DCHP-2

CanLit DCHP-2 (October 2016)

• n. — Education, abbreviation

  Canadian literature.

  Type: 1. Origin — The abbreviation CanLit for Canadian literature, for the related field of academic study and teaching, and for the journal Canadian Literature (founded 1959, see reference), appears to have arisen in the 1960s (see the 2005 quotation). By the mid-1970s the field was established internationally, both in the US and Europe (see, e.g. the 1976 quotation), around the same time when the abbreviation became entrenched (see, e.g., the 1977 quotation). As Chart 1 shows, the term is overwhelmingly attested in Canada. Although the abbreviations AmLit or BritLit do occur, they are, unlike CanLit, rare.
  See also Gage-5, s.v. "CanLit", which is marked "Cdn. Informal", ITP Nelson, s.v. "CanLit", which is marked "Informal".