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{{short description|Soldier of the United States Armed Forces}}
{{About|the term for US military soldiers||GI (disambiguation){{!}}GI}}
{{About|the term for US soldiers||GI (disambiguation){{!}}GI}}
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{{short description|Soldier of the United States Army}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2022}}
{{Use American English|date=May 2021}}
{{Use American English|date=May 2021}}
[[File:SC180577t.jpg|thumb|right|240px|G.I.s from the [[25th Infantry Division (United States)|25th Infantry Division]] in the jungle of [[Vella Lavella]] during [[Operation Cartwheel]] (13 September 1943).]]
[[File:SC180577t.jpg|thumb|G.I.s from the [[25th Infantry Division (United States)|25th Infantry Division]] in the jungle of [[Vella Lavella]] in the [[Solomon Islands]], during [[Operation Cartwheel]] on 13 September 1943]]
'''G.I.''' is an informal term that refers to "a soldier in the United States armed forces, especially the army"<ref name="collins">{{cite web|date=2019|title=G.I. Definition from CollinsDictionary.com|url=https://www.collinsdictionary.com/us/dictionary/english/gi|access-date=11 November 2023|work=Collins Dictionary|publisher=HarperCollins Publishers Ltd and Penguin Random House LLC}}</ref> It is mostly deeply associated with [[World War II]],<ref name="wordorig" /> but continues to see use.<ref name="Rawson" />


'''G.I.''' are initials used to describe the [[soldier]]s of the [[United States Army]] and [[Airman|airmen]] of the [[United States Air Force]] and general items of their equipment.<ref name="Rawson">{{cite web| first=Hugh | last=Rawson | url=https://www.americanheritage.com/why-do-we-say-gi | title=Why do we say "G.I."? | publisher=American Heritage | volume=57 | issue=2 | date=April–May 2006}}</ref> The term G.I. has been used as an [[Acronym|initialism]] of "Government Issue", "General Issue", or "Ground Infantry", but it originally referred to "[[Galvanization|galvanized]] iron", as used by the [[military logistics|logistics]] services of the [[United States Armed Forces]].<ref name="wordorig">{{cite web|last=Wilton|first=Dave|date=2 February 2009|title=G.I. - Wordorigins.org|url=https://www.wordorigins.org/big-list-entries/gi|access-date=2 January 2021|website=Word Origins|publisher=Wordorigins.org}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|date=2019|title=G.I. Definition from CollinsDictionary.com|url=https://www.collinsdictionary.com/us/dictionary/english/gi|access-date=2 January 2021|work=Collins Dictionary|publisher=HarperCollins Publishers Ltd and Penguin Random House LLC}}</ref>
It was originally an [[acronym|initialism]] used in [[United States Army|U.S. Army]] paperwork for items made of [[Galvanization|galvanized]] iron.<ref name="wordorig">{{cite web|last=Wilton|first=Dave|date=2 February 2009|title=G.I. – Wordorigins.org|url=https://www.wordorigins.org/big-list-entries/gi|access-date=11 November 2023|website=Word Origins|publisher=Wordorigins.org}}</ref> The earliest known instance in writing is from either 1906<ref name="Rawson">{{cite web| first=Hugh | last=Rawson | url=https://www.americanheritage.com/why-do-we-say-gi | title=Why do we say "G.I."? | publisher=American Heritage | volume=57 | issue=2 | date=April–May 2006}}</ref> or 1907.<ref name="wordorig" />


