You heard it here Socialites. When The Oxford English Dictionary’s March 2011 edition of OED Online comes out, it will contain LOL, OMG, and FYI. Considering we’ve all been using those words since AOL 3.0, The Oxford English Dictionary is a little late. Still though, for an entire generation of kids that grew up talking more often to a computer screen than to an actual human being in person, this is a pretty momentous event. Now they just have to add BRB, ROFL, LMAO, etc. For now, we’ll try not to get greedy.
Obviously “words” like LOL and OMG are mostly associated with the electronic community. Mobile communication is nothing new, nor are those “words,” but with the emergence of Twitter, and other electronic mediums with character limitations, they have just recently become necessary. Like it or not, Twitter has now become more than legitimate as a means of communication, and if it makes certain terms necessary, then the dictionary should recognize this.
The most interesting thing actually, is according to OED’s website, the first known use of the initials OMG was in a letter written in 1917. LOL also existed once before, notably in the 1960’s, though it was used for “Little Old Lady” not “Laugh Out Loud.” Either way, this is even more support for the inclusion of acronyms into the dictionary. It comes to a point where they are basically parts of speech.
