Talk:Kriegie

Unsourced etymology posted in 2006 by IP 71.230.31.42

"Former POW Paul Gordon of Reading, Pennsylvania, claims to be the man who coined the term. He was captured by the Germans after the B-17 in which he was a ball turret gunner was shot down over France on October 9, 1942; he spent the remainder of the war as a detainee in Stalag 17b, Krems, Austria. Early in his captivity he was with a group of fellow POW's who were pondering what to call themselves, since the German word "Kriegsgefangener" (war-prisoner) was too cumbersome. According to Paul, he said, "Heck, we'll just be Kriegies," and the name stuck." Equinox ◑ 21:08, 15 January 2019 (UTC)