G.I. is an informal term that refers to "a soldier in the United States armed forces, especially the army". It is most deeply associated with

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, but continues to see use. It was originally an

initialism An acronym is a type of abbreviation 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 letter of each word in all caps wi ...

used in

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of the United Stat ...

paperwork for items made of

galvanized Galvanization ( also spelled galvanisation) is the process of applying a protective zinc coating to steel or iron, to prevent rusting. The most common method is hot-dip galvanizing, in which the parts are coated by submerging them in a bath o ...

iron. The earliest known instance in writing is from either 1906 or 1907. During

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, U.S. soldiers took to referring to heavy German

artillery Artillery consists of ranged weapons that launch Ammunition, munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during sieges, and l ...

shells as "G.I. cans". During the same war, "G.I.", reinterpreted as "government issue" or "general issue", began being used to refer to any item associated with the U.S. Army, ''e.g.'', "G.I. soap". Other reinterpretations of "G.I." include "garrison issue" and "general infantry". The earliest known recorded instances of "G.I." being used to refer to an American enlisted man as a

slang A slang is a vocabulary (words, phrases, and linguistic usages) of an informal register, common in everyday conversation but avoided in formal writing and speech. It also often refers to the language exclusively used by the members of pa ...

term are from 1935. 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 Irving David Breger (April 15, 1908 – January 16, 1970) was an American cartoonist who created the syndicated ''Mister Breger'' (1945–1970), a gag panel series and Sunday comic strip known earlier as ''Private Breger'' and '' G.I. Joe''. The ...

in ''

Yank, the Army Weekly ''Yank, the Army Weekly'' was a weekly magazine published by the United States military during World War II. One of its most popular features, intended to boost the morale of military personnel serving overseas, was the weekly publication of a ...

'', beginning in 1942. 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. ''They Call Me Joe'' reached civilians across the U.S. via the

NBC Radio Network The National Broadcasting Company's NBC Radio Network (also known as the NBC Red Network from 1927 to 1942) was an American commercial radio network which was in continuous operation from 1926 through 1999. Along with the NBC Blue Network, it wa ...

and U.S. soldiers via the

Armed Forces Radio Network The American Forces Network (AFN) is a government television and radio broadcast service the United States Armed Forces provides to soldiers stationed or assigned overseas, and is headquartered at Fort Meade in Maryland. AFN comprises two sub ...

. Gen.

Dwight Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was the 34th president of the United States, serving from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, he was Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionar ...

would notably reference the term "G.I. Joe," who he described as the main hero of World War II, in his May 1945 V-E address. "G.I. Jane" originally referred to a member of the

Women's Army Corps The Women's Army Corps (WAC; ) was the women's branch of the United States Army. It was created as an auxiliary unit, the Women's Army Auxiliary Corps (WAAC), on 15 May 1942, and converted to an active duty status in the Army of the United S ...

during World War II, but more recently it is used to refer to any female American soldier.

Tommy Atkins Tommy Atkins (often just Tommy) is slang for a common soldier in the British Army.online
* Kennett, Lee B. ''GI: The American Soldier in World War II'' (University of Oklahoma Press, 1997
online
* Meyer, Leisa D. ''Creating GI Jane: Sexuality and power in the women's army corps during World War II'' (Columbia University Press, 1996
online
* Piehler, G. Kurt. ''A religious history of the American GI in World War II'' (U of Nebraska Press, 2021
online
* Sklaroff, Lauren Rebecca. "Constructing GI Joe Louis: Cultural solutions to the “Negro problem” during World War II." ''Journal of American History'' 89.3 (2002): 958-983
online

Primary sources

* McGuire, Phillip, ed. ''Taps for a Jim Crow Army: Letters from Black Soldiers in World War II'' (University Press of Kentucky, 1993). ISBN 0-8131-0822-5.. * Pyle, Ernie ''Here is your war: story of GI Joe'' (U of Nebraska Press, 2004) reprint of newspaper essays by famous war correspondent who focused on soldiers' lif
online
* Shapiro, Lisa K. ''No Forgotten Fronts: From Classrooms to Combat'' (Naval Institute Press, 2018) ISBN 9781682472729. Letters from GIs to college professor; primary sources
online book review
{{Authority control 1900s neologisms Initialisms Military terminology of the United States

See also

Primary sources