During [[World War I]], U.S. soldiers took to referring to heavy German [[artillery]] [[Shell (projectile)|shells]] as "G.I. cans".<ref name="wordorig" /><ref name="Rawson" /> During the same war, "G.I.", reinterpreted as "government issue"<ref name="wordorig" /> or "general issue",<ref name="Rawson" /> began being used to refer to any item associated with the U.S. Army<ref name="Rawson" /> (e.g. "G.I. soap"<ref name="Rawson" />). Other reinterpretations of "G.I." include "garrison issue" and "general infantry".<ref name="Rawson" />
During [[World War I]], American soldiers sardonically referred to incoming German [[Shell (projectile)|artillery shell]]s as "G.I. cans". Also during that war, "G.I." started being interpreted as "Government Issue" or "General Issue" for the general items of equipment of soldiers and airmen. The term "G.I." came into widespread use in the United States with the start of the [[Selective Service System]] ("the draft") in 1940, extending into 1941. It gradually replaced the term "[[Doughboy]]" that was used in World War I and the use of "G.I." expanded from 1942 through 1945. American [[Five-star general|five-star General]] [[Dwight D. Eisenhower]] said in 1945 that "the truly heroic figure of this war [is] G.I. Joe and his counterpart in the air, the navy, and the Merchant Marine of every one of the [[Allies of World War II|United Nations]]".<ref name="newsreel">{{cite video | url=https://archive.org/details/1945-05-10_Funeral_Pyres_of_Nazidom | title=Funeral Pyres of Nazidom | publisher=Universal Newsreel | date=10 May 1945 | people=Eisenhower, Dwight D.}}</ref>


The earliest known recorded instances of "G.I." being used to refer to an American [[Enlisted rank|enlisted]] man as a [[slang]] term are from 1935.<ref name="wordorig" /> In the form of "G.I. Joe" it was made better known due to it being taken as the title of a comic strip by [[Dave Breger]] in ''[[Yank, the Army Weekly]]'', beginning in 1942.<ref name="wordorig" /> A 1944 radio drama, {{anchor|They_Call_Me_Joe20191201}}''They Call Me Joe'', reached a much broader audience. It featured a different individual each week, thereby emphasizing that "G.I. Joe" encompassed U.S. soldiers of all ethnicities.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Rivas-Rodriguez |first1=Maggie |title=A Soldier's Story: World War II and the Forgotten Battle for the Aleutian Islands |date=11 November 2016 |url=http://www.kut.org/post/soldiers-story-world-war-ii-and-forgotten-battle-aleutian-islands |publisher=[[KUT|KUT (radio station)]] |access-date=29 September 2018}}</ref> ''They Call Me Joe'' reached civilians across the U.S. via the [[NBC Radio Network]] and U.S. soldiers via the [[Armed Forces Radio Network]].
"G.I." was also used as an adjective for anything having to do with the US Army or Army Air Force.<ref name="wordorig"/>


"G.I. Jane" originally referred to a member of the [[Women's Army Corps]] during [[World War II]] but more recently it is used to refer to any American woman soldier.<ref name="Rawson" />
{{anchor|They_Call_Me_Joe20191201}}''They Call Me Joe'' was a series of radio dramas aired in 1944. Each episode focused on a different fictional American soldier. A soldier of a different national or ethnic origin was selected for each episode, but he was always identified as a G.I. named Joe. The series was intended to encourage Americans of varying backgrounds to cooperate to win World War II. It was produced by the [[NBC University Theatre|NBC University of the Air]], which also produced a series The World's Great Novels.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Rivas-Rodriguez |first1=Maggie |title=A Soldier's Story: World War II and the Forgotten Battle for the Aleutian Islands |date=11 November 2016 |url=http://www.kut.org/post/soldiers-story-world-war-ii-and-forgotten-battle-aleutian-islands |publisher=[[KUT|KUT (radio station)]] |access-date=29 September 2018}}</ref> The series ran for twelve weeks<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83045462/1944-07-16/ed-1/seq-44/|title=For Radio Listeners|date=July 16, 1944|work=Evening Star|access-date=Nov 30, 2019|publication-place=Washington, D.C.}}</ref> and aired both on the [[NBC Radio Network]] and the [[Armed Forces Radio Network]].


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In British military parlance and in armed forces modelled on British military traditions, G.I. refers to a Gunnery Instructor, generally an [[Non-commissioned officer|NCO]] responsible for inducting and training recruits.{{citation needed|date=November 2023}}
"[[G.I. Joe]]", an action figure, was introduced by [[Hasbro]] in 1964. Its name comes from the term used to describe soldiers during the war.

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In British military parlance and in armed forces modelled on British military traditions, G.I. refers to a Gunnery Instructor (generally an [[Non-commissioned officer|NCO]] responsible for inducting and training recruits).


