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Original · left

Silicon (element)

First in use: c. 1824
Duplicate · right

Silicon Valley

First in use: c. 1971

Silicon / Silicon (element) / Silicon Valley

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Canonical todayMeasuring…
Status—
Duplicate share · 12 mo—
Last crossover—
Colour keyGrey · original meaningGreen · duplicate meaningAmber · contested (40–60%)How colours work

Element 14 vs. a place.

Which meaning of Silicon is the original, and which one is the duplicate riding on its name? Silicon (element) came first (c. 1824). Silicon Valley arrived in 1971. The data below shows which one owns the word now.

Wikipedia pageviews since 2015

Silicon (element)Silicon Valley
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

Share-of-attention line loads here.

The case for each meaning

Sourced definitions, usage stats and quotes

Original · c. 1824

Silicon (element)

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Duplicate · c. 1971

Silicon Valley

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More duplicated terms

Hardware & devices