British and Americans speak English. But the words used for common things are different. The list is so long that we may end up scratching our heads. The differences between words like chips vs fries, soccer vs football etc. makes no sense. The word football makes complete sense because the ball is kicked by foot but soccer may not be the right word. What about the word autumn? Now we are going to find the answer for “Why do the British say “Autumn” instead of “fall”?

British use the word “autumn” for the third season of the year. When summer ends and winter is about to start. What’s the reason behind the use of different words? Though both the words are part of English language. The word “autumn” is older than “fall”.

First Used in 14^th Century  

It was first used in the 14^th century. The word autumn comes from Latin word “autumnus”. The word is connected to European phrases which are mostly translated in the meaning of “dry out”. Still the origin of this word is mysterious.

Although “Autumn” was a word in English language, it was not that popular in Europe. People used the word harvest for the third season of the year. This word was quite confusing because harvesting of crops occurs at different times of the year. Moreover, English considers only two seasons in a year, summer and winter. The word “Autumn” could be used without any dispute. Also it represents transition between summer and winter. So the word became popular as a clear severance between summer and winter.

When did the word “fall” appear first?

The poets started using “fall” in their writings from there the word grew popular. For them it was a romantic word to describe the season of the year. That’s how “fall” became famous and it replaced the word “Autumn”.

During the 16^th century, writers continued to bring new words and phrases. After some time writers brought another term “fall of the leaves”. Similarly for the spring season the word “spring of the leaves”   was used for the transition between winter and summer. Instead of using long terms the words were shortened to “spring” and “fall”.

At that time England’s empire was developing so the English language was also becoming broad. The part of the world where English language changed the most was North America. With the passage of time the language spoken in both the continents began developing on its own. Another reason for developing upon its own accord was the distance between the two continents.  

 So for some people fall was the most appropriate word because it represents the falling of leaves. The United States adopted this word while the UK didn’t. Now the most popular word to describe the season is “fall”.

Why do the British say “Autumn” instead of “Fall”? It is because the two continents were in less contact due to the huge distance. It became the reason for the difference in the lexicons of the United States and United Kingdom.