4/Ambox_important.svg/80px-Ambox_important.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="40" data-file-height="40" /></span></span></div></td><td class="mbox-text"><div class="mbox-text-span">This section <b>possibly contains <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:No_original_research" title="Wikipedia:No original research">original research</a></b>.<span class="hide-when-compact"> Please <a class="external text" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit">improve it</a> by <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Verifiability" title="Wikipedia:Verifiability">verifying</a> the claims made and adding <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Citing_sources#Inline_citations" title="Wikipedia:Citing sources">inline citations</a>. Statements consisting only of original research should be removed.</span> <span class="date-container"><i>(<span class="date">February 2020</span>)</i></span><span class="hide-when-compact"><i> (<small><a href="/wiki/Help:Maintenance_template_removal" title="Help:Maintenance template removal">Learn how and when to remove this message</a></small>)</i></span></div></td></tr></tbody></table> </div> </div><span class="hide-when-compact"><i> (<small><a href="/wiki/Help:Maintenance_template_removal" title="Help:Maintenance template removal">Learn how and when to remove this message</a></small>)</i></span></div></td></tr></tbody></table> <p>A <b>macronym</b>, or <b>nested acronym</b>, is an acronym in which one or more letters stand for acronyms (or abbreviations) themselves. The word "macronym" is a <a href="/wiki/Portmanteau" class="mw-redirect" title="Portmanteau">portmanteau</a> of "<a href="https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/macro-" class="extiw" title="wikt:macro-">macro-</a>" and "acronym". </p><p>Some examples of macronyms are: </p> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/XMLHttpRequest" title="XMLHttpRequest">XHR</a> stands for "XML HTTP Request", in which "<a href="/wiki/XML" title="XML">XML</a>" is "Extensible Markup Language", and <a href="/wiki/HTTP" title="HTTP">HTTP</a> stands for "HyperText Transfer Protocol"</li> <li><a href="/wiki/IBM_Power_microprocessors" title="IBM Power microprocessors">POWER</a> stands for "Performance Optimization With Enhanced RISC", in which "<a href="/wiki/RISC" class="mw-redirect" title="RISC">RISC</a>" stands for "reduced instruction set computer"</li> <li><a href="/wiki/VHDL" title="VHDL">VHDL</a> stands for "VHSIC Hardware Description Language", in which "<a href="/wiki/VHSIC" class="mw-redirect" title="VHSIC">VHSIC</a>" stands for "Very High Speed Integrated Circuit"</li> <li><a href="/wiki/XSD" class="mw-redirect" title="XSD">XSD</a> stands for "XML Schema Definition", in which "<a href="/wiki/XML" title="XML">XML</a>" stands for "Extensible Markup Language"</li> <li><a href="/wiki/AOL_Instant_Messenger" class="mw-redirect" title="AOL Instant Messenger">AIM</a> stands for "AOL Instant Messenger", in which "<a href="/wiki/AOL" title="AOL">AOL</a>" originally stood for "America Online"</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Houston_Automatic_Spooling_Priority" title="Houston Automatic Spooling Priority">HASP</a> stood for "Houston Automatic Spooling Priority", but "<a href="/wiki/Spooling" title="Spooling">spooling</a>" itself was an acronym: "simultaneous peripheral operations on-line"</li> <li><a href="/wiki/VORTAC" class="mw-redirect" title="VORTAC">VORTAC</a> stands for "VOR+TACAN", in which "VOR" is "<a href="/wiki/VHF_omnidirectional_range" title="VHF omnidirectional range">VHF omnidirectional range</a>" (where VHF = very high frequency radio) and "TAC" is short for <a href="/wiki/TACAN" class="mw-redirect" title="TACAN">TACAN</a>, which stands for "tactical air navigation"</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Global_Information_Assurance_Certification" title="Global Information Assurance Certification">Global Information Assurance Certification</a> has a number of nested acronyms for its certifications, e.g. "GSEC" is an acronym for "GIAC Security Essentials"</li> <li><a href="/wiki/REM_behaviour_disorder" class="mw-redirect" title="REM behaviour disorder">RBD</a> stands for "REM Behavior Disorder", in which "<a href="/wiki/Rapid_eye_movement_sleep" title="Rapid eye movement sleep">REM</a>" stands for "rapid eye movement"</li></ul> <p>Some macronyms can be multiply nested: the second-order acronym points to another one further down a hierarchy. In an informal competition run by the magazine <i><a href="/wiki/New_Scientist" title="New Scientist">New Scientist</a></i>, a fully documented specimen was discovered that may be the most deeply nested of all: RARS is the "Regional ATOVS Retransmission Service"; ATOVS is "Advanced TOVS"; TOVS is "<a href="/wiki/TIROS" class="mw-redirect" title="TIROS">TIROS</a> operational vertical sounder"; and TIROS is "Television infrared observational satellite".<sup id="cite_ref-91" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-91"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>90<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Fully expanded, "RARS" might thus become "Regional Advanced Television Infrared Observational Satellite Operational Vertical Sounder Retransmission Service", which would produce the much more unwieldy acronym "RATIOSOVSRS". </p><p>Another example is <a href="/wiki/VHDL-VITAL" title="VHDL-VITAL">VITAL</a>, which expands to "<a href="/wiki/VHDL" title="VHDL">VHDL</a> Initiative Towards <a href="/wiki/ASIC" class="mw-redirect" title="ASIC">ASIC</a> Libraries" (a total of 15 words when fully expanded). </p><p>However, to say that "RARS" stands directly for that string of words, or can be interchanged with it in <a href="/wiki/Syntax" title="Syntax">syntax</a> (in the same way that "CHF" can be usefully interchanged with "congestive heart failure"), is a <a href="/wiki/Linguistic_prescription" title="Linguistic prescription">prescriptive</a> misapprehension rather than a linguistically accurate description; the true nature of such a term is closer to <a href="#All-caps_style">anacronymic</a> than to being interchangeable like simpler acronyms are. The latter are fully reducible in an attempt to "spell everything out and avoid all abbreviations", but the former are irreducible in that respect; they can be <a href="/wiki/Gloss_(annotation)" title="Gloss (annotation)">annotated</a> with parenthetical explanations, but they cannot be eliminated from speech or writing in any useful or practical way. Just as the words <i>laser</i> and <i>radar</i> function as words in <a href="/wiki/Syntax" title="Syntax">syntax</a> and <a href="/wiki/Cognition" title="Cognition">cognition</a> without a need to focus on their acronymic origins, terms such as "RARS" and "<a href="/wiki/CHA2DS2%E2%80%93VASc_score" title="CHA2DS2–VASc score">CHA2DS2–VASc score</a>" are irreducible in <a href="/wiki/Natural_language" title="Natural language">natural language</a>; if they are purged, the form of language that is left may conform to some imposed rule, but it cannot be described as remaining natural. Similarly, <a href="/wiki/Protein" title="Protein">protein</a> and <a href="/wiki/Gene" title="Gene">gene</a> nomenclature, <a href="/wiki/Gene_nomenclature#Symbol_and_name" title="Gene nomenclature">which uses symbols extensively</a>, includes such terms as the name of the <a href="/wiki/NACHT_domain" title="NACHT domain">NACHT protein domain</a>, which reflects the symbols of some proteins that contain the domain – NAIP (NLR family apoptosis <a href="/wiki/Inhibitor_protein" title="Inhibitor protein">inhibitor protein</a>), C2TA (major histocompatibility complex class II transcription activator), HET-E (incompatibility locus protein from <i>Podospora anserine</i>), and TP1 (telomerase-associated protein) – but is not syntactically reducible to them. The name is thus itself more symbol than acronym, and its expansion cannot replace it while preserving its function in natural syntax as a <a href="/wiki/Name" title="Name">name</a> within a <a href="/wiki/Clause" title="Clause">clause</a> clearly <a href="/wiki/Parsing" title="Parsing">parsable</a> by human readers or listeners. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Recursive_acronyms">Recursive acronyms</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=33" title="Edit section: Recursive acronyms"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236090951"><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">Main article: <a href="/wiki/Recursive_acronym" title="Recursive acronym">Recursive acronym</a></div> <p>A special type of macronym, the <a href="/wiki/Recursive_acronym" title="Recursive acronym">recursive acronym</a>, has letters whose expansion refers back to the macronym itself. One of the earliest examples appears in <i><a href="/wiki/The_Hacker%27s_Dictionary" class="mw-redirect" title="The Hacker's Dictionary">The Hacker's Dictionary</a></i> as <a href="/wiki/Mung_(computer_term)" title="Mung (computer term)">MUNG</a>, which stands for "MUNG Until No Good". </p><p>Some examples of recursive acronyms are: </p> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/GNU" title="GNU">GNU</a> stands for "GNU's Not Unix!"</li> <li><a href="/wiki/LAME" title="LAME">LAME</a> stands for "LAME Ain't an MP3 Encoder"</li> <li><a href="/wiki/PHP" title="PHP">PHP</a> stands for "PHP: Hypertext Preprocessor"</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Wine_(software)" title="Wine (software)">WINE</a> stands for "WINE Is Not an Emulator"</li> <li><a href="/wiki/GNU_Hurd" title="GNU Hurd">HURD</a> stands for "HIRD of Unix-replacing daemons", where HIRD itself stands for "HURD of interfaces representing depth" (a "mutually recursive" acronym)</li></ul> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Non-English_languages">Non-English languages</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=34" title="Edit section: Non-English languages"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Specific_languages">Specific languages</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=35" title="Edit section: Specific languages"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Chinese">Chinese</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=36" title="Edit section: Chinese"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>With English terminology, discussions of languages with <a href="/wiki/Syllabary" title="Syllabary">syllabic</a> or <a href="/wiki/Logographic" class="mw-redirect" title="Logographic">logographic</a> writing systems (such as Chinese, Japanese, and Korean), "acronyms" describe the short forms that take selected characters from a multi-character word. </p><p>For example, in Chinese, 'university' (<span title="Chinese-language text"><span lang="zh-Hant">大學</span></span>/<span title="Chinese-language text"><span lang="zh-Hans">大学</span></span>, <abbr style="font-size:85%" title="literal translation">lit.</abbr><span style="white-space: nowrap;"> </span><span class="gloss-quot">'</span><span class="gloss-text">great learning</span><span class="gloss-quot">'</span>) is usually abbreviated simply as <span title="Chinese-language text"><span lang="zh">大</span></span> ('great') when used with the name of the institute. So '<a href="/wiki/Peking_University" title="Peking University">Peking University</a>' (<span title="Chinese-language text"><span lang="zh-Hans">北京大学</span></span>) is commonly shortened to <span title="Chinese-language text"><span lang="zh">北大</span></span> (<abbr title="literally">lit.</abbr> 'north-great') by also only taking the first character of <i>Peking</i>, the "northern capital" (<span lang="zh">北京</span>; <i><span lang="zh-Latn">Beijing</span></i>). In some cases, however, other characters than the first can be selected. For example, the local short form of '<a href="/wiki/Hong_Kong_University" class="mw-redirect" title="Hong Kong University">Hong Kong University</a>' (<span title="Chinese-language text"><span lang="zh-Hant">香港大學</span></span>) uses <span title="Chinese-language text"><i lang="zh-Latn">Kong</i></span> (<span title="Chinese-language text"><span lang="zh-Hant">港大</span></span>) rather than <span title="Chinese-language text"><i lang="zh-Latn">Hong</i></span>. </p><p>There are also cases where some longer phrases are abbreviated drastically, especially in Chinese politics, where proper nouns were initially translated from Soviet Leninist terms. For instance, the full name of China's highest ruling council, the <a href="/wiki/Politburo_Standing_Committee" class="mw-redirect" title="Politburo Standing Committee">Politburo Standing Committee</a> (PSC), is 'Standing Committee of the Central Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China' (<span title="Chinese-language text"><span lang="zh">中国共产党中央政治局常务委员会</span></span>). The term then reduced the 'Communist Party of China' part of its name through acronyms, then the 'Standing Committee' part, again through acronyms, to create <span title="Chinese-language text"><span lang="zh">中共中央政治局常委</span></span>. Alternatively, it omitted the 'Communist Party' part altogether, creating 'Politburo Standing Committee' (<span title="Chinese-language text"><span lang="zh">政治局常委会</span></span>), and eventually just 'Standing Committee' (<span title="Chinese-language text"><span lang="zh">常委会</span></span>). The PSC's members full designations are 'Member of the Standing Committee of the Central Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China' (<span title="Chinese-language text"><span lang="zh">中国共产党中央政治局常务委员会委员</span></span>); this was eventually drastically reduced to simply <span title="Chinese-language text"><i lang="zh-Latn">Changwei</i></span> (<span title="Chinese-language text"><span lang="zh">常委</span></span>), with the term <span title="Chinese-language text"><i lang="zh-Latn">Ruchang</i></span> (<span title="Chinese-language text"><span lang="zh">入常</span></span>) used increasingly for officials destined for a future seat on the PSC. In another example, the word <span title="Chinese-language text"><span lang="zh">全国人民代表大会</span></span> ('<a href="/wiki/National_People%27s_Congress" title="National People's Congress">National People's Congress</a>') can be broken into four parts: <span title="Chinese-language text"><span lang="zh">全国</span></span> = 'the whole nation', <span title="Chinese-language text"><span lang="zh">人民</span></span> = 'people', <span title="Chinese-language text"><span lang="zh">代表</span></span> = 'representatives', <span title="Chinese-language text"><span lang="zh">大会</span></span> = 'conference'. Yet, in its short form <span title="Chinese-language text"><span lang="zh">人大</span></span> (literally 'man/people big'), only the first characters from the second and the fourth parts are selected; the first part (<span title="Chinese-language text"><span lang="zh">全国</span></span>) and the third part (<span title="Chinese-language text"><span lang="zh">代表</span></span>) are completely dropped. </p><p>Many proper nouns become shorter and shorter over time. For example, the <a href="/wiki/CCTV_New_Year%27s_Gala" class="mw-redirect" title="CCTV New Year's Gala">CCTV New Year's Gala</a>, whose full name is literally read as 'China Central Television Spring Festival Joint Celebration Evening Gala' (<span title="Chinese-language text"><span lang="zh">中国中央电视台春节联欢晚会</span></span>) was first shortened to 'Spring Festival Joint Celebration Evening Gala' (<span title="Chinese-language text"><span lang="zh">春节联欢晚会</span></span>), but eventually referred to as simply <span title="Chinese-language text"><i lang="zh-Latn">Chunwan</i></span> (<span title="Chinese-language text"><span lang="zh">春晚</span></span>). In the same vein, CCTV or <span title="Chinese-language text"><i lang="zh-Latn">Zhongguo Zhongyang Dianshi Tai</i></span> (<span title="Chinese-language text"><span lang="zh">中国中央电视台</span></span>) was reduced to <span title="Chinese-language text"><i lang="zh-Latn">Yangshi</i></span> (<span title="Chinese-language text"><span lang="zh">央视</span></span>) in the mid-2000s. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Korean">Korean</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=37" title="Edit section: Korean"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Many aspects of academics in Korea follow similar acronym patterns as Chinese, owing to the two languages' commonalities, like using the word for 'big' or 'great' i.e. <span title="Korean-language text"><i lang="ko-Latn">dae</i></span> (<span title="Korean-language text"><span lang="ko-Hang">대</span></span>), to refer to universities (<span title="Korean-language text"><span lang="ko-Hang">대학</span></span>; <span title="Korean-language text"><i lang="ko-Latn">daehak</i></span>, literally 'great learning' although 'big school' is an acceptable alternate). They can be interpreted similarly to American university appellations, such as "UPenn" or "Texas Tech". </p><p>Some acronyms are shortened forms of the school's name, like how <a href="/wiki/Hongik_University" title="Hongik University">Hongik University</a> (<span title="Korean-language text"><span lang="ko-Hang">홍익대학교</span></span>, <span title="Korean-language text"><i lang="ko-Latn">Hongik Daehakgyo</i></span>) is shortened to <span title="Korean-language text"><i lang="ko-Latn">Hongdae</i></span> (<span title="Korean-language text"><span lang="ko-Hang">홍대</span></span>, 'Hong, the big [school]' or 'Hong-U') Other acronyms can refer to the university's main subject, e.g. <a href="/wiki/Korea_National_University_of_Education" title="Korea National University of Education">Korea National University of Education</a> (<span title="Korean-language text"><span lang="ko-Hang">한국교원대학교</span></span>, <span title="Korean-language text"><i lang="ko-Latn">Hanguk Gyowon Daehakgyo</i></span>) is shortened to <span title="Korean-language text"><i lang="ko-Latn">Gyowondae</i></span> (교원대, 'Big Ed.' or 'Ed.