Әскери жаргон: SNAFU және SUSFU сөздерінің тарихы

Military acronym slang

SNAFU is an acronym that is widely used to stand for the sarcastic expression Situation normal: all fucked up. It is a well known example of military acronym slang. It is sometimes censored to "all fouled up" or similar. It means that the situation is bad, but that this is a normal state of affairs. The acronym is believed to have originated in the United States Marine Corps during World War II. In modern usage, SNAFU is used to describe running into an error or problem that is large and unexpected. For example, in 2005, The New York Times published an article titled "Hospital Staff Cutback Blamed for Test Result Snafu". SNAFU also sometimes refers to a bad situation, mistake, or cause of trouble, and it is sometimes used as an interjection.

Most reference works, including the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, supply an origin date of 1940–1944, generally attributing it to the U. S. Army. Rick Atkinson ascribes the origin of SNAFU, FUBAR, and a bevy of other terms to cynical GIs ridiculing the army's penchant for acronyms. The first known publication of the term was by The Kansas City Star, on July 27, 1941. It was subsequently recorded in American Notes and Queries in the September 1941 issue (which the Oxford English Dictionary in 1986 credited as the term's first appearance). Time magazine used the term in its June 16, 1942, issue: "Last week U. S. citizens knew that gasoline rationing and rubber requisitioning were snafu." although the Oxford English Dictionary gives its origin and first recorded use as U. S. military slang.

SUSFU is an acronym for Situation unchanged: still fucked up, but can also be bowdlerized—just like SNAFU—to Situation unchanged: still fouled up. It is used in a military context and was first recorded in the ANQ in their September 1941 issue.