History Main / Retronym

Retronyming is the concept of modifying an object's name because the original name has changed its meaning.

When applied to a movie, TV show, video game, etc., it usually consists of adding a "1" after the title of the first part of a series (in the case of NumberedSequels), or something akin.

* World War I

* The title ''ANewHope'' was used for the original ''StarWars'' film only after its sequels were released.

** ''KamenRiderSkyrider'', also known as ''New Kamen Rider'', was originally known simply as ''Kamen Rider'' when it began in 1979, as it was originally intended to be a reboot of the franchise. That idea fell through when the writers decided to reintroduce the previous Riders on the show and had them team up with the new guy. Hiroshi Tsukuba himself only used the codename "Skyrider" after it was given to him by KamenRiderStronger in Episode 20 (in previous episodes, everyone simply called him "Kamen Rider").

** ''KamenRiderSkyrider'', also known as''New Kamen Rider'', was originally known simply as ''Kamen Rider'' when it began in 1979. ''Skyrider'' was originally intended to be a reboot of the franchise, but that idea fell through when the writers decided to reintroduce the previous Riders on the show and had them team up with the new Rider. The main character himself only used the codename "Skyrider" after it was given to him by KamenRiderStronger in Episode 20 (in previous episodes, everyone simply called him "Kamen Rider").

* ''KamenRiderSkyrider'' was simply titled ''KamenRider'' when it first aired, as it was intended to be a reboot of the franchise and not a continuation of the previous series.
** Also, the original Kamen Rider (as in the character in the original series) wasn't "Kamen Rider I" until Kamen Rider II came along.

* [=PlayStation=] One (aka [=PS1=] or [=PSOne=])

* Standard Definition as opposed to Enhanced and [[High Definiton]] video and audio standards.

** Also, the original Kamen Rider (as in, the character) wasn't "Kamen Rider I" until Kamen Rider II came along.

** Also, the character Kamen Rider (as in, the first one) wasn't "Kamen Rider 1" until Kamen Rider 2 came along.

* Similarly, the video/DVD releases of ''[[IndianaJones Raiders of the Lost Ark]]'' retroactively retitled it "Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark" on their packaging. The subtitle at the start of the movie itself was left unchanged, though.

* Similarly, the video/DVD releases of ''[[Indiana Jones Raiders of the Lost Ark]]'' retroactively retitled it "Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark" on their packaging. The subtitle at the start of the movie itself was left unchanged, though.

* Similarly, the video/DVD releases of ''Raiders of the Lost Ark'' retroactively retitled it "IndianaJones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark" on their packaging. The subtitle at the start of the movie itself was left unchanged, though.

* Similarly, the video/DVD releases of ''Raiders of the Lost Ark'' retroactively retitled it "Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark" on their packaging. The subtitle at the start of the movie itself was left unchanged, though.

** OlderThanYouThink, actually.
* The subtitle ''ANewHope'' was used for the original ''StarWars'' film only after the sequels were released.
** The Original Trilogy was originally known as "The Star Wars Trilogy" until the Prequel Trilogy was made. [[RedLetterMedia Some fans]] [[{{Discontinuity}} wished it would've stayed that way.]]
* ''KamenRiderSkyrider'' was simply titled ''KamenRider'' when it first aired.

* TheChroniclesOfRiddick: PitchBlack

** The Original Trilogy was originally known as "The Star Wars Trilogy" until the Prequel Trilogy began to be made. [[RedLetterMedia Some fans]] [[{{Discontinuity}} wished it would've stayed that way.]]

** Before the Prequel Trilogy came out, the Original Trilogy was known simply as "The Star Wars Trilogy". [[RedLetterMedia Some fans]] [[{{Discontinuity}} wished it would've stayed that way.]]

* ''[=~Pokémon: The First Movie~=]''
** Actually, it was ALWAYS called this. I didn't even know it went by "Mewtwo Strikes Back" until I saw the opening credits.

** An inversion: the original [=PlayStation=] was once commonly referred by the abbreviation PSX, a leftover from its development days back when it was originally called "[=PlayStation X=]". Sony later used the PSX name for a DVD-R recorder that played [=PS1=] and [=PS2=] games.

* [=PlayStation=] One (aka [=PS1=] or PSX)
** It became even more confusing (for awhile anyway), when Sony released a multimedia player called the PSX that played [=PS1=]/[=PS2=] games.

* Once the e-mail was invented, the regular mail became known as "snail mail".