-U'). Other schools use a Koreanized version of their English acronym. The <a href="/wiki/KAIST" title="KAIST">Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology</a> (<span title="Korean-language text"><span lang="ko-Hang">한국과학기술원</span></span>, <span title="Korean-language text"><i lang="ko-Latn">Hanguk Gwahak Gisulwon</i></span>) is referred to as KAIST (<span title="Korean-language text"><span lang="ko-Hang">카이스트</span></span>, <span title="Korean-language text"><i lang="ko-Latn">Kaiseuteu</i></span>) in both English and Korean. The 3 most prestigious schools in Korea are known as SKY (<span title="Korean-language text"><span lang="ko">스카이</span></span>, <span title="Korean-language text"><i lang="ko-Latn">seukai</i></span>), combining the first letter of their English names (<b>S</b>eoul National, <b>K</b>orea, and <b>Y</b>onsei Universities). In addition, the College Scholastic Ability Test (<span title="Korean-language text"><span lang="ko-Hang">대학수학능력시험</span></span>, <span title="Korean-language text"><i lang="ko-Latn">Daehak Suhang Neungryeok Siheom</i></span>) is shortened to <span title="Korean-language text"><i lang="ko-Latn">Suneung</i></span> (<span title="Korean-language text"><span lang="ko-Hang">수능</span></span>, 'S.A.'). </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Japanese">Japanese</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=38" title="Edit section: Japanese"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236090951"><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">Main article: <a href="/wiki/Japanese_abbreviated_and_contracted_words" title="Japanese abbreviated and contracted words">Japanese abbreviated and contracted words</a></div> <p>The <a href="/wiki/Japanese_language" title="Japanese language">Japanese language</a> makes extensive use of abbreviations, but only some of these are acronyms. </p><p>Chinese-based words (<a href="/wiki/Sino-Japanese_vocabulary" title="Sino-Japanese vocabulary">Sino-Japanese vocabulary</a>) uses similar acronym formation to Chinese, like <i>Tōdai</i><span style="font-weight: normal"> (<span title="Japanese-language text"><span lang="ja">東大</span></span>)</span> for <i>Tōkyō Daigaku</i><span style="font-weight: normal"> (<span title="Japanese-language text"><span lang="ja">東京大学</span></span>, <span title="Hepburn transliteration"><i lang="ja-Latn">Tokyo University</i></span>)</span>. In some cases alternative pronunciations are used, as in <a href="/wiki/Saiky%C5%8D_Line" title="Saikyō Line">Saikyō</a> for 埼京, from <i><a href="/wiki/Saitama,_Saitama" class="mw-redirect" title="Saitama, Saitama">Saitama</a></i> + <i><a href="/wiki/Tokyo" title="Tokyo">Tōkyō</a></i><span style="font-weight: normal"> (<span title="Japanese-language text"><span lang="ja">埼玉+東京</span></span>)</span>, rather than Sai<b>tō</b>. </p><p>Non-Chinese foreign borrowings (<a href="/wiki/Gairaigo" class="mw-redirect" title="Gairaigo">gairaigo</a>) are instead frequently abbreviated as <a href="/wiki/Clipped_compound" title="Clipped compound">clipped compounds</a>, rather than acronyms, using several initial sounds. This is visible in <a href="/wiki/Katakana" title="Katakana">katakana</a> transcriptions of foreign words, but is also found with native words (written in <a href="/wiki/Hiragana" title="Hiragana">hiragana</a>). For example, the <i><a href="/wiki/Pok%C3%A9mon" title="Pokémon">Pokémon</a></i> media franchise's name originally stood for "pocket monsters" (<span title="Japanese-language text"><span lang="ja-Kana"><b>ポケ</b>ット·<b>モン</b>スター</span></span> [po-ke-tto-mon-su-tā] → <span title="Japanese-language text"><span lang="ja-Kana">ポケモン</span></span>), which is still the long-form of the name in Japanese, and "<a href="/wiki/W%C4%81puro" class="mw-redirect" title="Wāpuro">wāpuro</a>" stands for "<a href="/wiki/Word_processor" title="Word processor">word processor</a>" (<span title="Japanese-language text"><span lang="ja-Kana"><b>ワー</b>ド·<b>プロ</b>セッサー</span></span> [wā-do-pu-ro-se-ssā]→ <span title="Japanese-language text"><span lang="ja-Kana">ワープロ</span></span>). </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="German">German</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=39" title="Edit section: German"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>To a greater degree than English does, German tends toward acronyms that use initial syllables rather than initial single letters, although it uses many of the latter type as well. Some examples of the syllabic type are <span title="German-language text"><i lang="de"><a href="/wiki/Gestapo" title="Gestapo">Gestapo</a></i></span> rather than <i>GSP</i> (for <span title="German-language text"><i lang="de">Geheime Staatspolizei</i></span>, 'Secret State Police'); <span title="German-language text"><i lang="de">Flak</i></span> rather than <i>FAK</i> (for <span title="German-language text"><i lang="de">Fliegerabwehrkanone</i></span>, '<a href="/wiki/Anti-aircraft_warfare" title="Anti-aircraft warfare">anti-aircraft</a> gun'); <span title="German-language text"><i lang="de">Kripo</i></span> rather than <i>KP</i> (for <span title="German-language text"><i lang="de"><a href="/wiki/Kriminalpolizei" title="Kriminalpolizei">Kriminalpolizei</a></i></span>, 'detective division police'). The extension of such contraction to a pervasive or whimsical degree has been mockingly labeled <span title="German-language text"><i lang="de"><a href="https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/de:Ak%C3%BCfi" class="extiw" title="wikt:de:Aküfi">Aküfi</a></i></span> (for <span title="German-language text"><i lang="de">Abkürzungsfimmel</i></span>, 'strange habit of abbreviating'). Examples of <span title="German-language text"><i lang="de">Aküfi</i></span> include <span title="German-language text"><i lang="de">Vokuhila</i></span> (for <span title="German-language text"><i lang="de">vorne kurz, hinten lang</i></span>, 'short in the front, long in the back', i.e., a <a href="/wiki/Mullet_(haircut)" title="Mullet (haircut)">mullet</a> haircut) and the mocking of <a href="/wiki/Adolf_Hitler" title="Adolf Hitler">Adolf Hitler</a>'s title as <span title="German-language text"><i lang="de"><a href="/wiki/Gr%C3%B6faz" class="mw-redirect" title="Gröfaz">Gröfaz</a></i></span> (<span title="German-language text"><i lang="de">Größter Feldherr aller Zeiten</i></span>, 'Greatest General of all Time'). </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Hebrew">Hebrew</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=40" title="Edit section: Hebrew"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236090951"><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">Main article: <a href="/wiki/Hebrew_acronyms" class="mw-redirect" title="Hebrew acronyms">Hebrew acronyms</a></div> <p>It is common to take more than just one initial letter from each of the words composing the acronym; regardless of this, the abbreviation sign <a href="/wiki/Gershayim" title="Gershayim">gershayim</a> <span class="nowrap">⟨״⟩</span> is always written between the second-last and last letters of the non-inflected form of the acronym, even if by this it separates letters of the same original word. Examples (keep in mind Hebrew reads right-to-left): <span title="Hebrew-language text"><span lang="he" dir="rtl">ארה״ב</span></span> (for <span title="Hebrew-language text"><span lang="he" dir="rtl">ארצות הברית</span></span>, the United States); <span title="Hebrew-language text"><span lang="he" dir="rtl">ברה״מ</span></span> (for <span title="Hebrew-language text"><span lang="he" dir="rtl">ברית המועצות</span></span>, the Soviet Union); <span title="Hebrew-language text"><span lang="he" dir="rtl">ראשל״צ</span></span> (for <span title="Hebrew-language text"><span lang="he" dir="rtl">ראשון לציון</span></span>, <a href="/wiki/Rishon_LeZion" title="Rishon LeZion">Rishon LeZion</a>); <span title="Hebrew-language text"><span lang="he" dir="rtl">ביה״ס</span></span> (for <span title="Hebrew-language text"><span lang="he" dir="rtl">בית הספר</span></span>, the school). An example that takes only the initial letters from its component words is <span title="Hebrew-language text"><span lang="he" dir="rtl">צה״ל</span></span> (<span title="Hebrew-language text"><i lang="he-Latn">Tzahal</i></span>, for <span title="Hebrew-language text"><span lang="he" dir="rtl">צבא הגנה לישראל</span></span>, <a href="/wiki/Israel_Defense_Forces" title="Israel Defense Forces">Israel Defense Forces</a>). In inflected forms, the abbreviation sign <span title="Hebrew-language text"><i lang="he-Latn"><a href="/wiki/Gershayim" title="Gershayim">gershayim</a></i></span> remains between the second-last and last letters of the non-inflected form of the acronym (e.g. 'report', singular: <span title="Hebrew-language text"><span lang="he" dir="rtl">דו״ח</span></span>, plural: <span title="Hebrew-language text"><span lang="he" dir="rtl">דו״חות</span></span>; 'squad commander', masculine: <span title="Hebrew-language text"><span lang="he" dir="rtl">מ״כ</span></span>, feminine: <span title="Hebrew-language text"><span lang="he" dir="rtl">מ״כית</span></span>). </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Indonesian">Indonesian</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=41" title="Edit section: Indonesian"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236090951"><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">See also: <a href="/wiki/List_of_Indonesian_acronyms_and_abbreviations" title="List of Indonesian acronyms and abbreviations">List of Indonesian acronyms and abbreviations</a></div> <p>There is also a widespread use of acronyms in <a href="/wiki/Indonesia" title="Indonesia">Indonesia</a> in every aspect of social life. For example, the <span title="Indonesian-language text"><i lang="id"><a href="/wiki/Golkar" title="Golkar">Golkar</a></i></span> political party stands for <span title="Indonesian-language text"><i lang="id">Partai Golongan Karya</i></span>, <span title="Indonesian-language text"><i lang="id"><a href="/wiki/Monas" class="mw-redirect" title="Monas">Monas</a></i></span> stands for <span title="Indonesian-language text"><i lang="id">Monumen Nasional</i></span> ('National Monument'), the <span title="Indonesian-language text"><i lang="id">Angkot</i></span> public transport stands for <span title="Indonesian-language text"><i lang="id">Angkutan Kota</i></span> (<a href="/wiki/Share_taxi#Indonesia" title="Share taxi">'city public transportation'</a>), <span title="Indonesian-language text"><i lang="id">warnet</i></span> stands for <span title="Indonesian-language text"><i lang="id">warung internet</i></span> ('<a href="/wiki/Internet_cafe" class="mw-redirect" title="Internet cafe">internet cafe</a>'), and many others. Some acronyms are considered formal (or officially adopted), while many more are considered informal, <a href="/wiki/Slang" title="Slang">slang</a>, or <a href="/wiki/Colloquial" class="mw-redirect" title="Colloquial">colloquial</a>. </p><p>The capital's metropolitan area (<a href="/wiki/Jakarta" title="Jakarta">Jakarta</a> and its surrounding <a href="/wiki/Satellite_city" title="Satellite city">satellite regions</a>), <span title="Indonesian-language text"><i lang="id"><a href="/wiki/Jabodetabek" class="mw-redirect" title="Jabodetabek">Jabodetabek</a></i></span>, is another acronym. This stands for <span title="Indonesian-language text"><i lang="id">Jakarta-Bogor-Depok-Tangerang-Bekasi</i></span>. Many highways are also named by the acronym method; e.g. <span title="Indonesian-language text"><i lang="id">Jalan Tol</i></span> ('Toll Road') <span title="Indonesian-language text"><i lang="id">Jagorawi</i></span> (<span title="Indonesian-language text"><i lang="id">Jakarta-Bogor-Ciawi</i></span>), <span title="Indonesian-language text"><i lang="id">Purbaleunyi</i></span> (<span title="Indonesian-language text"><i lang="id">Purwakarta-Bandung-Cileunyi</i></span>), and <span title="Indonesian-language text"><i lang="id">Joglo Semar</i></span> (<span title="Indonesian-language text"><i lang="id">Jogja-Solo-Semarang</i></span>). </p><p>In some languages, especially those that use certain <a href="/wiki/Alphabets" class="mw-redirect" title="Alphabets">alphabets</a>, many acronyms come from the governmental use, particularly in the military and law enforcement services. The <a href="/wiki/Indonesian_military" class="mw-redirect" title="Indonesian military">Indonesian military</a> (TNI – <span title="Indonesian-language text"><i lang="id">Tentara Nasional Indonesia</i></span>) and <a href="/wiki/Indonesian_police" class="mw-redirect" title="Indonesian police">Indonesian police</a> (POLRI – <span title="Indonesian-language text"><i lang="id">Kepolisian Republik Indonesia</i></span>) are known for heavy acronyms use. Examples include the <span title="Indonesian-language text"><i lang="id"><a href="/wiki/Kopassus" title="Kopassus">Kopassus</a></i></span> (<span title="Indonesian-language text"><i lang="id">Komando Pasukan Khusus</i></span>; '<a href="/wiki/Special_Forces" class="mw-redirect" title="Special Forces">Special Forces</a> Command'), <span title="Indonesian-language text"><i lang="id"><a href="/wiki/Kopaska" class="mw-redirect" title="Kopaska">Kopaska</a></i></span> (<span title="Indonesian-language text"><i lang="id">Komando Pasukan Katak</i></span>; '<a href="/wiki/Frogmen" class="mw-redirect" title="Frogmen">Frogmen</a> Command'), <span title="Indonesian-language text"><i lang="id">Kodim</i></span> (<span title="Indonesian-language text"><i lang="id">Komando Distrik Militer</i></span>; 'Military District Command' – one of the Indonesian army's <a href="/wiki/Administrative_divisions" class="mw-redirect" title="Administrative divisions">administrative divisions</a>), <span title="Indonesian-language text"><i lang="id">Serka</i></span> (<span title="Indonesian-language text"><i lang="id">Sersan Kepala</i></span>; 'Head <a href="/wiki/Sergeant" title="Sergeant">Sergeant</a>'), <span title="Indonesian-language text"><i lang="id">Akmil</i></span> (<span title="Indonesian-language text"><i lang="id">Akademi Militer</i></span>; 'Military Academy' – in <a href="/wiki/Magelang" title="Magelang">Magelang</a>), and many other terms regarding <a href="/wiki/Military_ranks" class="mw-redirect" title="Military ranks">ranks</a>, units, divisions, procedures, etc. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Malay">Malay</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=42" title="Edit section: Malay"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Although not as common as in Indonesian, a number of Malay words are formed by merging two words, such as <span title="Malay (macrolanguage)-language text"><i lang="ms">tadika</i></span> from <span title="Malay (macrolanguage)-language text"><i lang="ms">taman didikan kanak-kanak</i></span> ('kindergarten') and <span title="Malay (macrolanguage)-language text"><i lang="ms">pawagam</i></span> from <span title="Malay (macrolanguage)-language text"><i lang="ms">panggung wayang gambar</i></span>. This, however, has been less prevalent in the modern era, in contrary to Indonesian. It is still often for names such as organisation names, among the most famous being MARA from <span title="Malay (macrolanguage)-language text"><i lang="ms"><a href="/wiki/Majlis_Amanah_Rakyat" title="Majlis Amanah Rakyat">Majlis Amanah Rakyat</a></i></span> ('People's Trust Council'), a government agency in Malaysia. </p><p>Some acronyms are developed from the <a href="/wiki/Jawi_alphabet" class="mw-redirect" title="Jawi alphabet">Jawi</a> (Malay in Arabic script) spelling of the name and may not reflect its Latin counterpart such as PAS from <span title="Malay (macrolanguage)-language text"><i lang="ms"><a href="/wiki/Malaysian_Islamic_Party" title="Malaysian Islamic Party">Parti Islam Se-Malaysia</a></i></span> ('Malaysian Islamic Party') which originated from the Jawi acronym <span title="Malay (macrolanguage)-language text"><span lang="ms-Arab" dir="rtl">ڤاس from ڤرتي إسلام سمليسيا</span></span>, with the same pronunciation, since the first letter of the word 'Islam' in Jawi uses the letter <a href="/wiki/Aleph" title="Aleph">Aleph</a>, which is pronounced like the letter <i>A</i> when in such position as in the acronym. </p><p>Rules in writing initialisms in Malay differ based on its script. In its Latin form, the initialism would be spelt much like in English, using capitals written without any spacing, such as TNB for <span title="Malay (macrolanguage)-language text"><i lang="ms"><a href="/wiki/Tenaga_Nasional" title="Tenaga Nasional">Tenaga Nasional</a> Berhad</i></span>. </p><p>In Jawi, however, the way initialisms are different depending on the source language. For Malay initialisms, the initial Jawi letters would be written separated by a period such as <span title="Malay (macrolanguage)-language text"><span lang="ms-Arab" dir="rtl">د.ب.ڤ</span></span> for <span title="Malay (macrolanguage)-language text"><span lang="ms-Arab" dir="rtl"><a href="/wiki/Dewan_Bahasa_dan_Pustaka" title="Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka">ديوان بهاس دان ڤوستاک</a></span></span>.<sup id="cite_ref-92" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-92"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>91<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> If the initialism is from a different language, however, it would be written by transliterating each letter from the original language, such as <span title="Malay (macrolanguage)-language text"><span lang="ms-Arab" dir="rtl">عيم.سي.عيم.سي.</span></span> for <a href="/wiki/Malaysian_Communications_and_Multimedia_Commission" title="Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission">MCMC</a>, or <span title="Malay (macrolanguage)-language text"><span lang="ms-Arab" dir="rtl">الفا.ڤي.ثيتا</span></span> for <a href="/wiki/Aristotle_University_of_Thessaloniki" title="Aristotle University of Thessaloniki">Α.Π.Θ.</a><sup id="cite_ref-93" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-93"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>92<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Russian">Russian</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=43" title="Edit section: Russian"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Acronyms that use parts of words (not necessarily syllables) are commonplace in Russian as well, e.g. <span title="Russian-language text"><span lang="ru">Газпром</span></span> (<span title="Russian-language text"><i lang="ru-Latn"><a href="/wiki/Gazprom" title="Gazprom">Gazprom</a></i></span>), for <span title="Russian-language text"><span lang="ru">Газовая промышленность</span></span> (<span title="Russian-language romanization"><i lang="ru-Latn">Gazovaya promyshlennost</i></span>, 'gas industry'). There are also initialisms, such as <span title="Russian-language text"><span lang="ru">СМИ</span></span> ('SMI', for <span title="Russian-language text"><span lang="ru">средства массовой информации</span></span> <span title="Russian-language romanization"><i lang="ru-Latn">sredstva massovoy informatsii</i></span>, 'means of mass informing'; <span title="Russian-language text"><span lang="ru">ГУЛаг</span></span> (<span title="Russian-language text"><i lang="ru-Latn"><a href="/wiki/GULag" class="mw-redirect" title="GULag">GULag</a></i></span>) combines two initials and three letters of the final word: it stands for <span title="Russian-language text"><span lang="ru">Главное управление лагерей</span></span> (<span title="Russian-language romanization"><i lang="ru-Latn">Glavnoe upravlenie lagerey</i></span>, 'Chief Administration of Camps'). </p><p>Historically, <i><a href="/wiki/OTMA" title="OTMA">OTMA</a></i> was an acronym sometimes used by the daughters of <a href="/wiki/Emperor" title="Emperor">Emperor</a> <a href="/wiki/Nicholas_II_of_Russia" class="mw-redirect" title="Nicholas II of Russia">Nicholas II of Russia</a> and his consort, <a href="/wiki/Alexandra_Feodorovna_(Alix_of_Hesse)" title="Alexandra Feodorovna (Alix of Hesse)">Alexandra Feodorovna</a>, as a group nickname for themselves, built from the first letter of each girl's name in the order of their births: Olga, Tatiana, Maria, and Anastasia. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Swahili">Swahili</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=44" title="Edit section: Swahili"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>In <a href="/wiki/Swahili_language" title="Swahili language">Swahili</a>, acronyms are common for naming organizations such as <i>TUKI</i>, which stands for <span title="Swahili (macrolanguage)-language text"><i lang="sw">Taasisi ya Uchunguzi wa Kiswahili</i></span> ('Institute for Swahili Research'). Multiple initial letters (often the initial syllable of words) are often drawn together, as seen more in some languages than others. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Vietnamese">Vietnamese</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=45" title="Edit section: Vietnamese"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>In <a href="/wiki/Vietnamese_language" title="Vietnamese language">Vietnamese</a>, which has an abundance of compound words, initialisms are very commonly used for both proper and common nouns. Examples include <i>TP.HCM</i> (<span title="Vietnamese-language text"><i lang="vi">Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh</i></span>, '<a href="/wiki/Ho_Chi_Minh_City" title="Ho Chi Minh City">Ho Chi Minh City</a>'), <i>THPT</i> (<span title="Vietnamese-language text"><i lang="vi">trung học phổ thông</i></span>, 'high school'), <i>CLB</i> (<span title="Vietnamese-language text"><i lang="vi">câu lạc bộ</i></span>, 'club'), <i>CSDL</i> (<span title="Vietnamese-language text"><i lang="vi">cơ sở dữ liệu</i></span>, 'database'), <i>NXB</i> (<span title="Vietnamese-language text"><i lang="vi">nhà xuất bản</i></span>, 'publisher'), <span title="Vietnamese-language text"><i lang="vi">ÔBACE</i></span> (<span title="Vietnamese-language text"><i lang="vi">ông bà anh chị em</i></span>, a general form of address), and <span title="Vietnamese-language text"><i lang="vi">CTTĐVN</i></span> (<span title="Vietnamese-language text"><i lang="vi">các Thánh tử đạo Việt Nam</i></span>, '<a href="/wiki/Vietnamese_Martyrs" title="Vietnamese Martyrs">Vietnamese Martyrs</a>'). Longer examples include <i>CHXHCNVN</i> (<span title="Vietnamese-language text"><i lang="vi">Cộng hòa Xã hội chủ nghĩa Việt Nam</i></span>, 'Socialist Republic of Vietnam') and <i>MTDTGPMNVN</i> (<span title="Vietnamese-language text"><i lang="vi">Mặt trận Dân tộc Giải phóng miền Nam Việt Nam</i></span>, '<a href="/wiki/Viet_Cong" title="Viet Cong">Liberation Army of South Vietnam or the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam</a>'). Long initialisms have become widespread in legal contexts in <a href="/wiki/Vietnam" title="Vietnam">Vietnam</a>, for example <i>TTLT-VKSNDTC-TANDTC</i>.