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Alternate Terminologies: Naval Gazing Part 6- DREADNOUGHT!

Good point especially on the historiography that might emerge from these being 'Satsuma' class ships.

I think "Dreadnoughts" or @Jared 's "Vanguards" are the kind of thing that emerges in common use because they flow easily for English speakers. First referring to the all-big-gun battleship, then to just anything big and impressive in general. If it's a clunky three syllable Japanese word, or an even clunkier five syllable state name, or a long German name, just general "battleship" (or its TTL equivalent) is likely to remain the name for pre-and-post dreadnoughts alike.
 
I think "Dreadnoughts" or @Jared 's "Vanguards" are the kind of thing that emerges in common use because they flow easily for English speakers. First referring to the all-big-gun battleship, then to just anything big and impressive in general. If it's a clunky three syllable Japanese word, or an even clunkier five syllable state name, or a long German name, just general "battleship" (or its TTL equivalent) is likely to remain the name for pre-and-post dreadnoughts alike.
I think there would be some sort of specific term for the transition point though, if not perhaps the name - something like 'All-big-guns' (but a less awkward version of that). In fact I think I recall some Americans saying 'big-gun battleships' to mean dreadnoughts.
 
In fact I think I recall some Americans saying 'big-gun battleships' to mean dreadnoughts.

Yeah, that's a term in reasonably modern usage. The idea is to use it to distinguish between the old battleships, who used intermediary batteries, and new ones which did not. Humorously enough, this also invalidates the Nazi-constructed battleships from the American term "dreadnaught" due to their middleweight battery of six inch guns- once again proving they were the finest ships Germany ever built to fight at Jutland.
 
Yeah, that's a term in reasonably modern usage. The idea is to use it to distinguish between the old battleships, who used intermediary batteries, and new ones which did not. Humorously enough, this also invalidates the Nazi-constructed battleships from the American term "dreadnaught" due to their middleweight battery of six inch guns- once again proving they were the finest ships Germany ever built to fight at Jutland.
There's another point as well, of course, how is the word spelled in American English. There seems to be a bit of a disagreement. Star Wars uses Dreadnaught with an A, but as for the Star Trek novel that lent its title to this article:

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There's another point as well, of course, how is the word spelled in American English. There seems to be a bit of a disagreement. Star Wars uses Dreadnaught with an A, but as for the Star Trek novel that lent its title to this article:

The American Standard version is Dreadnought; Star Wars' version is the older spelling using the American forms of the components. Like most things in American vernacular, there's no right or wrong- just what's understood. This is also how we get the lingual shaped charge of "whomst'd've" though, so "understood" is a squishy term.
 
I think "Dreadnoughts" or @Jared 's "Vanguards" are the kind of thing that emerges in common use because they flow easily for English speakers. First referring to the all-big-gun battleship, then to just anything big and impressive in general. If it's a clunky three syllable Japanese word, or an even clunkier five syllable state name, or a long German name, just general "battleship" (or its TTL equivalent) is likely to remain the name for pre-and-post dreadnoughts alike.

True. It might be necessary for a Japanese or American vessel to take part in a major engagement to catch on as a universal term.
 
True. It might be necessary for a Japanese or American vessel to take part in a major engagement to catch on as a universal term.

I doubt it. The fact there's not a lot of fighting going on means that if someone can heave the Royal Navy off the technological throne (which is debatable OTL considering South Carolina used both superfiring and all centerline turrets versus the derpnado that was Dreadnaught) then there's good odds they'll never reclaim the title.

Delay Russian-Japanese War by a couple of years and bring forward commissioning of Satsuma by a couple of years ...

Not necessarily; Satsuma was basically a Japanese modification of the Lord Nelson class design that was converted to semi-dreads due to the cost of the Japanese 12" guns.

If it's a clunky three syllable Japanese word, or an even clunkier five syllable state name, or a long German name,

As opposed to the consanant gargle that's Dreadnought? That word has more modified characters than not, versus three other options that are fairly simple, even if they're foreign.
 
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