1432, from L.
unitus, pp. of
unire "to unite," from
unus "one" (see
one).
United Kingdom is recorded from 1737. The phrase
United States has been used since 1617, originally with ref. to Holland; the North American republic first so called in 1776.
United Nations (1942) originally meant "the Allied nations at war with the Axis powers;" the international body (officially the
United Nations Organization) was chartered in 1945.
United Provinces were the seven northern provinces of the Netherlands, allied from 1579, later developing into the kingdom of Holland.