<sup id="cite_ref-94" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-94"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>93<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> It is also common for a writer to coin an ad hoc initialism for repeated use in an article. </p><p>Each letter in an initialism corresponds to one <a href="/wiki/Morpheme" title="Morpheme">morpheme</a>, that is, one syllable. When the first letter of a syllable has a tone mark or other diacritic, the diacritic may be omitted from the initialism, for example <span title="Vietnamese-language text"><i lang="vi">ĐNA</i></span> or <span title="Vietnamese-language text"><i lang="vi">ĐNÁ</i></span> for <span title="Vietnamese-language text"><i lang="vi">Đông Nam Á</i></span> ('<a href="/wiki/Southeast_Asia" title="Southeast Asia">Southeast Asia</a>') and <i>LMCA</i> or <span title="Vietnamese-language text"><i lang="vi">LMCÂ</i></span> for <span title="Vietnamese-language text"><i lang="vi">Liên minh châu Âu</i></span> ('<a href="/wiki/European_Union" title="European Union">European Union</a>'). The letter <span title="Vietnamese-language text"><i lang="vi"><a href="/wiki/%C6%AF" title="Ư">Ư</a></i></span> is often replaced by <i>W</i> in initialisms to avoid confusion with <i>U</i>, for example <i>UBTWMTTQVN</i> or <span title="Vietnamese-language text"><i lang="vi">UBTƯMTTQVN</i></span> for <span title="Vietnamese-language text"><i lang="vi">Ủy ban Trung ương Mặt trận Tổ quốc Việt Nam</i></span> ('Central Committee of the <a href="/wiki/Vietnamese_Fatherland_Front" title="Vietnamese Fatherland Front">Vietnamese Fatherland Front</a>'). </p><p>Initialisms are purely a written convenience, being pronounced the same way as their expansions. As the <a href="/wiki/Vietnamese_alphabet#Letter_names_and_pronunciation" title="Vietnamese alphabet">names of many Vietnamese letters</a> are disyllabic, it would be less convenient to pronounce an initialism by its individual letters. Acronyms pronounced as words are rare in Vietnamese, occurring when an acronym itself is borrowed from another language. Examples include <span title="Vietnamese-language text"><i lang="vi">SIĐA</i></span> (<style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1177148991">.mw-parser-output .IPA-label-small{font-size:85%}.mw-parser-output .references .IPA-label-small,.mw-parser-output .infobox .IPA-label-small,.mw-parser-output .navbox .IPA-label-small{font-size:100%}</style><span class="IPA-label IPA-label-small">pronounced</span> <span class="IPA nowrap" lang="vi-Latn-fonipa"><a href="/wiki/Help:IPA/Vietnamese" title="Help:IPA/Vietnamese">[s̪i˧<span class="wrap"> </span>ˀɗaː˧]</a></span>), a respelling of the French acronym <i>SIDA</i> ('<a href="/wiki/AIDS" class="mw-redirect" title="AIDS">AIDS</a>'); <i>VOA</i> (<link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1177148991"><span class="IPA-label IPA-label-small">pronounced</span> <span class="IPA nowrap" lang="vi-Latn-fonipa"><a href="/wiki/Help:IPA/Vietnamese" title="Help:IPA/Vietnamese">[vwaː˧]</a></span>), a literal reading of the English initialism for '<a href="/wiki/Voice_of_America" title="Voice of America">Voice of America</a>'; and <i><a href="/wiki/NASA" title="NASA">NASA</a></i> (<link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1177148991"><span class="IPA-label IPA-label-small">pronounced</span> <span class="IPA nowrap" lang="vi-Latn-fonipa"><a href="/wiki/Help:IPA/Vietnamese" title="Help:IPA/Vietnamese">[naː˧<span class="wrap"> </span>zaː˧]</a></span>), borrowed directly from the English acronym. </p><p>As in <a href="#Chinese">Chinese</a>, many compound words can be shortened to the first syllable when forming a longer word. For example, the term <span title="Vietnamese-language text"><i lang="vi"><a href="/wiki/Viet_Cong" title="Viet Cong">Việt Cộng</a></i></span> is derived from the first syllables of <span title="Vietnamese-language text"><i lang="vi">Việt Nam</i></span> ('Vietnam') and <span title="Vietnamese-language text"><i lang="vi">Cộng sản</i></span> ('communist'). This mechanism is limited to <a href="/wiki/Sino-Vietnamese_vocabulary" title="Sino-Vietnamese vocabulary">Sino-Vietnamese vocabulary</a>. Unlike with Chinese, such <a href="/wiki/Clipped_compound" title="Clipped compound">clipped compounds</a> are considered to be <a href="/wiki/Portmanteau" class="mw-redirect" title="Portmanteau">portmanteau</a> words or <a href="/wiki/Blend_word" title="Blend word">blend words</a> rather than acronyms or initialisms, because the <a href="/wiki/Vietnamese_alphabet" title="Vietnamese alphabet">Vietnamese alphabet</a> still requires each component word to be written as more than one character. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="General_grammatical_considerations">General grammatical considerations</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=46" title="Edit section: General grammatical considerations"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Declension">Declension</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=47" title="Edit section: Declension"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>In languages where nouns are <a href="/wiki/Declension" title="Declension">declined</a>, various methods are used. An example is <a href="/wiki/Finnish_language" title="Finnish language">Finnish</a>, where a colon is used to separate inflection from the letters: </p> <ul><li>An acronym is pronounced as a word: <a href="/wiki/NATO" title="NATO">NATO</a> or Nato <span class="IPA nowrap" lang="fi-Latn-fonipa"><a href="/wiki/Help:IPA/Finnish" title="Help:IPA/Finnish">[ˈnɑto]</a></span> – <span title="Finnish-language text"><i lang="fi">Natoon</i></span> <span class="IPA nowrap" lang="und-Latn-fonipa" title="Representation in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA)">[ˈnɑtoːn]</span> 'into Nato'; another example is <span title="Finnish-language text"><i lang="fi">Nasalta</i></span> 'from <a href="/wiki/NASA" title="NASA">NASA</a>'</li> <li>An acronym is pronounced as letters: EU <span class="IPA nowrap" lang="und-Latn-fonipa" title="Representation in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA)">[ˈeːˌʔuː]</span> – <span title="Finnish-language text"><i lang="fi">EU:hun</i></span> <span class="IPA nowrap" lang="und-Latn-fonipa" title="Representation in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA)">[ˈeːˌʔuːhun]</span> 'into [the] EU'</li> <li>An acronym is interpreted as words: EU <span class="IPA nowrap" lang="und-Latn-fonipa" title="Representation in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA)">[euroːpan<span class="wrap"> </span>unioni]</span> – <span title="Finnish-language text"><i lang="fi">EU:iin</i></span> <span class="IPA nowrap" lang="und-Latn-fonipa" title="Representation in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA)">[ˈeu̯roːpɑnˌunioniːn]</span> 'into [the] EU'</li></ul> <p>The process above is similar to the way that hyphens are used for clarity in English when prefixes are added to acronyms: thus <i>pre-NATO policy</i> (rather than <i>preNATO</i>). </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Lenition">Lenition</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=48" title="Edit section: Lenition"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>In languages such as <a href="/wiki/Scottish_Gaelic" title="Scottish Gaelic">Scottish Gaelic</a> and <a href="/wiki/Irish_language" title="Irish language">Irish</a>, where <a href="/wiki/Lenition" title="Lenition">lenition</a> (initial consonant mutation) is commonplace, acronyms must also be modified in situations where case and context dictate it. In the case of Scottish Gaelic, a lower-case <i>h</i> is often added after the initial consonant; for example, '<a href="/wiki/BBC_Scotland" title="BBC Scotland">BBC Scotland</a>' in the genitive case would be written as <span title="Scottish Gaelic-language text"><i lang="gd">BhBC Alba</i></span>, with the acronym pronounced <i>VBC</i>. Likewise, the Gaelic acronym for <span title="Scottish Gaelic-language text"><i lang="gd">telebhisean</i></span> 'television' is <span title="Scottish Gaelic-language text"><i lang="gd">TBh</i></span>, pronounced <i>TV</i>, as in English. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="See_also">See also</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=49" title="Edit section: See also"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Acrostic" title="Acrostic">Acrostic</a> – Text formed from parts of another text</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Amalgamation_(names)" title="Amalgamation (names)">Amalgamation (names)</a> – Name formed by combining several previously existing names</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Initialized_sign" title="Initialized sign">Initialized sign</a> – Handshape sign for finger spelling in the sign language</li> <li><a href="/wiki/One-letter_word" title="One-letter word">One-letter word</a> – A single-letter word</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Syllabic_abbreviation" class="mw-redirect" title="Syllabic abbreviation">Syllabic abbreviation</a> – Shortened form of a word or phrase<span style="display:none" class="category-annotation-with-redirected-description">Pages displaying short descriptions of redirect targets</span></li></ul> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Explanatory_notes">Explanatory notes</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=50" title="Edit section: Explanatory notes"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1239543626">.mw-parser-output .reflist{margin-bottom:0.5em;list-style-type:decimal}@media screen{.mw-parser-output .reflist{font-size:90%}}.mw-parser-output .reflist .references{font-size:100%;margin-bottom:0;list-style-type:inherit}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns-2{column-width:30em}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns-3{column-width:25em}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns{margin-top:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns ol{margin-top:0}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns li{page-break-inside:avoid;break-inside:avoid-column}.mw-parser-output .reflist-upper-alpha{list-style-type:upper-alpha}.mw-parser-output .reflist-upper-roman{list-style-type:upper-roman}.mw-parser-output .reflist-lower-alpha{list-style-type:lower-alpha}.mw-parser-output .reflist-lower-greek{list-style-type:lower-greek}.mw-parser-output .reflist-lower-roman{list-style-type:lower-roman}</style><div class="reflist reflist-lower-alpha"> <div class="mw-references-wrap"><ol class="references"> <li id="cite_note-78"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-78">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">This change was also applied to other languages, with <i>Poulet Frit Kentucky</i> becoming <i>PFK</i> in French Canada.</span> </li> </ol></div></div> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="References">References</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=51" title="Edit section: References"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1239543626"><div class="reflist reflist-columns references-column-width" style="column-width: 40em;"> <ol class="references"> <li id="cite_note-Brinton_Page_110-1"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-Brinton_Page_110_1-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1238218222">.mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit;word-wrap:break-word}.mw-parser-output .citation q{quotes:"\"""\"""'""'"}.mw-parser-output .citation:target{background-color:rgba(0,127,255,0.133)}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-free.id-lock-free a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/65/Lock-green.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-limited.id-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .id-lock-registration.id-lock-registration a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-subscription.id-lock-subscription a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4c/Wikisource-logo.svg")right 0.1em center/12px no-repeat}body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-free a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-limited a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-registration a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-subscription a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon a{background-size:contain;padding:0 1em 0 0}.mw-parser-output .cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:none;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none;color:var(--color-error,#d33)}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{color:var(--color-error,#d33)}.mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{display:none;color:#085;margin-left:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right{padding-right:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .citation .mw-selflink{font-weight:inherit}@media screen{.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}html.skin-theme-clientpref-night .mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{color:#18911f}}@media screen and (prefers-color-scheme:dark){html.skin-theme-clientpref-os .mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{color:#18911f}}</style><cite id="CITEREFBrintonBrinton2010" class="citation book cs1">Brinton, Laurel J.; Brinton, Donna M. (2010). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://books.google.com/books?id=1EeND5SyUuwC&pg=PA110"><i>The Linguistic Structure of Modern English</i></a>. Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing Company. p. 110. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-90-272-8824-0" title="Special:BookSources/978-90-272-8824-0"><bdi>978-90-272-8824-0</bdi></a><span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">April 3,</span> 2022</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=The+Linguistic+Structure+of+Modern+English&rft.place=Amsterdam&rft.pages=110&rft.pub=John+Benjamins+Publishing+Company&rft.date=2010&rft.isbn=978-90-272-8824-0&rft.aulast=Brinton&rft.aufirst=Laurel+J.&rft.au=Brinton%2C+Donna+M.&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fbooks.google.com%2Fbooks%3Fid%3D1EeND5SyUuwC%26pg%3DPA110&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-2"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-2">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFMcMahon2023" class="citation web cs1">McMahon, Mary (December 30, 2023). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.languagehumanities.org/what-is-the-difference-between-an-acronym-alphabetism-and-initialism.htm">"What is the Difference Between an Acronym, Alphabetism, and Initialism?"</a>. <i>LanguageHumanities</i><span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">February 9,</span> 2024</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=LanguageHumanities&rft.atitle=What+is+the+Difference+Between+an+Acronym%2C+Alphabetism%2C+and+Initialism%3F&rft.date=2023-12-30&rft.aulast=McMahon&rft.aufirst=Mary&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.languagehumanities.org%2Fwhat-is-the-difference-between-an-acronym-alphabetism-and-initialism.htm&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-3"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-3">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://proofed.com/writing-tips/acronyms-vs-initialisms-whats-the-difference/">"Acronyms vs. Initialisms: What's the Difference?"</a>. <i>Proofed</i>. April 3, 2022<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">January 24,</span> 2024</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=Proofed&rft.atitle=Acronyms+vs.+Initialisms%3A+What%27s+the+Difference%3F&rft.date=2022-04-03&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fproofed.com%2Fwriting-tips%2Facronyms-vs-initialisms-whats-the-difference%2F&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-OED-4"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-OED_4-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-OED_4-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-OED_4-2"><sup><i><b>c</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-OED_4-3"><sup><i><b>d</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.oed.com/view/Entry/1844">"acronym, n."</a> <i>Oxford English Dictionary</i> (Third ed.). Oxford University Press. December 2011. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.today/20200122222116/https://www.oed.com/view/Entry/1844">Archived</a> from the original on January 22, 2020<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">January 22,</span> 2020</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=Oxford+English+Dictionary&rft.atitle=acronym%2C+n.&rft.date=2011-12&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.oed.com%2Fview%2FEntry%2F1844&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1244412712">.mw-parser-output .templatequote{overflow:hidden;margin:1em 0;padding:0 32px}.mw-parser-output .templatequotecite{line-height:1.5em;text-align:left;margin-top:0}@media(min-width:500px){.mw-parser-output .templatequotecite{padding-left:1.6em}}</style><blockquote class="templatequote"><p><b>acronym, <i>n.</i></b><br /> </p><p><b>Pronunciation:</b> Brit. /ˈakrənɪm/, U.S. /ˈækrəˌnɪm/<br /> <b>Origin:</b> Formed within English, by compounding; modelled on a German lexical item.<br /> <b>Etymons:</b> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r920966791"><span class="smallcaps">acro-</span> comb. form, <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r920966791"><span class="smallcaps">-onym</span> comb. form.<br /> <b>Etymology:</b> < <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r920966791"><span class="smallcaps">acro-</span> comb. form + <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r920966791"><span class="smallcaps">-onym</span> comb. form, after German <i>Akronym</i> (1921 or earlier).<br /> Originally <i>U.S.</i><br /> <b>1.</b> A group of initial letters used as an abbreviation for a name or expression, each letter or part being pronounced separately; an initialism (such as <i>ATM</i>, <i>TLS</i>).<br /> In the <i>O.E.D.</i> the term <i>initialism</i> is used for this phenomenon. (See sense 2 for <i>O.E.D.</i> use of the word.)<br /> </p> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1126788409">.mw-parser-output .plainlist ol,.mw-parser-output .plainlist ul{line-height:inherit;list-style:none;margin:0;padding:0}.mw-parser-output .plainlist ol li,.mw-parser-output .plainlist ul li{margin-bottom:0}</style><div class="plainlist" style="margin-left: 1.6em;"> <ul><li><div style="text-indent: -1.6em; margin-left: 1.6em;">1940 <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r920966791"><span class="smallcaps">W. Muir & E. Muir</span> tr. L. Feuchtwanger <i>Paris Gaz.</i> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r920966791"><span class="smallcaps">iii.</span> xlvii. 518     Pee-gee-enn. It's an acronym [Ger. <i>Akronym</i>], that's what it is. That's what they call words made up of initials.</div></li> <li><div style="text-indent: -1.6em; margin-left: 1.6em;">1947 <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r920966791"><span class="smallcaps">T. M. Pearce</span> in <i>Word Study</i> May 8/2     The acronym DDT..trips pleasantly on the tongue and is already a household byword.</div></li> <li><div style="text-indent: -1.6em; margin-left: 1.6em;">1959 <i>Rotarian</i> May 43/1     DDD, an acronym that sounds more like a cattle brand.</div></li> <li><div style="text-indent: -1.6em; margin-left: 1.6em;">1975 <i>Jet</i> 24 July 9/1     The puns on the acronym, 'CIA', were spawned by recent disclosures about the intelligence agency.</div></li> <li><div style="text-indent: -1.6em; margin-left: 1.6em;">1985 <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r920966791"><span class="smallcaps">C. Jencks</span> <i>Mod. Movements in Archit.</i> (ed. 2) i. 75     Called by the acronym SCSD (Schools Construction System Development).</div></li> <li><div style="text-indent: -1.6em; margin-left: 1.6em;">2008 <i>Atlantic Monthly</i> June 104/2     The acronym TSS—<i>Tout Sauf Sarkozy</i> ('Anything But Sarkozy').</div></li></ul> </div> <p><b>2.</b> A word formed from the initial letters of other words or (occasionally) from the initial parts of syllables taken from other words, the whole being pronounced as a single word (such as <i>NATO</i>, <i>RADA</i>).<br /> </p> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1126788409"><div class="plainlist" style="margin-left: 1.6em;"> <ul><li><div style="text-indent: -1.6em; margin-left: 1.6em;">1943 <i>Amer. Notes & Queries</i> Feb. 167/1     Words made up of the initial letters or syllables of other words..I have seen..called by the name <i>acronym</i>.</div></li> <li><div style="text-indent: -1.6em; margin-left: 1.6em;">1947 <i>Word Study</i> 6(<i>title</i>)     Acronym Talk, or 'Tomorrow's English'.</div></li> <li><div style="text-indent: -1.6em; margin-left: 1.6em;">1950 <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r920966791"><span class="smallcaps">S. Potter</span> <i>Our Lang.</i> 163     Acronyms or telescoped names like <i>nabisco</i> from <i>National Biscuit Company</i>.</div></li> <li><div style="text-indent: -1.6em; margin-left: 1.6em;">1959 <i>Times</i> 1 Sept. 22/3     New words which are constructed out of initial letters are called, I understand, acronyms.</div></li> <li><div style="text-indent: -1.6em; margin-left: 1.6em;">1961 <i>Electronics</i> 21 Apr. 51/2     Colidar, an acronym from coherent light detecting and ranging.</div></li> <li><div style="text-indent: -1.6em; margin-left: 1.6em;">1976 <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r920966791"><span class="smallcaps">P. R. Hutt</span> in <i>IBA Techn. Rev.</i> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r920966791"><span class="smallcaps">ix.</span> 4/2     The author hit on the idea of the name 'oracle'..and it was not long before it was made into an acronym for 'Optional Reception of Announcements by Coded Line Electronics'.</div></li> <li><div style="text-indent: -1.6em; margin-left: 1.6em;">2009 <i>N.Y. Times</i> (National ed.) 16 Apr. <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r920966791"><span class="smallcaps">a</span>2/2     Turning tea into an acronym for Taxed Enough Already, demonstrators were expected to attend more than 750 rallies to protest government spending.