Office of the Historian

List of Abbreviations and Symbols

Editor’s Note.—This list does not include standard abbreviations in common usage; unusual abbreviations of rare occurrence which are clarified at appropriate points; and those abbreviations and contractions which, although uncommon, are understandable from the context.

  • A, Office of the Deputy Under Secretary of State for Administration
  • A-bomb, atomic bomb
  • ABC, American Broadcasting Company
  • ACTA, (Interdepartmental) Advisory Committee on Technical Assistance
  • AEC, Atomic Energy Commission
  • ARA, Bureau of Inter-American Affairs’, Department of State
  • B/P, balance of payments
  • BNA, Office of British Commonwealth and Northern European Affairs, Department of State
  • CA, circular airgram
  • CA, Office of Chinese Affairs, Department of State
  • CCA, United Nations Commission for Conventional Armaments
  • CDA, Combined Development Agency
  • CDT, Combined Development Trust, subsequently renamed Combined Development Agency
  • CEA, Council of Economic Advisers
  • CFM, Council of Foreign Ministers
  • CIA, Central Intelligence Agency
  • CINCFE, Commander in Chief, Far East
  • Cominform, Communist Information Bureau
  • CON, Office of Consular Affairs, Department of State
  • CP, Commercial Policy Staff, Department of State
  • CP’s, Contracting Parties (GATT)
  • CPC, Combined Policy Committee
  • CPR, Chinese People’s Republic
  • D Day, the date of a planned military operation
  • Delga, series indicator for telegrams from the United States Delegation to the United Nations General Assembly
  • Depcirtel, Department of State circular telegram
  • Deptel, Department of State telegram
  • DOT, dependent overseas territory
  • E, Office of the Assistant Secretary of State for Economic Affairs
  • ECA, Economic Cooperation Administration
  • ECE, Economic Commission for Europe
  • ECOSOC, Economic and Social Council of the United Nations
  • Emb, Embassy
  • Embtel, Embassy telegram
  • EPU, European Payments Union
  • ERP, European Recovery Program
  • EUR, Bureau of European Affairs, Department of State
  • Exim Bank, Export-Import Bank of Washington
  • FBI, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Department of Justice
  • FCN, friendship, commerce, and navigation (treaty)
  • FE, Bureau of Far Eastern Affairs, Department of State; Far East; Far Eastern
  • FMACC, Foreign Military Assistance Coordinating Committee
  • F.R., Federal Register
  • FSA, Federal Security Agency
  • FY, fiscal year
  • FYI, for your information
  • G, Deputy Under Secretary of State
  • GA, General Assembly of the United Nations
  • GAA, General Armistice Agreement
  • GARIOA, Government and Relief in Occupied Areas
  • GATT, General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade
  • GDR, German Democratic Republic
  • GER, Bureau of German Affairs, Department of State
  • GHQ, General Headquarters
  • GOI, Government of India
  • GSA, General Services Administration
  • GTI, Office of Greek, Turkish, and Iranian Affairs, Department of State
  • H, Office of the Assistant Secretary of State for Congressional Relations
  • H-bomb, hydrogen bomb
  • H.R., designation for legislation introduced in the House of Representatives
  • HSD, high separation diffusion
  • IADB, Inter-American Defense Board
  • IA ECOSOC, Inter-American Economic and Social Council
  • IBRD, International Bank for Reconstruction and Development
  • ICIS, Interdepartmental Committee on Internal Security
  • IEP, Division of Exchange of Persons, Department of State
  • IIAA, Institute of Inter-American Affairs
  • IMF, International Monetary Fund
  • ITO, International Trade Organization
  • ITP, Office of International Trade Policy, Department of State
  • JCS, Joint Chiefs of Staff
  • L, Office of the Legal Adviser, Department of State
  • L/EUR, Office of the Assistant Legal Adviser for European Affairs, Department of State
  • LA, Latin America
  • Le, Office of the Legal Adviser, Department of State
  • Legtel, Legation telegram
  • LOC, lines of communication
  • LSD, low separation diffusion
  • MAP, Military Assistance Program
  • MDA, Mutual Defense Assistance
  • MDAA, Mutual Defense Assistance Act
  • MDAP, Mutual Defense Assistance Program
  • MEA, Ministry of External Affairs
