Total F@#$ing Train-Wreck.
I’ve heard “the millennium” which is factually inaccurate but when has that ever stopped anybody?
But I prefer “the twenty first century” because that’s what it is.
Unfortunately, “21st century” doesn’t describe a decade.
True. But then, we haven’t had a decade of it yet. I figure I’ll go with some other name when that becomes more pressing.
Just wanted to say that I’m guilty of using this term. As you said, its not technically correct, but it seems to fit the job pretty well.
I wonder why there’s no date on that column?
I call it “this decade” but I’m not too sure how long that’ll work.
I refer to the year I graduated as “aught one” or “oh one.” I started saying “aught” just to sound old-fashioned, but the usefulness of it is growing on me.
I can’t refer to the decade as the “aughties” though. That just sounds too silly.
The pattern for at least the last century has been this: put the fist year of the decade in the plural. This is the “two thousands.”
I’ve been partial to “The Naughts” ever since the mid-60’s when Jethro Bodine declared he was gonna become “a double naught spy”. Plus we have some quaint British gentlemen working with us here who refer to a 0 (zero) as a naught (never heard them use this as related to the decade, however).
I guess we’ll have to wait until 2010 and the radio stations are playing music from “the eighties, the nineties and the ?”.
I’ve been calling it the “oughts”, depending on the listener of course. Some people would never get it.
Norman.
I suppose someone should take up the wearisome burden of reminding us that we are only at the end of the fourth year of this millennium, century and decade.
I would favor the “oughts”, myself.
Are we going to get around to calling the years “twenty-,” as in “twenty-oh-four” for 2004 or “twenty-10” for 2010?
After all, we don’t say that the Battle of Hastings took place in “one thousand sixty six.”
Oh, I likey.
[Grandpa Simpson]
We couldn’t use the term last century, because of the Kaiser
[/Grandpa Simpson]
I think we’ll find out when the majority (or the media) decides.
2000,2001,2002,2003,2004…I count five years in the decade of 2000-2009
Apparently you missed all the hoppla as the math geeks the world over whipped themselves into a frenzy reminding us that the year 2000 ended the 20th centure; it didn’t begin the 21st. 2001 was the first year of the 21st century. Remember this. It’ll be important someday.
Don’t know when, but someday. They keep telling us that, so it must be true.
I believe that the years starting with 20xx started with 2000. Now I’d admit that I’m no math genius but it seems obvious to me.
True enough. We are nearing the end of the fourth year of the 21[sup]st[/sup] century, but the fifth year of the “20xx” century, the fourth year of the 201[sup]st[/sup] decade, but the fifth year of the “200x” decade.
Right now: “The Decade”
After it’s over: “That Decade”