</div></li></ul></div></blockquote></span></li> <li id="cite_note-Merriam-Webster_note-5"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-Merriam-Webster_note_5-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.m-w.com/dictionary/acronym">"Acronym"</a>. <i>The Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary</i>. Merriam-Webster Inc. January 22, 2020. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.today/20200122212129/https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/acronym">Archived</a> from the original on January 22, 2020<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">January 22,</span> 2020</span>. <q>Some people feel strongly that <i>acronym</i> should only be used for terms like <i>NATO</i>, which is pronounced as a single word, and that <i>initialism</i> should be used if the individual letters are all pronounced distinctly, as with <i>FBI</i>. Our research shows that <i>acronym</i> is commonly used to refer to both types of abbreviations.</q></cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=The+Merriam-Webster.com+Dictionary&rft.atitle=Acronym.&rft.date=2020-01-22&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.m-w.com%2Fdictionary%2Facronym&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Wiktionary-6"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-Wiktionary_6-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a class="external text" href="https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/acronym#Usage_notes">"acronym"</a>. <i>en.wiktionary.org</i>. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20200117042335/https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/acronym#Usage_notes">Archived</a> from the original on January 17, 2020<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">January 28,</span> 2020</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=en.wiktionary.org&rft.atitle=acronym&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fen.wiktionary.org%2Fwiki%2Facronym%23Usage_notes&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Brockhaus_Handbuch-7"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-Brockhaus_Handbuch_7-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation encyclopaedia cs1 cs1-prop-foreign-lang-source"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://books.google.com/books?id=O9tFuwEACAAJ&pg=PA37">"Akronym"</a>. <i>Brockhaus Handbuch des Wissens in vier Bänden</i> (in German). Vol. 1. Leipzig: <a href="/wiki/F._A._Brockhaus_AG" title="F. A. Brockhaus AG">F. A. Brockhaus AG</a>. 1921. p. 37<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">February 22,</span> 2020</span> – via Google Books. <q>Agfa (Aktien-Gesellschaft für Anilinfabrikation)</q></cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.atitle=Akronym&rft.btitle=Brockhaus+Handbuch+des+Wissens+in+vier+B%C3%A4nden&rft.place=Leipzig&rft.pages=37&rft.pub=F.+A.+Brockhaus+AG&rft.date=1921&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fbooks.google.com%2Fbooks%3Fid%3DO9tFuwEACAAJ%26pg%3DPA37&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Paris_Gazette-8"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-Paris_Gazette_8-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFFeuchtwanger1940" class="citation book cs1 cs1-prop-foreign-lang-source"><a href="/wiki/Lion_Feuchtwanger" title="Lion Feuchtwanger">Feuchtwanger, Lion</a> (1940). "Chapter 47: Beasts of Prey". <i>Paris Gazette</i> (in German). Translated by <a href="/wiki/Willa_Muir" title="Willa Muir">Muir, Willa</a>; <a href="/wiki/Edwin_Muir" title="Edwin Muir">Muir, Edwin</a>. New York: Viking Press. pp. 665–66. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/1-135-37010-9" title="Special:BookSources/1-135-37010-9"><bdi>1-135-37010-9</bdi></a>. <q>His first glance at the <i>Paris German News</i> told Wiesener that this new paper was nothing like the old <i>P.G.</i>. 'They can call it the <i>P.G.N.</i> if they like', he thought, 'but that's the only difference. Pee-gee-enn; what's the word for words like that, made out of initials? My memory is beginning to fail me. Just the other day there was a technical expression I couldn't remember. I must be growing old. <i>P.G.</i> or <i>P.G.N.</i>, it's six of one and half a dozen of the other. ... Pee-gee-enn. It's an acronym, that's what it is. That's what they call words made up of initials. So I remember it after all; that's at least something.</q></cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.atitle=Chapter+47%3A+Beasts+of+Prey&rft.btitle=Paris+Gazette&rft.place=New+York&rft.pages=665-66&rft.pub=Viking+Press&rft.date=1940&rft.isbn=1-135-37010-9&rft.aulast=Feuchtwanger&rft.aufirst=Lion&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Brinton_Page_109-9"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-Brinton_Page_109_9-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFBrintonBrinton2010" class="citation book cs1">Brinton, Laurel J.; Brinton, Donna M. (2010). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://books.google.com/books?id=1EeND5SyUuwC&pg=PA109"><i>The Linguistic Structure of Modern English</i></a>. Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing Company. p. 109. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-90-272-8824-0" title="Special:BookSources/978-90-272-8824-0"><bdi>978-90-272-8824-0</bdi></a><span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">April 3,</span> 2022</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=The+Linguistic+Structure+of+Modern+English&rft.place=Amsterdam&rft.pages=109&rft.pub=John+Benjamins+Publishing+Company&rft.date=2010&rft.isbn=978-90-272-8824-0&rft.aulast=Brinton&rft.aufirst=Laurel+J.&rft.au=Brinton%2C+Donna+M.&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fbooks.google.com%2Fbooks%3Fid%3D1EeND5SyUuwC%26pg%3DPA109&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Merriam-Webster-10"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-Merriam-Webster_10-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.today/20200122212129/https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/acronym">"Acronym"</a>. <i>The Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary</i>. Merriam-Webster Inc. January 22, 2020. Archived from <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.m-w.com/dictionary/acronym">the original</a> on January 22, 2020<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">January 22,</span> 2020</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=The+Merriam-Webster.com+Dictionary&rft.atitle=Acronym.&rft.date=2020-01-22&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.m-w.com%2Fdictionary%2Facronym&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1244412712"><blockquote class="templatequote"><p><b>acronym</b> noun<br />ac·ro·nym | \ˈa-krə-ˌnim\ <br />Definition of <i>acronym</i><br />: a word (such as <i>NATO</i>, <i>radar</i>, or <i>laser</i>) formed from the initial letter or letters of each of the successive parts or major parts of a compound term <br /><i>also</i> : an abbreviation (such as <i>FBI</i>) formed from initial letters : <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r920966791"><span class="smallcaps">initialism</span></p></blockquote></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Dictionary.com-11"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-Dictionary.com_11-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.dictionary.com/browse/acronym?s=t">"Acronym"</a>. <i>Dictionary.com</i>. January 22, 2020. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.today/20200122212526/https://www.dictionary.com/browse/acronym?s=t">Archived</a> from the original on January 22, 2020<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">January 22,</span> 2020</span>. <q>2. a set of initials representing a name, organization, or the like, with each letter pronounced separately; an initialism.</q></cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=Dictionary.com&rft.atitle=Acronym.&rft.date=2020-01-22&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.dictionary.com%2Fbrowse%2Facronym%3Fs%3Dt&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-AHD5-12"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-AHD5_12-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-AHD5_12-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-AHD5_12-2"><sup><i><b>c</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://ahdictionary.com/word/search.html?q=acronym">"Acronym"</a>. <i>The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language</i> (Fifth ed.). Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. November 2011. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.today/20200122220158/https://ahdictionary.com/word/search.html?q=acronym">Archived</a> from the original on January 22, 2020<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">January 22,</span> 2020</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=The+American+Heritage+Dictionary+of+the+English+Language&rft.atitle=Acronym.&rft.date=2011-11&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fahdictionary.com%2Fword%2Fsearch.html%3Fq%3Dacronym&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1244412712"><blockquote class="templatequote"><p>ac·ro·nym (ăk<b>′</b>rə-nĭm′)<br /> <i>n.</i><br /> <b>1.</b> A word formed by combining the initial letters of a multipart name, such as <i>NATO</i> from <i>N</i>orth <i>A</i>tlantic <i>T</i>reaty <i>O</i>rganization or by combining the initial letters or parts of a series of words, such as <i>radar</i> from <i>ra</i>dio <i>d</i>etecting <i>a</i>nd <i>r</i>anging.<br /> <b>2.</b> <i>Usage Problem</i> An initialism.<br />[<link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r920966791"><span class="smallcaps">acr(o)- + -onym.</span>]<br />ac′ro·nym<b>′</b>ic, a·cron<b>′</b>y·mous (ə-krŏn′ə-məs) <i>adj.</i><br /><i><b>Usage Note:</b></i> In strict usage, the term <i>acronym</i> refers to a word made from the initial letters or parts of other words, such as <i>sonar</i> from <i>so(und) na(vigation and) r(anging)</i>. The distinguishing feature of an acronym is that it is pronounced as if it were a single word, in the manner of <i>NATO</i> and <i>NASA</i>. Acronyms are often distinguished from initialisms like <i>FBI</i> and <i>NIH</i>, whose individual letters are pronounced as separate syllables. While observing this distinction has some virtue in precision, it may be lost on many people, for whom the term <i>acronym</i> refers to both kinds of abbreviations.</p></blockquote></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Macquarie-13"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-Macquarie_13-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.macquariedictionary.com.au/features/word/search/acronym/">"acronym"</a>. <i>Macquarie Dictionary</i>. Macmillan Publishers Australia. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.today/20200303014940/https://www.macquariedictionary.com.au/features/word/search/acronym/">Archived</a> from the original on March 3, 2020<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">January 22,</span> 2020</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=Macquarie+Dictionary&rft.atitle=acronym&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.macquariedictionary.com.au%2Ffeatures%2Fword%2Fsearch%2Facronym%2F&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1244412712"><blockquote class="templatequote"><p><b>acronym</b><br />/ˈækrənɪm/ ('<b>say'</b> 'akruhnim)<br /><i>noun</i> <b>1. </b> a word formed from the initial letters of a sequence of words, as <i>radar</i> (from <i>radio detection and ranging</i>) or <i>ANZAC</i> (from <i>Australian and New Zealand Army Corps</i>). Compare <b>initialism</b>.<br /><b>2. </b> an initialism.<br />[<link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r920966791"><span class="smallcaps">acro-</span> + <i>-</i>(<i>o</i>)<i>nym</i>; modelled on <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r920966791"><span class="smallcaps">synonym</span>]</p></blockquote></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Collins-14"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-Collins_14-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/acronym">"acronym"</a>. <i>Collins COBUILD Advanced English Dictionary</i>. HarperCollins Publishers. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20200208100705/https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/acronym">Archived</a> from the original on February 8, 2020<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">January 22,</span> 2020</span>. <q>An acronym is a word composed of the first letters of the words in a phrase, especially when this is used as a name. An example of an acronym is 'NATO', which is made up of the first letters of the 'North Atlantic Treaty Organization'.</q></cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=Collins+COBUILD+Advanced+English+Dictionary&rft.atitle=acronym&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.collinsdictionary.com%2Fdictionary%2Fenglish%2Facronym&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Cambridge-15"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-Cambridge_15-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/acronym">"acronym"</a>. <i>Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus</i>. Cambridge University Press. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20200208100706/https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/acronym">Archived</a> from the original on February 8, 2020<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">January 22,</span> 2020</span>. <q>an abbreviation consisting of the first letters of each word in the name of something, pronounced as a word</q></cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=Cambridge+Advanced+Learner%27s+Dictionary+%26+Thesaurus&rft.atitle=acronym&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fdictionary.cambridge.org%2Fdictionary%2Fenglish%2Facronym&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Macmillan-16"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-Macmillan_16-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.macmillandictionary.com/dictionary/british/acronym">"acronym"</a>. <i>Macmillan Dictionary</i>. Macmillan Education Limited. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20200405205208/https://www.macmillandictionary.com/dictionary/british/acronym">Archived</a> from the original on April 5, 2020<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">January 22,</span> 2020</span>. <q>an abbreviation consisting of letters that form a word. For example, NATO is an acronym for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.</q></cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=Macmillan+Dictionary&rft.atitle=acronym&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.macmillandictionary.com%2Fdictionary%2Fbritish%2Facronym&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Longman-17"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-Longman_17-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.ldoceonline.com/dictionary/acronym">"acronym"</a>. <i>Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English</i>. Pearson Longman. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20200405215403/https://www.ldoceonline.com/dictionary/acronym">Archived</a> from the original on April 5, 2020<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">January 22,</span> 2020</span>. <q>a word made up from the first letters of the name of something such as an organization. For example, NATO is an acronym for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.</q></cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=Longman+Dictionary+of+Contemporary+English&rft.atitle=acronym&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ldoceonline.com%2Fdictionary%2Facronym&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-NOAD-18"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-NOAD_18-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation book cs1"><span class="id-lock-registration" title="Free registration required"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.org/details/newoxfordamerica0000unse_l5h7/page/15/mode/2up"><i>New Oxford American dictionary</i></a></span> (3rd ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. 2010. p. 15. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-19-539288-3" title="Special:BookSources/978-0-19-539288-3"><bdi>978-0-19-539288-3</bdi></a>. <a href="/wiki/OCLC_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="OCLC (identifier)">OCLC</a> <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://search.worldcat.org/oclc/614990378">614990378</a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=New+Oxford+American+dictionary.&rft.place=Oxford&rft.pages=15&rft.edition=3rd&rft.pub=Oxford+University+Press&rft.date=2010&rft_id=info%3Aoclcnum%2F614990378&rft.isbn=978-0-19-539288-3&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Farchive.org%2Fdetails%2Fnewoxfordamerica0000unse_l5h7%2Fpage%2F15%2Fmode%2F2up&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1244412712"><blockquote class="templatequote"><p><b>ac·ro·nym</b> /ˈakrəˌnim/ ▸ <b>n.</b> an abbreviation formed from the initial letters of other words and pronounced as a word (e.g. <i>ASCII</i>, <i>NASA</i>).<br />—<link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r920966791"><span class="smallcaps">origin</span> 1940s: from Greek <i>akron</i> 'end, tip' + <i>onoma</i> 'name,' on the pattern of <i>homonym</i>.</p></blockquote></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Websters-New-World-19"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-Websters-New-World_19-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.yourdictionary.com/acronym">"acronym"</a>. <i>Webster's New World College Dictionary, Fifth Edition</i>. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. 2014. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20200405210057/https://www.yourdictionary.com/acronym">Archived</a> from the original on April 5, 2020<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">January 22,</span> 2020</span>. <q>a word formed from the first (or first few) letters of a series of words, as radar, from <i>ra</i>dio <i>d</i>etecting <i>a</i>nd <i>r</i>anging</q></cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=Webster%27s+New+World+College+Dictionary%2C+Fifth+Edition&rft.atitle=acronym&rft.date=2014&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.yourdictionary.com%2Facronym&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Lexico-20"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-Lexico_20-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20191222132554/https://www.lexico.com/en/definition/acronym">"acronym"</a>. <i>Lexico</i>. Oxford University Press. Archived from <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.lexico.com/en/definition/acronym">the original</a> on December 22, 2019<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">January 22,</span> 2020</span>. <q>An abbreviation formed from the initial letters of other words and pronounced as a word (e.g. ASCII, NASA).</q></cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=Lexico&rft.atitle=acronym&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.lexico.com%2Fen%2Fdefinition%2Facronym&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-MWDEU-21"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-MWDEU_21-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-MWDEU_21-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text">Merriam-Webster, Inc. <i>Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of English Usage</i>, 1994. <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/0-87779-132-5" title="Special:BookSources/0-87779-132-5">0-87779-132-5</a>. pp. 21–22: <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1244412712"><blockquote class="templatequote"><p><b>acronyms</b>  A number of commentators (as Copperud 1970, Janis 1984, Howard 1984) believe that acronyms can be differentiated from other abbreviations in being pronounceable as words. Dictionaries, however, do not make this distinction because writers in general do not: <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1244412712"></p><blockquote class="templatequote"><p>"The powder metallurgy industry has officially adopted the acronym 'P/M Parts<span style="padding-right:.15em;">'</span>"—<i>Precision Metal Molding</i>, January 1966.<br />"Users of the term <i>acronym</i> make no distinction between those pronounced as words ... and those pronounced as a series of characters" —Jean Praninskas, <i>Trade Name Creation</i>, 1968.<br />"It is not J.C.B.'s fault that its name, let alone its acronym, is not a household word among European scholars"—<i>Times Literary Supp.</i> 5 February 1970.<br />"... the confusion in the Pentagon about abbreviations and acronyms—words formed from the first letters of other words"—Bernard Weinraub, <i>N.Y. Times</i>, 11 December 1978.