  • MN, Monetary Affairs Staff, Department of State
  • MVD, Soviet secret police
  • mytel, my telegram
  • NAC, National Advisory Council on International Monetary and Financial Problems
  • NAP, North Atlantic Pact
  • NAT(O), North Atlantic Treaty (Organization)
  • NEA, Bureau of Near Eastern, South Asian, and African Affairs, Department of State
  • NGO, nongovernmental organization(s)
  • niact, night action, communications indicator requiring attention by the recipient at any hour of the day or night
  • NIE, National Intelligence Estimate
  • NME, National Military Establishment
  • NSC, National Security Council
  • NSRB, National Security Resources Board
  • OAS, Organization of American States
  • OEEC, Organization for European Economic Cooperation
  • OFD, Office of Financial and Development Policy, Department of State
  • OIR, Office of Intelligence Research, Department of State
  • OMB, Office of Management and Budget, Department of State
  • OSR, Office of the United States Special Representative in Europe under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1948
  • ourtel, our telegram
  • P, Office of the Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs
  • PD, Passport Division, Department of State
  • PJBD, Permanent Joint Board on Defense
  • P.L., Public Law
  • PPS, Policy Planning Staff, Department of State
  • PSC, Social Christian Party of Belgium
  • QR, quantitative restriction(s)
  • R, Office of the Special Assistant for Intelligence, Department of State
  • RAC, Executive Committee on Regulation of Armaments
  • RCT, Regimental Combat Team
  • RDB, Research and Development Board
  • Repto, series indicator for messages to the Economic Cooperation Administration headquarters in Washington from the United States Special Representative in Europe under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1948
  • reurtel, regarding your telegram
  • S/MDA, Office of the Mutual Defense Assistance Program, Department of State
  • S/P, Policy Planning Staff, Department of State
  • S/S, Executive Secretariat, Department of State
  • S/S–S, Committee Secretariat Staff, Department of State
  • SANACC, State–Army–Navy–Air Force Coordinating Committee
  • SC, Security Council of the United Nations
  • SCAP, Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers in Japan
  • SCC, Interdepartmental Committee on Scientific and Cultural Cooperation
  • SecDef, Secretary of Defense
  • SOA, Office of South Asian Affairs, Department of State
  • STEM, United States Special Technical and Economic Mission
  • SWNCC, State–War–Navy Coordinating Committee
  • SYG, Secretary-General
  • TA, technical assistance
  • TA, trade agreement
  • TAC, Interdepartmental Committee on Trade Agreements
  • Tagg, series indicator for telegrams to the United States Delegation at the meetings of the Contracting Parties to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade
  • TCA, Technical Cooperation Administration, Department of State
  • TCD, Interim Office for Technical Cooperation and Development, Department of State
  • TN’s, tariff negotiations
  • TRC, Office of Transport and Communications Policy, Department of State
  • TVA, Tennessee Valley Authority
  • U, Office of the Under Secretary of State
  • U/A, Office of the Special Assistant to the Under Secretary of State (Atomic Energy Policy)
  • U/FW, Office of the Special Assistant to the Under Secretary of State (Fisheries and Wildlife)
  • UM, Under Secretary’s Meeting
  • UN, United Nations
  • UNA, Bureau of United Nations Affairs, Department of State
  • UNAEC, United Nations Atomic Energy Commission
  • UNP, Office of United Nations Political and Security Affairs, Department of State
  • UNRRA, United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration
  • UNSC, United Nations Security Council
  • urinfo, your information
  • urtel, your telegram
  • USAF, United States Air Force
  • USDA, United States Department of Agriculture
  • USDel, United States Delegation
  • USIE, United States Information and Educational Exchange Program
  • USIS, United States Information Service
  • USPHS, United States Public Health Service
  • USUN, United States Mission to the United Nations
  • VD, Visa Division, Department of State
  • VOA, Voice of America