My God, you're right. Serves me right for not sourcing out my lead this time. It sounded so right that I just went with it. Sir Humphry Davy, discovering atomic 13 in the first couple of years bantered between Alum, Alumium, Aluminum ~ eventually, with the help of the "Quarterly Review" settled on "Aluminium", with the chemical suffix "ium" (Wikipedia, history & etymology).ealanm wrote:Not to contradict your overall point, which I think is correct, but the history of "aluminum" versus "aluminium" has nothing to do with Alcan, and was a done deal long before Alcan even existed. "Aluminum" was the original name given to the element, from "alumina," the latin name for aluminum oxide, which is how it is found in nature. In the early 19th century, objections were raised in Britain to this form of the name, as the "-ium" ending was considered to be more appropriate for an element. (Though "-um" endings for elements are also common, as in "molybdenum, platinum, or tantalum.) So "aluminium" began to be used in scientific literature in Britain. "Aluminum" remained in common usage in North American, whereas the more academic-sounding "aluminium" caught on in Britain and, from there, the rest of the English-speaking world outside of North America.FalcoColumbarius wrote:The actual metal is called "Aluminium" and outside of North America (in the English speaking world) the product tends to be referred to as aluminium foil but because of the extensive advertising campaign, Alcan's "Aluminum Foil" has modified the English language to a point where the average punter refers to the metal now as "aluminum", much like the Brits and the word "hoover". It's called "Branding".
The Alcan company didn't come along until nearly a century later. When it was originally formed, in 1902, it was called "Northern Aluminum Company Limited," in keeping with the normal practice in Canada at that time of calling the element "aluminum."
I stand corrected.
Falco.
Good Ship 