</p></blockquote><p>Pyles & Algeo 1970 divide acronyms into "initialisms", which consists of initial letters pronounced with the letter names, and "word acronyms", which are pronounced as words. <i>Initialism</i>, an older word than <i>acronym</i>, seems to be too little known to the general public to serve as the customary term standing in contrast with <i>acronym</i> in a narrow sense.</p></blockquote></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-MW10-22"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-MW10_22-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation book cs1"><i><a href="/wiki/Merriam-Webster%27s_Collegiate_Dictionary" class="mw-redirect" title="Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary">Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary</a></i> (10th ed.). Springfield, Massachusetts: <a href="/wiki/Merriam-Webster" title="Merriam-Webster">Merriam-Webster</a>. 1993. p. 11. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/0-87779-708-0" title="Special:BookSources/0-87779-708-0"><bdi>0-87779-708-0</bdi></a>. <a href="/wiki/OCLC_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="OCLC (identifier)">OCLC</a> <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://search.worldcat.org/oclc/27432416">27432416</a>. <q><b>ac·ro·nym</b> ˈa-krə-ˌnim <i>n</i> [<i>acr-</i> + <i>-onym</i>] (1943) : a word (as <i>NATO</i>, <i>radar</i>, or <i>snafu</i>) formed from the initial letter or letters of each of the successive parts or major parts of a compound term— <b>ac·ro·nym·ic</b> ˌa-krə-ˈni-mik <i>adj</i> — <b>ac·ro·nym·i·c·al·ly</b> -mi-k(ə-)lē <i>adv</i></q></cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Merriam-Webster%27s+Collegiate+Dictionary&rft.place=Springfield%2C+Massachusetts&rft.pages=11&rft.edition=10th&rft.pub=Merriam-Webster&rft.date=1993&rft_id=info%3Aoclcnum%2F27432416&rft.isbn=0-87779-708-0&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-MW11-23"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-MW11_23-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation book cs1"><i><a href="/wiki/Merriam-Webster%27s_Collegiate_Dictionary" class="mw-redirect" title="Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary">Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary</a></i> (11th ed.). Springfield, Massachusetts: <a href="/wiki/Merriam-Webster" title="Merriam-Webster">Merriam-Webster</a>. 2003. p. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.org/details/merriamwebsters00spri/page/12">12</a>. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/0-87779-809-5" title="Special:BookSources/0-87779-809-5"><bdi>0-87779-809-5</bdi></a>. <a href="/wiki/OCLC_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="OCLC (identifier)">OCLC</a> <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://search.worldcat.org/oclc/51764057">51764057</a> – via Internet Archive. <q><b>ac·ro·nym</b> ˈa-krə-ˌnim <i>n</i> [<i>acr-</i> + <i>-onym</i>] (1943) : a word (such as <i>NATO</i>, <i>radar</i>, or <i>laser</i>) formed from the initial letter or letters of each of the successive parts or major parts of a compound term; <i>also</i> : an abbreviation (such as <i>FBI</i>) formed from initial letters : <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r920966791"><span class="smallcaps">initialism</span>— <b>ac·ro·nym·ic</b> ˌa-krə-ˈni-mik <i>adj</i> — <b>ac·ro·nym·i·c·al·ly</b> -mi-k(ə-)lē <i>adv</i></q></cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Merriam-Webster%27s+Collegiate+Dictionary&rft.place=Springfield%2C+Massachusetts&rft.pages=12&rft.edition=11th&rft.pub=Merriam-Webster&rft.date=2003&rft_id=info%3Aoclcnum%2F51764057&rft.isbn=0-87779-809-5&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-OED1989-24"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-OED1989_24-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-OED1989_24-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.oed.com/oed2/00002102">"acronym"</a>. <i><a href="/wiki/Oxford_English_Dictionary" title="Oxford English Dictionary">Oxford English Dictionary</a></i> (3rd ed.). 1989. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190325224324/http://www.oed.com/oed2/00002102">Archived</a> from the original on March 25, 2019<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">January 28,</span> 2020</span>. <q>A word formed from the initial letters of other words.</q></cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=Oxford+English+Dictionary&rft.atitle=acronym&rft.date=1989&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.oed.com%2Foed2%2F00002102&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-AHD4-25"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-AHD4_25-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation book cs1">"acronym". <i><a href="/wiki/The_American_Heritage_Dictionary_of_the_English_Language" title="The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language">The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language</a></i> (4th ed.). Boston: Houghton Mifflin. 2000. p. 16. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/0-395-82517-2" title="Special:BookSources/0-395-82517-2"><bdi>0-395-82517-2</bdi></a>. <a href="/wiki/OCLC_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="OCLC (identifier)">OCLC</a> <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://search.worldcat.org/oclc/43499541">43499541</a>. <q>ac·ro·nym (ăk<b>′</b>rə-nĭm′) <i>n.</i> A word formed from the initial letters of a name, such as <i>WAC</i> for <i>W</i>omen's <i>A</i>rmy <i>C</i>orps, or by combining initial letters or parts of a series of words, such as <i>radar</i> for <i>ra</i>dio <i>d</i>etecting <i>a</i>nd <i>r</i>anging. [<link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r920966791"><span class="smallcaps">acr(o)- + -onym.</span>]—ac′ro·nym<b>′</b>ic, a·cron<b>′</b>y·mous (ə-krŏn′ə-məs) <i>adj.</i></q></cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.atitle=acronym&rft.btitle=The+American+Heritage+Dictionary+of+the+English+Language&rft.place=Boston&rft.pages=16&rft.edition=4th&rft.pub=Houghton+Mifflin&rft.date=2000&rft_id=info%3Aoclcnum%2F43499541&rft.isbn=0-395-82517-2&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-26"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-26">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFGoranson2010" class="citation web cs1">Goranson, Stephen (December 5, 2010). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://listserv.linguistlist.org/pipermail/ads-l/2010-December/105190.html">"acronym antedated to 1940"</a>. <i>American Dialect Society E-Mail Discussion List Archive</i>. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20200405220548/http://listserv.linguistlist.org/pipermail/ads-l/2010-December/105190.html">Archived</a> from the original on April 5, 2020<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">March 5,</span> 2020</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=American+Dialect+Society+E-Mail+Discussion+List+Archive&rft.atitle=acronym+antedated+to+1940&rft.date=2010-12-05&rft.aulast=Goranson&rft.aufirst=Stephen&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Flistserv.linguistlist.org%2Fpipermail%2Fads-l%2F2010-December%2F105190.html&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-27"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-27">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFZimmer2010" class="citation news cs1">Zimmer, Ben (December 16, 2010). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/19/magazine/19FOB-onlanguage-t.html">"On Language: Acronym"</a>. <i><a href="/wiki/The_New_York_Times_Magazine" title="The New York Times Magazine">The New York Times Magazine</a></i>. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20200405220123/https://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/19/magazine/19FOB-onlanguage-t.html">Archived</a> from the original on April 5, 2020<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">March 4,</span> 2020</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.jtitle=The+New+York+Times+Magazine&rft.atitle=On+Language%3A+Acronym&rft.date=2010-12-16&rft.aulast=Zimmer&rft.aufirst=Ben&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com%2F2010%2F12%2F19%2Fmagazine%2F19FOB-onlanguage-t.html&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-28"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-28">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20200327185842/https://public.oed.com/how-to-use-the-oed/glossary/#sense">"OED terminology"</a>. <i><a href="/wiki/Oxford_English_Dictionary" title="Oxford English Dictionary">Oxford English Dictionary</a></i> (3rd ed.). Archived from <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://public.oed.com/how-to-use-the-oed/glossary/#sense">the original</a> on March 27, 2020<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">January 28,</span> 2020</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=Oxford+English+Dictionary&rft.atitle=OED+terminology&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fpublic.oed.com%2Fhow-to-use-the-oed%2Fglossary%2F%23sense&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Fowler2015-29"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-Fowler2015_29-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFFowler2015" class="citation book cs1"><a href="/wiki/H._W._Fowler" title="H. W. Fowler">Fowler, Henry Watson</a> (June 1, 2015). Jeremy Butterfield (ed.). <i><a href="/wiki/Fowler%27s_Dictionary_of_Modern_English_Usage" class="mw-redirect" title="Fowler's Dictionary of Modern English Usage">Fowler's Dictionary of Modern English Usage</a></i> (4th ed.). Oxford University Press. p. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://books.google.com/books?id=AvmzBgAAQBAJ&pg=PA16">16</a>. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-19-966135-0" title="Special:BookSources/978-0-19-966135-0"><bdi>978-0-19-966135-0</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Fowler%27s+Dictionary+of+Modern+English+Usage&rft.pages=16&rft.edition=4th&rft.pub=Oxford+University+Press&rft.date=2015-06-01&rft.isbn=978-0-19-966135-0&rft.aulast=Fowler&rft.aufirst=Henry+Watson&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-CMOS16-30"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-CMOS16_30-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation book cs1"><span class="id-lock-registration" title="Free registration required"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.org/details/chicagomanualofs16edunse_2010">"10.2 Acronyms, initialisms, contractions"</a></span>. <i>The Chicago Manual of Style</i> (16th ed.). University of Chicago Press. 2010. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-226-10420-1" title="Special:BookSources/978-0-226-10420-1"><bdi>978-0-226-10420-1</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.atitle=10.2+Acronyms%2C+initialisms%2C+contractions&rft.btitle=The+Chicago+Manual+of+Style&rft.edition=16th&rft.pub=University+of+Chicago+Press&rft.date=2010&rft.isbn=978-0-226-10420-1&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Farchive.org%2Fdetails%2Fchicagomanualofs16edunse_2010&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Bryson2002-31"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-Bryson2002_31-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFBryson2002" class="citation book cs1"><a href="/wiki/Bill_Bryson" title="Bill Bryson">Bryson, Bill</a> (September 17, 2002). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://books.google.com/books?id=nwSm4UVY8uMC&pg=PT9"><i>Bryson's Dictionary of Troublesome Words</i></a>. Crown. p. 9. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-7679-1047-7" title="Special:BookSources/978-0-7679-1047-7"><bdi>978-0-7679-1047-7</bdi></a><span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">March 11,</span> 2020</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Bryson%27s+Dictionary+of+Troublesome+Words&rft.pages=9&rft.pub=Crown&rft.date=2002-09-17&rft.isbn=978-0-7679-1047-7&rft.aulast=Bryson&rft.aufirst=Bill&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fbooks.google.com%2Fbooks%3Fid%3DnwSm4UVY8uMC%26pg%3DPT9&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Garner2009-32"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-Garner2009_32-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFGarner2009" class="citation book cs1"><a href="/wiki/Bryan_Garner" class="mw-redirect" title="Bryan Garner">Garner, Bryan</a> (July 28, 2009). <i><a href="/wiki/Garner%27s_Modern_American_Usage" class="mw-redirect" title="Garner's Modern American Usage">Garner's Modern American Usage</a></i>. <a href="/wiki/Oxford_University_Press" title="Oxford University Press">Oxford University Press</a>. p. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://books.google.com/books?id=Sd3byNeBdR4C&pg=PA2">2</a>. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-19-987462-0" title="Special:BookSources/978-0-19-987462-0"><bdi>978-0-19-987462-0</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Garner%27s+Modern+American+Usage&rft.pages=2&rft.pub=Oxford+University+Press&rft.date=2009-07-28&rft.isbn=978-0-19-987462-0&rft.aulast=Garner&rft.aufirst=Bryan&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-SiegalConnolly2015-33"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-SiegalConnolly2015_33-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFSiegalConnoly2015" class="citation book cs1"><a href="/wiki/Allan_M._Siegal" title="Allan M. Siegal">Siegal, Allan M.</a>; <a href="/wiki/William_G._Connolly" title="William G. Connolly">Connoly, William G.</a> (2015). <i><a href="/wiki/The_New_York_Times_Manual_of_Style_and_Usage" title="The New York Times Manual of Style and Usage">The New York Times Manual of Style and Usage</a>: The Official Style Guide Used by the Writers and Editors of the World's Most Authoritative News Organization</i> (5th ed.). Three Rivers Press. p. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://books.google.com/books?id=AfbaCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA5">5</a>. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-101-90544-9" title="Special:BookSources/978-1-101-90544-9"><bdi>978-1-101-90544-9</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=The+New+York+Times+Manual+of+Style+and+Usage%3A+The+Official+Style+Guide+Used+by+the+Writers+and+Editors+of+the+World%27s+Most+Authoritative+News+Organization&rft.pages=5&rft.edition=5th&rft.pub=Three+Rivers+Press&rft.date=2015&rft.isbn=978-1-101-90544-9&rft.aulast=Siegal&rft.aufirst=Allan+M.&rft.au=Connoly%2C+William+G.&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-BuzzFeed-34"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-BuzzFeed_34-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFFavilla2019" class="citation web cs1">Favilla, Emmy (December 27, 2019). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.buzzfeed.com/emmyf/buzzfeed-style-guide#2370665">"BuzzFeed Style Guide"</a>. <i>BuzzFeed.com</i>. BuzzFeed. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20200405210420/https://www.buzzfeed.com/emmyf/buzzfeed-style-guide#2370665">Archived</a> from the original on April 5, 2020<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">January 22,</span> 2020</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=BuzzFeed.com&rft.atitle=BuzzFeed+Style+Guide&rft.date=2019-12-27&rft.aulast=Favilla&rft.aufirst=Emmy&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.buzzfeed.com%2Femmyf%2Fbuzzfeed-style-guide%232370665&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-35"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-35">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFRobinson2008" class="citation book cs1">Robinson, Paul (2008). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://books.google.com/books?id=oy9GzLqkMr0C&pg=PA31">"C4ISR"</a>. <i>Dictionary of international security</i>. Polity. p. 31. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-7456-4028-0" title="Special:BookSources/978-0-7456-4028-0"><bdi>978-0-7456-4028-0</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.atitle=C4ISR&rft.btitle=Dictionary+of+international+security&rft.pages=31&rft.pub=Polity&rft.date=2008&rft.isbn=978-0-7456-4028-0&rft.aulast=Robinson&rft.aufirst=Paul&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fbooks.google.com%2Fbooks%3Fid%3Doy9GzLqkMr0C%26pg%3DPA31&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-36"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-36">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.hsdl.org/?view&did=6791">"Acronyms (and other forms of abbreviation)"</a>. <a href="/wiki/US_Department_of_Homeland_Security" class="mw-redirect" title="US Department of Homeland Security">US Department of Homeland Security</a>. November 12, 2008. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20140714170336/http://www.hsdl.org/?view&did=6791">Archived</a> from the original on July 14, 2014<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">June 10,</span> 2014</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=Acronyms+%28and+other+forms+of+abbreviation%29&rft.pub=US+Department+of+Homeland+Security&rft.date=2008-11-12&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.hsdl.org%2F%3Fview%26did%3D6791&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Davenport-37"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-Davenport_37-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFDavenport1943" class="citation journal cs1">Davenport, Basil (February 1943). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.157029">"Initials into Words"</a>. <i><a href="/wiki/American_Notes_and_Queries" class="mw-redirect" title="American Notes and Queries">American Notes and Queries</a></i>. <b>2</b>: 167 – via Internet Archive. <q>Your correspondent who asks about words made up of the initial letters or syllables of other words may be interested in knowing that I have seen such words called by the name <i>acronym</i>, which is useful and clear to anyone who knows a little Greek.</q></cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.jtitle=American+Notes+and+Queries&rft.atitle=Initials+into+Words&rft.volume=2&rft.pages=167&rft.date=1943-02&rft.aulast=Davenport&rft.aufirst=Basil&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Farchive.org%2Fdetails%2Fin.ernet.dli.2015.157029&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-38"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-38">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFHarper" class="citation web cs1">Harper, Douglas. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.etymonline.com/baloney.php">"Baloney"</a>. <i>Online Etymology Dictionary</i>. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20220417143143/http://www.snopes.com/language/acronyms/fuck.asp">Archived</a> from the original on April 17, 2022<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">August 31,</span> 2009</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=Online+Etymology+Dictionary&rft.atitle=Baloney&rft.aulast=Harper&rft.aufirst=Douglas&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.etymonline.com%2Fbaloney.php&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Wilton-39"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-Wilton_39-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-Wilton_39-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFWilton2004" class="citation book cs1">Wilton, David (2004). <span class="id-lock-registration" title="Free registration required"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.org/details/wordmythsdebunki00wilt_0"><i>Word myths: debunking linguistic urban legends</i></a></span>. Oxford University Press, USA. p. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.org/details/wordmythsdebunki00wilt_0/page/79">79</a>. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-19-517284-3" title="Special:BookSources/978-0-19-517284-3"><bdi>978-0-19-517284-3</bdi></a><span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">September 16,</span> 2010</span>. <q>Word Myths: Debunking Linguistic Urban Legends.</q></cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Word+myths%3A+debunking+linguistic+urban+legends&rft.pages=79&rft.pub=Oxford+University+Press%2C+USA&rft.date=2004&rft.isbn=978-0-19-517284-3&rft.aulast=Wilton&rft.aufirst=David&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Farchive.org%2Fdetails%2Fwordmythsdebunki00wilt_0&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-40"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-40">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.snopes.com/language/acronyms/acronyms.asp">"Urban Legends Reference Pages: Language (Acronyms)"</a>. Snopes.com<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">September 16,</span> 2010</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=Urban+Legends+Reference+Pages%3A+Language+%28Acronyms%29&rft.pub=Snopes.com&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.snopes.com%2Flanguage%2Facronyms%2Facronyms.asp&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span><sup class="noprint Inline-Template"><span style="white-space: nowrap;">[<i><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Link_rot" title="Wikipedia:Link rot"><span title=" Dead link tagged October 2024">permanent dead link</span></a></i><span style="visibility:hidden; color:transparent; padding-left:2px">‍</span>]</span></sup></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-41"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-41">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation cs2"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.oed.com/view/Entry/271930">"abjad, <i>n.