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The French And Indian War Is The Worst Name For a Conflict Ever
Ambiguous, narrow, and frustrating
The French and Indian War is one of the most maddening features of American history books. The name is asinine and does nothing to explain the actual conflict. The name is nondescriptive, unorthodox, and severely outdated. This fact only becomes starker when you compare it with the names of other conflicts.
Conflicts generally are named for one of three things, the location, the major combatants, or a major figure.
One can safely deduce that the Crimean War likely was fought over Crimea.
The Conquests of Alexander the Great highlight the major player, Alexander, and his actions.
The American Civil War tells us what type of war it was and where it was fought.
The Sino-Japanese War, Russo-Japanese War, and Franco-Prussian War all describe who was fighting on either side.
The French and Indian War does none of these things. At first glance, it appears as though France was fighting the Indians. But which Indians? American Indians? Or Indians from the subcontinent? Was this a 19th-century fight against the British Raj or an 18th-century fight against Creek natives in Louisiana? In fact, it is neither.
