# Aluminium vs Aluminum **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [December 19, 2012, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aluminium-vs-aluminum/644517 "2012-12-19T12:48:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2012, 7:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aluminium-vs-aluminum/644517/41 "2012-12-20T07:14:16Z")
nm… ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2012, 9:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aluminium-vs-aluminum/644517/42 "2012-12-20T09:17:50Z")
> [@Michael63129](#): > > I always say it the first way regardless of how it is spelled, usually not noticing the extra “i”. > > On the other hand, something that really bugs me is when people use “mebibyte” instead of “megabyte” (WTF is a mebibyte; except for hard drives, which is probably the reason for this, I think everybody knows that 1 MB is referring to 2^20), same for gibibyte and so on (hey, Firefox underlines those weird spellings, same for aluminium!). With you on the bibblybyte thing (or whatever the hell that is - and I work in IT), but Firefox only agrees with you on ‘Aluminum’ because of your regional setting. Firefox agrees with me on ‘Alumin **i** um’, because it’s set to en-gb on my computer. ---
**Author:** ![bldysabba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecccb3/32.png) [@bldysabba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bldysabba)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2012, 9:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aluminium-vs-aluminum/644517/43 "2012-12-20T09:28:56Z")
> [@RobDog](#): > > Ninja’d 😛 > [@BMalion](#): > > He used Ninjainium. > [@Colophon](#): > > Otherwise known as the element of surprise. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2012, 9:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aluminium-vs-aluminum/644517/44 "2012-12-20T09:52:08Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > I didn’t expect _that_. Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisitium ---
**Author:** ![Polycarp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Polycarp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Polycarp)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2012, 10:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aluminium-vs-aluminum/644517/45 "2012-12-20T10:31:42Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisitium C’mon, these days _everyone_ expects the Spanish Inquisition. What nobody expected was the English Erudition. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![stui\_magpie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stui_magpie/32/11010_2.png) [@stui\_magpie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stui_magpie)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2012, 10:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aluminium-vs-aluminum/644517/46 "2012-12-20T10:45:26Z")
> [@Hutchy](#): > > Why is it that Americans have dropped the “i” from the correct spelling of aluminium? This omission also changes the enunciation of the word, why is it so?😕 1 less syllable, easier to pronounce. ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2012, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aluminium-vs-aluminum/644517/47 "2012-12-20T13:16:14Z")
I remember hearing a story that the discovery of aluminium was announced via an overseas cable from the UK to the US, and the person keying in the telegram accidentally left out the “i”, leading to the change. I’ve always assumed this was apocryphal. Has anyone else heard it? ---
**Author:** ![amanset](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@amanset](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amanset)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2012, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aluminium-vs-aluminum/644517/48 "2012-12-20T13:43:06Z")
> [@RobDog](#): > > Although is still does exist in UK English in the commonly-used (in the press at least) phrase “ill-gotten gains” And the same structure can be seen with the verb “to forget”: get gotten got forget forgotten forgot ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2012, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aluminium-vs-aluminum/644517/49 "2012-12-20T14:15:06Z")
> [@Colophon](#): > > Come back when you have four elements named after one [poxy little village](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ytterby). We’re lucky the names don’t all end in -iöm quite honestly. Interesting. Even the name of the village means “we’re not really the important village.” ---
**Author:** ![barath\_s](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/90ced4/32.png) [@barath\_s](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/barath_s)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2012, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aluminium-vs-aluminum/644517/50 "2012-12-20T18:48:16Z")
> [@amanset](#): > > And the same structure can be seen with the verb “to forget”: > > get gotten got > forget forgotten forgot I have heard of misbegotten but not misbegot. ---
**Author:** ![barath\_s](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/90ced4/32.png) [@barath\_s](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/barath_s)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2012, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aluminium-vs-aluminum/644517/51 "2012-12-20T19:18:26Z")
> [@Colophon](#): > > Come back when you have four elements named after one [poxy little village](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ytterby). We’re lucky the names don’t all end in -iöm quite honestly. Glenn Seaborg could [receive a letter addressed in chemical elements](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glenn_T._Seaborg#Seaborgium): seaborgium, lawrencium (for the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory where he worked), berkelium, californium, americium. He co-discovered 10 elements and his long time partner in arms Al Ghorso - 12. (presumably Al got to pick berkelium and seaborgium). The lawrence livermore group discovered/co-discovered all the above elements. - 14 by one attribution. The JINR group at Dubna got to [co-discover](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JINR#Discoveries) between 8 and 11 elements. and the [German Darmstadt](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GSI_Helmholtz_Centre_for_Heavy_Ion_Research)group 7 . Since considerable controversy exists over discovery, primacy of elements above 92 and worsened by secrecy and the need to have independent confirmation, the old elementary heroes still shine bright - Humphrey Davy and Marie Curie. ---
**Author:** ![BMalion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e274bd/32.png) [@BMalion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BMalion)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2012, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aluminium-vs-aluminum/644517/52 "2012-12-20T19:30:58Z")
Aluminum, if he’s prepared. ---
**Author:** ![Hail\_Ants](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dc4da7/32.png) [@Hail\_Ants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hail_Ants)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2012, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aluminium-vs-aluminum/644517/53 "2012-12-20T20:58:30Z")
> [@Hail\_Ants](#): > > Just my wild ass guess, I mean, learned opinion, but I can’t help think that since America first mass produced it, we inevitably went with calling it _a-lu-min-um_ simply because _ **al-u-min-ee-um** _ is a fucking annoying tongue-twister to say! 😃 Actually I screwed up my syllabic delineation. In the US it’s pronounced: _ **a-lu-mi-num** _, with ‘num’ being the last syllable. Again, I think simply because it just falls trippingly off the tongue this way! ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2012, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aluminium-vs-aluminum/644517/54 "2012-12-20T21:02:00Z")
> [@Hail\_Ants](#): > > Actually I screwed up my syllabic delineation. In the US it’s pronounced: _ **a-lu-mi-num** _, with ‘num’ being the last syllable. Again, I think simply because it just falls trippingly off the tongue this way! Who cares?\* You’re doing it right anyway, for your locality. \*I mean, kinda ironic going to all the trouble of telling us _twice_ how convenient it is that you occasionally save a syllable. ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2012, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aluminium-vs-aluminum/644517/55 "2012-12-20T21:32:07Z")
> [@barath\_s](#): > > I have heard of misbegotten but not misbegot. Shakespeare, _Timon of Athens_ Your words have took such pains as if they labour’d To bring manslaughter into form and set quarrelling Upon the head of valour; which indeed Is valor misbegot… Only time in Shakespeare, which may or may not prove anything. This has took a little time to get to. ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2012, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aluminium-vs-aluminum/644517/56 "2012-12-20T22:15:27Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisitium Chuckle. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aluminium-vs-aluminum/644517.md?page=2)