</i>"</a>, <i>Oxford English Dictionary</i></cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.atitle=abjad%2C+n.&rft.btitle=Oxford+English+Dictionary&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.oed.com%2Fview%2FEntry%2F271930&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span>.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-42"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-42">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation cs2"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.oed.com/view/Entry/25693">"cabal, <i>n.</i>"</a>, <i>Oxford English Dictionary</i></cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.atitle=cabal%2C+n.&rft.btitle=Oxford+English+Dictionary&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.oed.com%2Fview%2FEntry%2F25693&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span>.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-43"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-43">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">K. D. Nilsen & A. P. Nilsen (1995) <i>The English Journal</i> Vol. 84, No. 6., "Literary Metaphors and Other Linguistic Innovations in Computer Language"</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-44"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-44">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFCrystal2008" class="citation book cs1"><a href="/wiki/David_Crystal" title="David Crystal">Crystal, David</a> (2008). <i><a href="/wiki/Txtng:_The_Gr8_Db8" class="mw-redirect" title="Txtng: The Gr8 Db8">Txtng: The Gr8 Db8</a></i>. <a href="/wiki/Oxford_University_Press" title="Oxford University Press">Oxford University Press</a>. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-19-954490-5" title="Special:BookSources/978-0-19-954490-5"><bdi>978-0-19-954490-5</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Txtng%3A+The+Gr8+Db8&rft.pub=Oxford+University+Press&rft.date=2008&rft.isbn=978-0-19-954490-5&rft.aulast=Crystal&rft.aufirst=David&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-45"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-45">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFLee" class="citation web cs1">Lee, Chelsea. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://blog.apastyle.org/apastyle/2015/10/an-abbreviations-faq.html#Q2">"An Abbreviations FAQ"</a>. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20200603074708/https://blog.apastyle.org/apastyle/2015/10/an-abbreviations-faq.html#Q2">Archived</a> from the original on June 3, 2020<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">June 3,</span> 2020</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=An+Abbreviations+FAQ&rft.aulast=Lee&rft.aufirst=Chelsea&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fblog.apastyle.org%2Fapastyle%2F2015%2F10%2Fan-abbreviations-faq.html%23Q2&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-PMID19150279-46"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-PMID19150279_46-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFPatelRashid2009" class="citation journal cs1">Patel, C. B.; Rashid, R. M. (February 2009). "Averting the proliferation of acronymophilia in dermatology: effectively avoiding ADCOMSUBORDCOMPHIBSPAC". <i>Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology</i>. <b>60</b> (2): 340–344. <a href="/wiki/Doi_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="Doi (identifier)">doi</a>:<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://doi.org/10.1016%2Fj.jaad.2008.10.035">10.1016/j.jaad.2008.10.035</a>. <a href="/wiki/PMID_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="PMID (identifier)">PMID</a> <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19150279">19150279</a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.jtitle=Journal+of+the+American+Academy+of+Dermatology&rft.atitle=Averting+the+proliferation+of+acronymophilia+in+dermatology%3A+effectively+avoiding+ADCOMSUBORDCOMPHIBSPAC&rft.volume=60&rft.issue=2&rft.pages=340-344&rft.date=2009-02&rft_id=info%3Adoi%2F10.1016%2Fj.jaad.2008.10.035&rft_id=info%3Apmid%2F19150279&rft.aulast=Patel&rft.aufirst=C.+B.&rft.au=Rashid%2C+R.+M.&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-47"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-47">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.snopes.com/language/acronyms/cop.asp">"Does Cop = 'Constable on Patrol'?"</a>. May 3, 2007.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=Does+Cop+%3D+%27Constable+on+Patrol%27%3F&rft.date=2007-05-03&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.snopes.com%2Flanguage%2Facronyms%2Fcop.asp&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-posh-48"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-posh_48-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-posh_48-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFQuinion2005" class="citation book cs1"><a href="/wiki/Michael_Quinion" title="Michael Quinion">Quinion, Michael</a> (2005). <i>Port Out, Starboard Home: And Other Language Myths</i>. Penguin Books. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-14-101223-0" title="Special:BookSources/978-0-14-101223-0"><bdi>978-0-14-101223-0</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Port+Out%2C+Starboard+Home%3A+And+Other+Language+Myths&rft.pub=Penguin+Books&rft.date=2005&rft.isbn=978-0-14-101223-0&rft.aulast=Quinion&rft.aufirst=Michael&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span>; published in the US as <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFQuinion2006" class="citation book cs1">Quinion, Michael (2006). <span class="id-lock-registration" title="Free registration required"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.org/details/ballyhoobuckaroo0000quin_z4e2"><i>Ballyhoo, Buckaroo, and Spuds</i></a></span>. HarperCollins. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-06-085153-8" title="Special:BookSources/978-0-06-085153-8"><bdi>978-0-06-085153-8</bdi></a><span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">March 4,</span> 2020</span> – via Internet Archive.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Ballyhoo%2C+Buckaroo%2C+and+Spuds&rft.pub=HarperCollins&rft.date=2006&rft.isbn=978-0-06-085153-8&rft.aulast=Quinion&rft.aufirst=Michael&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Farchive.org%2Fdetails%2Fballyhoobuckaroo0000quin_z4e2&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-49"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-49">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.snopes.com/language/acronyms/golf.asp">"See article at Snopes"</a>. Snopes.com. February 20, 2002. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20220506042707/http://www.snopes.com/language/acronyms/golf.asp">Archived</a> from the original on May 6, 2022<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">September 16,</span> 2010</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=See+article+at+Snopes&rft.pub=Snopes.com&rft.date=2002-02-20&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.snopes.com%2Flanguage%2Facronyms%2Fgolf.asp&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-etymonline.com2-50"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-etymonline.com2_50-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-etymonline.com2_50-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.etymonline.com/baloney.php">"Etymonline.com"</a>. 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October 14, 1948. p. 2 – via Trove.NLA.gov.au.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.jtitle=The+Mercury&rft.atitle=Prime+Minister+Asserts+M%27s.P.+Have+No+Immunity+from+%27Official+Approaches%27&rft.pages=2&rft.date=1948-10-14&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Ftrove.nla.gov.au%2Fnewspaper%2Farticle%2F27755397&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-66"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-66">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.electricscotland.com/history/australia/melbourne11.htm">"The Royal Caledonian Society of Melbourne"</a>. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20120715091217/http://www.electricscotland.com/history/australia/melbourne11.htm">Archived</a> from the original on July 15, 2012<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">January 21,</span> 2013</span> – via ElectricScotland.com.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=The+Royal+Caledonian+Society+of+Melbourne&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.electricscotland.com%2Fhistory%2Faustralia%2Fmelbourne11.htm&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-67"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-67">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFGarner2009" class="citation book cs1"><a href="/wiki/Bryan_Garner" class="mw-redirect" title="Bryan Garner">Garner, Bryan</a> (August 27, 2009). <i><a href="/wiki/Garner%27s_Modern_American_Usage" class="mw-redirect" title="Garner's Modern American Usage">Garner's Modern American Usage</a></i>. Oxford / New York: Oxford University Press. p. 638. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-19-538275-4" title="Special:BookSources/978-0-19-538275-4"><bdi>978-0-19-538275-4</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Garner%27s+Modern+American+Usage&rft.place=Oxford+%2F+New+York&rft.pages=638&rft.pub=Oxford+University+Press&rft.date=2009-08-27&rft.isbn=978-0-19-538275-4&rft.aulast=Garner&rft.aufirst=Bryan&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-68"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-68">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation cs2"><i><a href="/wiki/Shorter_Oxford_English_Dictionary" title="Shorter Oxford English Dictionary">Shorter Oxford English Dictionary</a></i> (6th ed.), Oxford University Press, 2007, <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-19-920687-2" title="Special:BookSources/978-0-19-920687-2"><bdi>978-0-19-920687-2</bdi></a></cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Shorter+Oxford+English+Dictionary&rft.edition=6th&rft.pub=Oxford+University+Press&rft.date=2007&rft.isbn=978-0-19-920687-2&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span> </span> </li> <li id="cite_note-69"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-69">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation news cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.theguardian.com/styleguide">"Styleguide"</a>. <i><a href="/wiki/The_Guardian" title="The Guardian">The Guardian</a></i>. London. December 19, 2008. <q>Use all capitals if an abbreviation is pronounced as the individual letters (an initialism): BBC, CEO, US, VAT, etc; if it is an acronym (pronounced as a word) spell out with initial capital, eg Nasa, Nato, Unicef, unless it can be considered to have entered the language as an everyday word, such as <a href="/wiki/Awol" class="mw-redirect" title="Awol">awol</a>, <a href="/wiki/Laser" title="Laser">laser</a> and, more recently, <a href="/wiki/Asbo" class="mw-redirect" title="Asbo">asbo</a>, <a href="/wiki/Pin_number" class="mw-redirect" title="Pin number">pin number</a> and <a href="/wiki/Sim_card" class="mw-redirect" title="Sim card">sim card</a>. Note that <a href="/wiki/Pdf" class="mw-redirect" title="Pdf">pdf</a> and <a href="/wiki/Public_limited_company" title="Public limited company">plc</a> are lowercase.</q></cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.jtitle=The+Guardian&rft.atitle=Styleguide&rft.date=2008-12-19&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theguardian.com%2Fstyleguide&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-70"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-70">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation news cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110707214856/http://www.bbctraining.com/pdfs/newsStyleGuide.pdf">"BBC News Style Guide"</a> <span class="cs1-format">(PDF)</span>. <i>BBCTraining.com</i>. <a href="/wiki/BBC" title="BBC">BBC</a>. Archived from <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.bbctraining.com/pdfs/newsstyleguide.pdf">the original</a> <span class="cs1-format">(PDF)</span> on July 7, 2011.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.jtitle=BBCTraining.com&rft.atitle=BBC+News+Style+Guide&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bbctraining.com%2Fpdfs%2Fnewsstyleguide.pdf&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-AMA10p442-71"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-AMA10p442_71-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFIverson2007" class="citation cs2">Iverson, Cheryl; et al., eds. (2007), <i>AMA Manual of Style</i> (10th ed.), Oxford, Oxfordshire: <a href="/wiki/Oxford_University_Press" title="Oxford University Press">Oxford University Press</a>, p. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.org/details/amamanualofstyle0000unse/page/442">442</a>, <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-19-517633-9" title="Special:BookSources/978-0-19-517633-9"><bdi>978-0-19-517633-9</bdi></a></cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=AMA+Manual+of+Style&rft.place=Oxford%2C+Oxfordshire&rft.pages=442&rft.edition=10th&rft.pub=Oxford+University+Press&rft.date=2007&rft.isbn=978-0-19-517633-9&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-upenn-72"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-upenn_72-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-upenn_72-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFZwicky2006" class="citation web cs1"><a href="/wiki/Arnold_Zwicky" title="Arnold Zwicky">Zwicky, Arnold</a> (September 7, 2006). <a href="/wiki/Mark_Liberman" title="Mark Liberman">Liberman, Mark</a> (ed.). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://itre.cis.upenn.edu/~myl/languagelog/archives/003555.html">"Orphan Initialisms"</a>. <i><a href="/wiki/Language_Log" title="Language Log">Language Log</a></i>. University of Pennsylvania. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20100621181657/http://itre.cis.upenn.edu/~myl/languagelog/archives/003555.html">Archived</a> from the original on June 21, 2010<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">September 27,</span> 2010</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=Language+Log&rft.atitle=Orphan+Initialisms&rft.date=2006-09-07&rft.aulast=Zwicky&rft.aufirst=Arnold&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fitre.cis.upenn.edu%2F~myl%2Flanguagelog%2Farchives%2F003555.html&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-about-73"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-about_73-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-about_73-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://grammar.about.com/b/2010/06/02/what-does-bp-stand-for.htm">What Does "BP" Stand For?</a> <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20121118220424/http://grammar.about.com/b/2010/06/02/what-does-bp-stand-for.htm">Archived</a> November 18, 2012, at the <a href="/wiki/Wayback_Machine" title="Wayback Machine">Wayback Machine</a></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-74"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-74">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFApplebome1997" class="citation news cs1">Applebome, Peter (April 2, 1997). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.nytimes.com/1997/04/02/us/insisting-it-s-nothing-creator-says-sat-not-sat.html">"Insisting It's Nothing, Creator Says SAT, Not S.A.T."</a> <i><a href="/wiki/The_New_York_Times" title="The New York Times">The New York Times</a></i>. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20170417203501/http://www.nytimes.com/1997/04/02/us/insisting-it-s-nothing-creator-says-sat-not-sat.html">Archived</a> from the original on April 17, 2017<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">February 14,</span> 2017</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.jtitle=The+New+York+Times&rft.atitle=Insisting+It%27s+Nothing%2C+Creator+Says+SAT%2C+Not+S.A.T.&rft.date=1997-04-02&rft.aulast=Applebome&rft.aufirst=Peter&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com%2F1997%2F04%2F02%2Fus%2Finsisting-it-s-nothing-creator-says-sat-not-sat.html&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-75"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-75">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFKomarek2003" class="citation news cs1">Komarek, Dan (July 29, 2003). "Changes to SAT Make Test More Coachable". <i><a href="/wiki/Daily_Californian" class="mw-redirect" title="Daily Californian">Daily Californian</a></i>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.jtitle=Daily+Californian&rft.atitle=Changes+to+SAT+Make+Test+More+Coachable&rft.date=2003-07-29&rft.aulast=Komarek&rft.aufirst=Dan&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-76"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-76">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.corporatewatch.org/?lid=287">"BP plc History"</a>. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20100615011613/http://www.corporatewatch.org/?lid=287">Archived</a> from the original on June 15, 2010<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">September 29,</span> 2010</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=BP+plc+History&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.corporatewatch.org%2F%3Flid%3D287&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-77"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-77">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFKeegan1991" class="citation news cs1">Keegan, Peter O. (February 21, 1991). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m3190/is_n8_v25/ai_10403447">"KFC shuns 'fried' image with new name – Kentucky Fried Chicken has changed its name to KFC"</a>. Nation's Restaurant News. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20071104124859/http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m3190/is_n8_v25/ai_10403447">Archived</a> from the original on November 4, 2007<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">August 24,</span> 2007</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.atitle=KFC+shuns+%27fried%27+image+with+new+name+%E2%80%93+Kentucky+Fried+Chicken+has+changed+its+name+to+KFC&rft.date=1991-02-21&rft.aulast=Keegan&rft.aufirst=Peter+O.&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Ffindarticles.com%2Fp%2Farticles%2Fmi_m3190%2Fis_n8_v25%2Fai_10403447&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-79"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-79">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/2833426/UBS-means-RIP-for-Warburg.html">UBS means RIP for Warburg</a> <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180504225347/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/2833426/UBS-means-RIP-for-Warburg.html">Archived</a> May 4, 2018, at the <a href="/wiki/Wayback_Machine" title="Wayback Machine">Wayback Machine</a>. <i><a href="/wiki/The_Daily_Telegraph" title="The Daily Telegraph">The Daily Telegraph</a></i>, November 13, 2002</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-80"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-80">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.gao.gov/about/what-gao-does/hundred-years-of-gao">"100 Years of GAO"</a>. U.S. Government Accountability Office<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">August 7,</span> 2022</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=100+Years+of+GAO&rft.pub=U.S.+Government+Accountability+Office&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gao.gov%2Fabout%2Fwhat-gao-does%2Fhundred-years-of-gao&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-81"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-81">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.gpo.gov/who-we-are/our-agency/history">"History"</a>. U.S. Government Publishing Office<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">August 7,</span> 2022</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=History&rft.pub=U.S.