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Original · left

Firewall (construction)

First in use: the 1800s
Duplicate · right

Firewall (computing)

First in use: c. 1988

Firewall / Firewall (construction) / Firewall (computing)

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Duplicate share · 12 mo—
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Colour keyGrey · original meaningGreen · duplicate meaningAmber · contested (40–60%)How colours work

A fireproof wall vs. packet filtering.

Which meaning of Firewall is the original, and which one is the duplicate riding on its name? Firewall (construction) came first (the 1800s). Firewall (computing) arrived in 1988. The data below shows which one owns the word now.

Wikipedia pageviews since 2015

Firewall (construction)Firewall (computing)
English Wikipedia pageviews since July 2015 load here.

Duplicate's share of attention

Green line = duplicate's % · above 60 it owns the word · below 40 the original does

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The case for each meaning

Sourced definitions, usage stats and quotes

Original · the 1800s

Firewall (construction)

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Duplicate · c. 1988

Firewall (computing)

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More duplicated terms

Programming & software