SOURCE 01supportshistorical dictionary
Icon — Definition, Word History, and First Known Use
Publishes the exact year.
First Known Use: 1572- AUTHOR / EDITOR
- Merriam-Webster Editors
- YEAR
- 2026
- PUBLISHER
- Merriam-Webster
PERMANENT DISPUTE RECORD
ALL DISPUTES ↗CLAIM / COUNTERCLAIM / LIMITRECORD 162
DISPUTE
RECORD.
One scholarly question. Every attached source. The present editorial state, without pretending the last word has been written.
openprobable
Does the English record begin in the 1570s or in 1572?
Merriam-Webster reports 1572; Etymonline reports the 1570s. The exact year fits within the broader decade but remains a source-reported horizon.
WORD UNDER REVIEWDISPUTE 162
icon
/ˈaɪkɒn/ · noun
An image, likeness, representative figure, or display symbol, borrowed through Late Latin from Greek eikōn.
01
DIRECT CLAIM EVIDENCE
2 SOURCES WITH A STANCE
A citation is not a vote. Each record says whether the work supports, challenges, contradicts, or contextualizes the position—and identifies the exact locus used.
SOURCE 02contexthistorical dictionary
Icon — Origin and history
Publishes the broader decade.
Headword history: 1570s- AUTHOR / EDITOR
- Douglas Harper
- YEAR
- 2026
- PUBLISHER
- Online Etymology Dictionary
02 / EDITORIAL STATE
THE QUESTION REMAINS OPEN.
- CONFIDENCE
- probable
- STATUS
- open
- LEGACY SOURCE SUMMARY
- Two historical dictionaries publish different precision for the same early period.
1572 is stored as the exact lexicographic report while the broader horizon remains visible.