+Government+Publishing+Office&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gpo.gov%2Fwho-we-are%2Four-agency%2Fhistory&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-82"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-82">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">"Originally referred to as Redundant Array of Inexpensive Disks, the term RAID was first published in the late 1980s by Patterson, Gibson, and Katz of the University of California at Berkeley. (The RAID Advisory Board has since substituted the term Inexpensive with Independent.)" <i>Storage Area Network Fundamentals</i>; Meeta Gupta; Cisco Press; <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-58705-065-7" title="Special:BookSources/978-1-58705-065-7">978-1-58705-065-7</a>; Appendix A.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-83"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-83">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.uicc.org/sites/main/files/atoms/files/History-of-UICC-Late-1960s.pdf">"History of UICC (up to late 1960s)"</a> <span class="cs1-format">(PDF)</span>. UICC<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">August 7,</span> 2022</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=History+of+UICC+%28up+to+late+1960s%29&rft.pub=UICC&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.uicc.org%2Fsites%2Fmain%2Ffiles%2Fatoms%2Ffiles%2FHistory-of-UICC-Late-1960s.pdf&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-84"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-84">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://help.worldwildlife.org/hc/en-us/articles/360008012153-World-Wide-Fund-for-Nature">"World Wide Fund for Nature"</a>. World Wildlife Fund. 2018<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">August 7,</span> 2022</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=World+Wide+Fund+for+Nature&rft.pub=World+Wildlife+Fund&rft.date=2018&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fhelp.worldwildlife.org%2Fhc%2Fen-us%2Farticles%2F360008012153-World-Wide-Fund-for-Nature&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-85"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-85">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><i>99 Novels: The Best in English Since 1939</i> (New York: Summit Books, 1984).</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-86"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-86">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFDrummond2010" class="citation magazine cs1">Drummond, Katie (July 6, 2010). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2010/07/holy-acronym-darpa-batman-robin-to-master-biology-outdo-evolution/">"Holy Acronym, Darpa! 'Batman & Robin' to Master Biology, Outdo Evolution"</a>. <i><a href="/wiki/Wired_(magazine)" title="Wired (magazine)">Wired</a></i>. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20130702073147/http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2010/07/holy-acronym-darpa-batman-robin-to-master-biology-outdo-evolution/">Archived</a> from the original on July 2, 2013<span class="reference-accessdate">. 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April 7, 2016. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20181219044112/https://www.npr.org/2016/04/07/473339332/unfortunate-acronym-forces-law-school-name-change">Archived</a> from the original on December 19, 2018<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">April 4,</span> 2018</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.jtitle=Morning+Edition&rft.atitle=Unfortunate+Acronym+Forces+Law+School+Name+Change&rft.date=2016-04-07&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.npr.org%2F2016%2F04%2F07%2F473339332%2Funfortunate-acronym-forces-law-school-name-change&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-91"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-91">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20727681.100-very-deep-multiply-nested-acronyms.html">"Very deep multiply nested acronyms"</a>. <i><a href="/wiki/New_Scientist" title="New Scientist">New Scientist</a></i>. July 7, 2010. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20100914033751/http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20727681.100-very-deep-multiply-nested-acronyms.html">Archived</a> from the original on September 14, 2010<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">September 16,</span> 2010</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=New+Scientist&rft.atitle=Very+deep+multiply+nested+acronyms&rft.date=2010-07-07&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.newscientist.com%2Farticle%2Fmg20727681.100-very-deep-multiply-nested-acronyms.html&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-92"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-92">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFbin_DahamanAhmad2001" class="citation book cs1 cs1-prop-foreign-lang-source">bin Dahaman, Ismail; Ahmad, Manshoor bin Haji (2001). <i>Daftar Kata Bahasa Melayu: Rumi-Sebutan-Jawi (Jilid 1)</i> [<i>Malay Language Word Directory: Rumi-Pronunciation-Jawi (Book 1)</i>] (in Malay). Kuala Lumpur: <a href="/wiki/Dewan_Bahasa_dan_Pustaka" title="Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka">Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka</a>. p. 129. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-983-62-4672-1" title="Special:BookSources/978-983-62-4672-1"><bdi>978-983-62-4672-1</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Daftar+Kata+Bahasa+Melayu%3A+Rumi-Sebutan-Jawi+%28Jilid+1%29&rft.place=Kuala+Lumpur&rft.pages=129&rft.pub=Dewan+Bahasa+dan+Pustaka&rft.date=2001&rft.isbn=978-983-62-4672-1&rft.aulast=bin+Dahaman&rft.aufirst=Ismail&rft.au=Ahmad%2C+Manshoor+bin+Haji&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-93"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-93">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://fdocuments.in/document/report-for-malaysias-internationalized-domain-cssescwaorglbictd096001pdfreport.html">"Report for Malaysia's Internationalized Domain Name: Jawi Language Issues"</a>. MYNIC Berhad. December 3, 2009 – via FDocuments.in.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=Report+for+Malaysia%27s+Internationalized+Domain+Name%3A+Jawi+Language+Issues&rft.pub=MYNIC+Berhad&rft.date=2009-12-03&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Ffdocuments.in%2Fdocument%2Freport-for-malaysias-internationalized-domain-cssescwaorglbictd096001pdfreport.html&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-94"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-94">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1 cs1-prop-foreign-lang-source"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/academy/vietnamese/article/art20131007102738486">"Từ viết tắt"</a> [Abbreviations] (in Vietnamese). <a href="/wiki/BBC_Academy" title="BBC Academy">BBC Academy</a>. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20171120141047/http://www.bbc.co.uk/academy/vietnamese/article/art20131007102738486">Archived</a> from the original on November 20, 2017<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">September 4,</span> 2017</span>. <q>Chưa kể cách viết này còn dễ bị cho là lười biếng hoặc tỏ ra quan trọng, vì đây là cách chép nguyên xi, máy móc các cụm từ viết tắt từ văn bản pháp quy của chính quyền, như TTLT-VKSNDTC-TANDTC, khá phổ biến ở Việt Nam hiện nay.</q></cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=T%E1%BB%AB+vi%E1%BA%BFt+t%E1%BA%AFt&rft.pub=BBC+Academy&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bbc.co.uk%2Facademy%2Fvietnamese%2Farticle%2Fart20131007102738486&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AAcronym" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> </ol></div> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="External_links">External links</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Acronym&action=edit&section=52" title="Edit section: External links"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <style 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]"}.mw-parser-output .navbar li{word-spacing:-0.125em}.mw-parser-output .navbar a>span,.mw-parser-output .navbar a>abbr{text-decoration:inherit}.mw-parser-output .navbar-mini abbr{font-variant:small-caps;border-bottom:none;text-decoration:none;cursor:inherit}.mw-parser-output .navbar-ct-full{font-size:114%;margin:0 7em}.mw-parser-output .navbar-ct-mini{font-size:114%;margin:0 4em}html.skin-theme-clientpref-night .mw-parser-output .navbar li a abbr{color:var(--color-base)!important}@media(prefers-color-scheme:dark){html.skin-theme-clientpref-os .mw-parser-output .navbar li a abbr{color:var(--color-base)!important}}@media print{.mw-parser-output .navbar{display:none!important}}</style><div class="navbar plainlinks hlist navbar-mini"><ul><li class="nv-view"><a href="/wiki/Template:Personal_names" title="Template:Personal names"><abbr title="View this template">v</abbr></a></li><li class="nv-talk"><a href="/wiki/Template_talk:Personal_names" title="Template talk:Personal names"><abbr title="Discuss this template">t</abbr></a></li><li class="nv-edit"><a href="/wiki/Special:EditPage/Template:Personal_names" title="Special:EditPage/Template:Personal names"><abbr title="Edit this template">e</abbr></a></li></ul></div><div id="Personal_names_and_anthroponymy" style="font-size:114%;margin:0 4em"><a href="/wiki/Personal_name" title="Personal name">Personal names</a> and <a href="/wiki/Anthroponymy" title="Anthroponymy">anthroponymy</a></div></th></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Personal name</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Birth_name" title="Birth name">Birth name</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Given_name" title="Given name">Given name</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Surname" title="Surname">Surname</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Patrilineality" title="Patrilineality">Patrilineal</a>/<a href="/wiki/Matriname" title="Matriname">Matrilineal</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/List_of_family_name_affixes" title="List of family name affixes">Affixes</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Nobiliary_particle" title="Nobiliary particle">Nobiliary particle</a></li></ul></li></ul></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">By sequence</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/First_name" class="mw-redirect" title="First name">First name</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Middle_name" title="Middle name">Middle name</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Surname" title="Surname">Last name</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">By trait</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Diminutive" title="Diminutive">Diminutive</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Double-barrelled_name" title="Double-barrelled name">Double-barrelled</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Epithet" title="Epithet">Epithet</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Animal_epithet" title="Animal epithet">Animal</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Lists_of_people_by_epithet" title="Lists of people by epithet">Common</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Plant_epithet" title="Plant epithet">Plant</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Eponym" title="Eponym">Eponymic</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Matronymic" title="Matronymic">Matronymic</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Metonymy" title="Metonymy">Metonymic</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Mononymous_person" class="mw-redirect" title="Mononymous person">Mononymic</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Occupational_name" class="mw-redirect" title="Occupational name">Occupational</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Patronymic" title="Patronymic">Patronymic</a> <ul><li><small><a href="/wiki/Patronymic_surname" title="Patronymic surname">Surname</a></small></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sobriquet" title="Sobriquet">Sobriquet</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Teknonymy" title="Teknonymy">Teknonymic</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Toponymy" title="Toponymy">Toponymic</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Toponymic_surname" title="Toponymic surname">Surname</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Patrial_name" title="Patrial name">Patrial</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Unisex_name" title="Unisex name">Unisex</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Virtue_name" title="Virtue name">Virtue</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">By life situation</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Aptronym" title="Aptronym">Aptronym</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Birth_name" title="Birth name">Birth name</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Code_name" title="Code name">Code name</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Maiden_and_married_names" title="Maiden and married names">Maiden and married names</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Necronym" title="Necronym">Necronym</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Posthumous_name" title="Posthumous name">Posthumous name</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Temple_name" title="Temple name">Temple name</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Placeholder_name" title="Placeholder name">Placeholder name</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Notname" title="Notname">Notname</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Regnal_name" title="Regnal name">Regnal name</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Slave_name" title="Slave name">Slave name</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Pseudonym" title="Pseudonym">Pseudonyms</a> (<a href="/wiki/List_of_pseudonyms" title="List of pseudonyms">list</a>)</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Art_name" title="Art name">Art name</a></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Bug%C5%8D" title="Bugō">Bugō</a></i></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Nickname" title="Nickname">Nicknames</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Lists_of_nicknames" title="Lists of nicknames">list</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Hypocorism" title="Hypocorism">Hypocorism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/List_of_monarchs_by_nickname" title="List of monarchs by nickname">Monarchs</a></li></ul></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Nom_de_guerre" class="mw-redirect" title="Nom de guerre">Nom de guerre</a></i></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Pen_name" title="Pen name">Pen name</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Heteronym_(literature)" title="Heteronym (literature)">Heteronym</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ring_name" title="Ring name">Ring name</a></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Shikona" title="Shikona">Shikona</a></i></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Stage_name" title="Stage name">Stage name</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/List_of_stage_names" title="List of stage names">List</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/List_of_one-word_stage_names" title="List of one-word stage names">Mononyms</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Username" class="mw-redirect" title="Username">Username</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">By culture<br /><a href="/wiki/Surnames_by_country" title="Surnames by country">Surnames by country</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"></div><table class="nowraplinks navbox-subgroup" style="border-spacing:0"><tbody><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/East_Asian_cultural_sphere" class="mw-redirect" title="East Asian cultural sphere">East Asian</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Amami_name" title="Amami name">Amami</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Chinese_name" title="Chinese name">Chinese</a> <ul><li><small><a href="/wiki/Courtesy_name" title="Courtesy name">Courtesy</a></small></li> <li><small><a href="/wiki/Art_name" title="Art name">Art</a></small></li> <li><small><a href="/wiki/Generation_name" title="Generation name">Generation</a></small></li> <li><small><a href="/wiki/Chinese_titles" title="Chinese titles">Titles</a></small></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Japanese_name" title="Japanese name">Japanese</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Korean_name" title="Korean name">Korean</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Manchu_name" title="Manchu name">Manchu</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Okinawan_name" title="Okinawan name">Okinawan</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Naming_customs_of_Taiwanese_indigenous_peoples" title="Naming customs of Taiwanese indigenous peoples">Indigenous Taiwanese</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Vietnamese_name" title="Vietnamese name">Vietnamese</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Northern Asia<br />and Central Asia</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Kalmyk_name" title="Kalmyk name">Kalmyk</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Mongolian_name" title="Mongolian name">Mongolian</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Yakut_names" class="mw-redirect" title="Yakut names">Sakha</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Tibetan_name" title="Tibetan name">Tibetan</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Muslim_world" title="Muslim world">Muslim world</a><br />and Western Asia</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Afghan_name" title="Afghan name">Afghan</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Arabic_name" title="Arabic name">Arabic</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Azerbaijani_name" title="Azerbaijani name">Azerbaijani</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Bengali_name" title="Bengali name">Bengali</a></li> <li><a href="/w/index.php?title=Berber_name&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="Berber name (page does not exist)">Berber</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Coptic_name" class="mw-redirect" title="Coptic name">Coptic</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Mandaean_name" title="Mandaean name">Mandaean</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Pakistani_name" title="Pakistani name">Pakistani</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Pashtun_name" class="mw-redirect" title="Pashtun name">Pashtun</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Persian_name" title="Persian name">Persian</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sindhi_names" title="Sindhi names">Sindhi</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Somali_name" title="Somali name">Somali</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Tatar_name" title="Tatar name">Tatar</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Turkish_name" title="Turkish name">Turkish</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Oceania" title="Oceania">Oceania</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Australian_Aboriginal_kinship" title="Australian Aboriginal kinship">Australian Aboriginal</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Fijian_name" title="Fijian name">Fijian</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Hawaiian_name" title="Hawaiian name">Hawaiian</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/M%C4%81ori_naming_customs" title="Māori naming customs">Māori</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Sub-Saharan_Africa" title="Sub-Saharan Africa">Sub-Saharan Africa</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Akan_names" title="Akan names">Ashanti</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Democratic_Republic_of_the_Congo_naming_customs" title="Democratic Republic of the Congo naming customs">Democratic Republic of the Congo</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Naming_conventions_in_Eritrea_and_Ethiopia" title="Naming conventions in Eritrea and Ethiopia">Eritrean and Ethiopian</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ewe_language#Naming_system" title="Ewe language">Ewe</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ghanaian_name" title="Ghanaian name">Ghanaian</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Igbo_name" title="Igbo name">Igbo</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Yoruba_name" title="Yoruba name">Yoruba</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Zimbabwean_names" title="Zimbabwean names">Zimbabwean</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Europe" title="Europe">Europe</a>, <a href="/wiki/North_America" title="North America">North America</a><br />and <a href="/wiki/Australasia" title="Australasia">Australasia</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Albanian_name" title="Albanian