Ginormous?

So last night, I left an away message up asking about the origins of "ginormous." You see, I used that word once in Chapel Hill, and the people I was with looked at me as if I just said the sky is polka-dot pink with little ribbons hanging down. However, last night, my friend Jennifer P. used it, and I had to wonder, is "ginormous" one of those words from Furman University that everyone used so much that I never realized it snucked into my daily lexicon?

So, my friend Brooklyn responded, saying she believed that Furman students did come up with the word and the Will Ferrell movie "Elf" that uses the word stole it from us. Cool little thought. But....

ginormous, adj., slang: [f. GI(GANTIC a. + E)NORMOUS a.]

Very large, simply enormous; excessive in size, amount, etc. (esp. in comparison with one's expectation).

1948 in Partridge Dict. Forces' Slang. 1962 W. GRANVILLE Dict. Sailors' Slang 53/2 Ginormous, acronymous adjective descriptive of something really impressive: a brush with the enemy; a raid upon the enemy's shipping or coastline, or merely a particularly ‘heavy’ party in the mess. 1970 A. REID Confessions of Hitch-hiker vi. 45 We went to a posh café...The prices were ginormous. 1976 Scotsman 20 Nov. 10/2 How about froggies filled with pot-pourri from small to gi-normous, as Just Us describe them. 1977 Economist 8 Oct. 98/3 The state company Egam, declared bust last spring,..is going to cost considerably more than the £500 billion..earmarked by the government last June, probably a ginormous £1,700 billion. 1986 Sunday Express (Colour Suppl.) 23 Mar. 70/3 Since Brands Hatch, doors have opened and it's possible to make gi-normous money.

Now I don't know from what source that diachronic linguistic came from, but it was sent via IM from someone I respect as far as random intellectual information goes (i.e. he's smart and reads a lot). So, unless this diachronic linguistic just doesn't mention that one of the uses of "ginormous" was by a Furman alum, Brooklyn my friend, I fear we do not have the monopoly on the word "ginormous."

But hell, I can use ginormous (notice it's not in quotes anymore) without fear: it's a word dammit, and it's been in use since 1948, so EAT IT!