==See also==
==See also==
* [[Digger (soldier)]] – A similar term used in Australia
* [[Digger (soldier)]] – A similar term used in Australia
* [[Doughboy]]
* [[Dogface (military)]]
* [[Dogface (military)]]
* [[Folk etymology]]
* [[Folk etymology]]
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* [[G.I. Generation]]
* [[G.I. Generation]]
* ''[[G.I. Jane]]'' (film)
* ''[[G.I. Jane]]'' (film)
* [[GI Jill|G.I. Jill]] – disk jockey for the WW II program ''G.I Jive''
* [[GI Jill|G.I. Jill]] – disk jockey for the World War II program ''G.I Jive''
* [[G.I. Joe (pigeon)]] – a pigeon who served in World War II
* [[G.I. Joe (pigeon)]] – a pigeon who served in World War II
* [[G.I. Joe (disambiguation)]]
* [[G.I. Joe (disambiguation)]]
* [[G-Man (slang)]]
* [[G-Man (slang)]]
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* [[Mehmetçik]] (soldier) – Turkish slang for a common soldier
* ''[[The Story of G.I. Joe]]'' (1945 film)
* ''[[The Story of G.I. Joe]]'' (1945 film)
* [[Tommy Atkins]] (soldier) – British slang for a common soldier
* [[Tommy Atkins]] (soldier) – British slang for a common soldier
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* [[Mehmetçik]] (soldier) – Turkish slang for a common soldier


== References ==
== References ==
{{reflist}}
{{reflist}}


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{{Wiktionary|GI}}
== External links ==

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* {{Wiktionary-inline|GI}}
{{Time 100: The Most Important People of the Century}}
{{Authority control}}


[[Category:Initialisms]]
[[Category:Initialisms]]
[[Category:Military terminology of the United States]]
[[Category:Military terminology of the United States]]
[[Category:United States Army personnel killed in World War II| ]]
[[Category:United States Army personnel of World War II| ]]

Revision as of 19:26, 8 May 2024

This article is about the term for US soldiers. For other uses, see GI.

G.I.s from the 25th Infantry Division in the jungle of Vella Lavella in the Solomon Islands, during Operation Cartwheel on 13 September 1943

G.I. is an informal term that refers to "a soldier in the United States armed forces, especially the army"[1] It is mostly deeply associated with World War II,[2] but continues to see use.[3]

It was originally an initialism used in U.S. Army paperwork for items made of galvanized iron.[2] The earliest known instance in writing is from either 1906[3] or 1907.[2]

During World War I, U.S. soldiers took to referring to heavy German artillery shells as "G.I. cans".[2][3] During the same war, "G.I.", reinterpreted as "government issue"[2] or "general issue",[3] began being used to refer to any item associated with the U.S. Army[3] (e.g. "G.I. soap"[3]). Other reinterpretations of "G.I." include "garrison issue" and "general infantry".[3]

The earliest known recorded instances of "G.I." being used to refer to an American enlisted man as a slang term are from 1935.[2] In the form of "G.I. Joe" it was made better known due to it being taken as the title of a comic strip by Dave Breger in Yank, the Army Weekly, beginning in 1942.[2] A 1944 radio drama, They Call Me Joe, reached a much broader audience. It featured a different individual each week, thereby emphasizing that "G.I. Joe" encompassed U.S. soldiers of all ethnicities.[4] They Call Me Joe reached civilians across the U.S. via the NBC Radio Network and U.S. soldiers via the Armed Forces Radio Network.

"G.I. Jane" originally referred to a member of the Women's Army Corps during World War II but more recently it is used to refer to any American woman soldier.[3]

In British military parlance and in armed forces modelled on British military traditions, G.I. refers to a Gunnery Instructor, generally an NCO responsible for inducting and training recruits.[citation needed]

See also

References

  1. ^ "G.I. Definition from CollinsDictionary.com". Collins Dictionary. HarperCollins Publishers Ltd and Penguin Random House LLC. 2019. Retrieved 11 November 2023.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Wilton, Dave (2 February 2009). "G.I. – Wordorigins.org". Word Origins. Wordorigins.org. Retrieved 11 November 2023.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Rawson, Hugh (April–May 2006). "Why do we say "G.I."?". American Heritage.
  4. ^ Rivas-Rodriguez, Maggie (11 November 2016). "A Soldier's Story: World War II and the Forgotten Battle for the Aleutian Islands". KUT (radio station). Retrieved 29 September 2018.
Look up GI in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
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