name">Albanian</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Armenian_name" title="Armenian name">Armenian</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Jewish_surname#Ashkenazi_Jewry" title="Jewish surname">Ashkenazi Jewish</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Basque_surnames" title="Basque surnames">Basque</a></li> <li><a href="/w/index.php?title=Estonian_name&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="Estonian name (page does not exist)">Estonian</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Finnish_name" title="Finnish name">Finnish</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Georgian_name" title="Georgian name">Georgian</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Greek_name" title="Greek name">Greek</a> <ul><li><small><a href="/wiki/Ancient_Greek_personal_names" title="Ancient Greek personal names">Ancient Greek</a></small></li> <li><small><a href="/wiki/Greek_Cypriot_name" title="Greek Cypriot name">Cypriot</a></small></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Hungarian_names" title="Hungarian names">Hungarian</a></li></ul> </div><table class="nowraplinks navbox-subgroup" style="border-spacing:0"><tbody><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Baltic_languages" title="Baltic languages">Baltic</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Latvian_name" title="Latvian name">Latvian</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Lithuanian_name" title="Lithuanian name">Lithuanian</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Celtic_onomastics" title="Celtic onomastics">Celtic</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Cornish_surnames" title="Cornish surnames">Cornish</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Irish_name" title="Irish name">Irish</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Manx_surnames" title="Manx surnames">Manx</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Scottish_Gaelic_name" title="Scottish Gaelic name">Scottish</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Welsh_surnames" title="Welsh surnames">Welsh</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Germanic_name" title="Germanic name">Germanic</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Dutch_name" title="Dutch name">Dutch</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/English_name" title="English name">English</a> <ul><li><small><a href="/wiki/Naming_in_the_United_States" title="Naming in the United States">American</a></small></li> <li><small><a href="/wiki/African-American_names" title="African-American names">African-American</a></small></li> <li><small><a href="/wiki/Canadian_name" title="Canadian name">Canadian</a></small></li> <li><small><a href="/wiki/Hong_Kong_name" title="Hong Kong name">Hongkongese</a></small></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/German_name" title="German name">German</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Gothic_name" title="Gothic name">Gothic</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Icelandic_name" title="Icelandic name">Icelandic</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Scandinavian_family_name_etymology" title="Scandinavian family name etymology">Scandinavian</a> <ul><li><small><a href="/wiki/Swedish_name" title="Swedish name">Swedish</a></small></li></ul></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Romance_languages" title="Romance languages">Romance</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Catalan_name" class="mw-redirect" title="Catalan name">Catalan</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/French_name" title="French name">French</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Italian_name" title="Italian name">Italian</a></li> <li><a href="/w/index.php?title=Occitan_name&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="Occitan name (page does not exist)">Occitan</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Portuguese_name" title="Portuguese name">Portuguese</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Roman_naming_conventions" title="Roman naming conventions">Roman</a> <ul><li><small><a href="/wiki/Praenomen" title="Praenomen">Praenomen</a></small></li> <li><small><a href="/wiki/Nomen_(Roman_name)" class="mw-redirect" title="Nomen (Roman name)">Nomen</a></small></li> <li><small><a href="/wiki/Cognomen" title="Cognomen">Cognomen</a></small></li> <li><small><a href="/wiki/Agnomen" title="Agnomen">Agnomen</a></small></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Romanian_name" title="Romanian name">Romanian</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Spanish_naming_customs" title="Spanish naming customs">Spanish</a> <ul><li><small><a href="/wiki/Naming_customs_of_Hispanic_America" title="Naming customs of Hispanic America">Hispanic America</a></small></li></ul></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Slavic_names" title="Slavic names">Slavic</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Bulgarian_name" title="Bulgarian name">Bulgarian</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Croatian_name" title="Croatian name">Croatian</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Czech_name" title="Czech name">Czech</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Eastern_Slavic_naming_customs" title="Eastern Slavic naming customs">Eastern Slavic</a> <ul><li><small><a href="/wiki/Belarusian_name" title="Belarusian name">Belarusian</a></small></li> <li><small><a href="/wiki/Eastern_Slavic_naming_customs" title="Eastern Slavic naming customs">Russian</a></small></li> <li><small><a href="/wiki/Ukrainian_name" title="Ukrainian name">Ukrainian</a></small></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/w/index.php?title=Kashubian_name&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="Kashubian name (page does not exist)">Kashubian</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Macedonian_onomastics" title="Macedonian onomastics">Macedonian</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Polish_name" class="mw-redirect" title="Polish name">Polish</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Serbian_name" title="Serbian name">Serbian</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Slovak_name" title="Slovak name">Slovak</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Slavic_name_suffixes" title="Slavic name suffixes">Suffixes</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr></tbody></table><div> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Indosphere" title="Indosphere">Indosphere</a> (<a href="/wiki/South_Asia" title="South Asia">South Asia</a><br />and <a href="/wiki/Southeast_Asia" title="Southeast Asia">Southeast Asia</a>)</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Balinese_name" title="Balinese name">Balinese</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Bengali_name" title="Bengali name">Bengali</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Burmese_name" class="mw-redirect" title="Burmese name">Burmese</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Filipino_name" title="Filipino name">Filipino</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indonesian_names" title="Indonesian names">Indonesian</a> <ul><li><small><a href="/wiki/Chinese_Indonesian_surname" title="Chinese Indonesian surname">Chinese</a></small></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Javanese_name" title="Javanese name">Javanese</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Khmer_name" class="mw-redirect" title="Khmer name">Cambodian</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Malaysian_names" title="Malaysian names">Malaysian</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indian_name" title="Indian name">Indian</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Lao_name" title="Lao name">Lao</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Pakistani_name" title="Pakistani name">Pakistani</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sindhi_names" title="Sindhi names">Sindhi</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sinhalese_name" title="Sinhalese name">Sinhalese</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Naming_conventions_of_ancient_Tamil_country" class="mw-redirect" title="Naming conventions of ancient Tamil country">Ancient Tamil country</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Thai_name" title="Thai name">Thai</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr></tbody></table><div></div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Religious_name" title="Religious name">By religion</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Christian_name" title="Christian name">Christian name</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/List_of_biblical_names" title="List of biblical names">Biblical name</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Papal_name" title="Papal name">Papal name</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Saint%27s_name" title="Saint's name">Saint's name</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Buddhist_surname" title="Buddhist surname">Buddhist surname</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Dharma_name" title="Dharma name">Dharma name</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Jewish_name" title="Jewish name">Jewish name</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Hebrew_name" title="Hebrew name">Hebrew</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Mandaean_name" title="Mandaean name">Mandaean name</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Theophoric_name" title="Theophoric name">Theophoric name</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Manners of address<br /><a href="/wiki/List_of_titles" title="List of titles">List</a><br /><a href="/wiki/Title_of_authority" class="mw-redirect" title="Title of authority">of authority</a>/<a href="/wiki/Title_of_honor" title="Title of honor">of honour</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"></div><table class="nowraplinks navbox-subgroup" style="border-spacing:0"><tbody><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Style_(form_of_address)" title="Style (form of address)">Styles</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Honorific" title="Honorific">Honorific</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Diplomatic_rank" title="Diplomatic rank">Diplomatic</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Royal_and_noble_styles" title="Royal and noble styles">Imperial, royal, and noble</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Judiciary_styles" class="mw-redirect" title="Judiciary styles">Judiciary</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/List_of_religious_titles_and_styles" title="List of religious titles and styles">Religious</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Ecclesiastical_titles_and_styles" title="Ecclesiastical titles and styles">Ecclesiastical</a></li></ul></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Pre-nominal_letters" title="Pre-nominal letters">Pre-nominal letters</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Suffix_(name)" title="Suffix (name)">Suffix</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Emeritus" title="Emeritus">Emeritus</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Post-nominal_letters" title="Post-nominal letters">Post-nominal letters</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Academic_degree" title="Academic degree">Academic</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Order_(distinction)" title="Order (distinction)">Orders</a>, <a href="/wiki/Award" title="Award">decorations</a>, and <a href="/wiki/Medal" title="Medal">medals</a></li></ul></li></ul></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Title" title="Title">Titles</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Academic_degree" title="Academic degree">Academic</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Imperial,_royal_and_noble_ranks" title="Imperial, royal and noble ranks">Imperial, royal and noble</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Chivalry" title="Chivalry">Chivalric</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Courtesy_title" title="Courtesy title">Courtesy</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/False_titles_of_nobility" title="False titles of nobility">False</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Hereditary_title" title="Hereditary title">Hereditary</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Subsidiary_title" title="Subsidiary title">Subsidiary</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Substantive_title" title="Substantive title">Substantive</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Military_rank" title="Military rank">Military</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Professional_titles" class="mw-redirect" title="Professional titles">Professional</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Academic_ranks" class="mw-redirect" title="Academic ranks">Academic</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Professional_degree" title="Professional degree">Educational</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Honorary_title_(academic)" title="Honorary title (academic)">Honorary</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Corporate_title" title="Corporate title">Business</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Diplomatic_rank" title="Diplomatic rank">Diplomatic</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Judicial_titles" class="mw-redirect" title="Judicial titles">Judicial</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/List_of_religious_titles_and_styles" title="List of religious titles and styles">Religious</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Ecclesiastical_titles_and_styles" title="Ecclesiastical titles and styles">Ecclesiastical</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Papal_titles" title="Papal titles">Papal</a></li></ul></li></ul> </div></td></tr></tbody></table><div></div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Related traditions</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Baptism" title="Baptism">Baptism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Name_day" title="Name day">Name day</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Calendar_of_saints" title="Calendar of saints">Calendar of saints</a></li></ul></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Related</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a class="mw-selflink selflink">Acronym</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Anonymity" title="Anonymity">Anonymity</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Anthropomorphism" title="Anthropomorphism">Anthropomorphism</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Personification" title="Personification">Personification</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/National_personification" title="National personification">National</a></li></ul></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Call_sign" title="Call sign">Call sign</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Deadnaming" title="Deadnaming">Deadnaming</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Endonym_and_exonym" title="Endonym and exonym">Endonym and exonym</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Family" title="Family">Family</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Galton%E2%80%93Watson_process" title="Galton–Watson process">Galton–Watson process</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Legal_name" title="Legal name">Legal name</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Name_change" title="Name change">Name change</a></li></ul></li> <li>List <ul><li><a href="/wiki/List_of_most_popular_given_names" title="List of most popular given names">Given</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Lists_of_most_common_surnames" title="Lists of most common surnames">Surname</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Namesake" title="Namesake">Namesake</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Naming_taboo" title="Naming taboo">Naming taboo</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Nomenclature" title="Nomenclature">Nomenclature</a></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Nomen_nescio" title="Nomen nescio">Nomen nescio</a></i></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Misnomer" title="Misnomer">Misnomer</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Onomastics" title="Onomastics">Onomastics</a></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/-onym" title="-onym">-onym</a></i></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Personal_identity" title="Personal identity">Personal identity</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Identifier" title="Identifier">Identifier</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Proper_name" class="mw-redirect" title="Proper name">Proper name</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Signature" title="Signature">Signature</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Monogram" title="Monogram">Monogram</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Royal_cypher" title="Royal cypher">Royal cypher</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Khelrtva" title="Khelrtva">Khelrtva</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Signum_manus" title="Signum manus">Signum manus</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Tughra" title="Tughra">Tughra</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Surnames_by_country" title="Surnames by country">Surnames by country</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><td class="navbox-abovebelow hlist" colspan="2"><div> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Lists_of_names" title="Category:Lists of names">Category:Lists of names</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr></tbody></table></div> <div class="navbox-styles"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1129693374"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236075235"><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1038841319">.mw-parser-output .tooltip-dotted{border-bottom:1px dotted;cursor:help}</style></div><div role="navigation" class="navbox authority-control" aria-label="Navbox" style="padding:3px"><table class="nowraplinks hlist navbox-inner" style="border-spacing:0;background:transparent;color:inherit"><tbody><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Help:Authority_control" title="Help:Authority control">Authority control databases</a>: National <span class="mw-valign-text-top noprint" typeof="mw:File/Frameless"><a href="https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q101244#identifiers" title="Edit this at Wikidata"><img alt="Edit this at Wikidata" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/8/8a/OOjs_UI_icon_edit-ltr-progressive.svg/10px-OOjs_UI_icon_edit-ltr-progressive.svg.png" decoding="async" width="10" height="10" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/8/8a/OOjs_UI_icon_edit-ltr-progressive.svg/15px-OOjs_UI_icon_edit-ltr-progressive.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/8/8a/OOjs_UI_icon_edit-ltr-progressive.svg/20px-OOjs_UI_icon_edit-ltr-progressive.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="20" data-file-height="20" /></a></span></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"><ul><li><span class="uid"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://id.loc.gov/authorities/sh85000667">United States</a></span></li><li><span class="uid"><span class="rt-commentedText tooltip tooltip-dotted" title="zkratková slova"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://aleph.nkp.cz/F/?func=find-c&local_base=aut&ccl_term=ica=ph187611&CON_LNG=ENG">Czech Republic</a></span></span></li><li><span class="uid"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://olduli.nli.org.il/F/?func=find-b&local_base=NLX10&find_code=UID&request=987007293961005171">Israel</a></span></li></ul></div></td></tr></tbody></table></div> <!-- NewPP limit report Parsed by mw‐web.codfw.main‐f69cdc8f6‐lljb8 Cached time: 20241122140816 Cache expiry: 2592000 Reduced expiry: false Complications: [vary‐revision‐sha1, show‐toc] CPU time usage: 2.207 seconds Real time usage: 2.538 seconds Preprocessor visited node count: 14017/1000000 Post‐expand include size: 403967/2097152 bytes Template argument size: 37615/2097152 bytes Highest expansion depth: 17/100 Expensive parser function count: 29/500 Unstrip recursion depth: 1/20 Unstrip post‐expand size: 371523/5000000 bytes Lua time usage: 1.364/10.000 seconds Lua memory usage: 20436164/52428800 bytes Lua Profile: MediaWiki\Extension\Scribunto\Engines\LuaSandbox\LuaSandboxCallback::callParserFunction 260 ms 18.1% recursiveClone <mwInit.lua:45> 240 ms 16.7% ? 200 ms 13.9% dataWrapper <mw.lua:672> 180 ms 12.5% type 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