

In Europe, the same job was assigned to the CPI.

In the United States, SAAMI (Sporting Arms and Ammunition Manufacturers Institute) was responsible for developing the industry standards for the 9mm Parabellum round. With the popularity of the caliber, there was a need for a standard name. It was relatively strong and very reliable, because of its tapered design, which ensured very efficient feeding in semi-automatic pistols and submachine guns. After the second world war, the caliber started gaining a lot of popularity. The German military used the 9mm caliber in their sidearms, and later in Sub Machine guns like the mp40 as well. It translates to “ If you want peace, prepare for war,” so, this is where the caliber got its first name. The Deutsche Waffen und Munitionsfabriken (DWM) was a German firearms manufacturer, and their logo was the Latin phrase “ Si vis Pacem, para Bellum”. The word Parabellum comes from the Motto of the company that George Lucas designed the cartridge for. The 9x19mm caliber was specifically designed for this pistol.īack then, the round was called the 9x19 parabellum since it has a projectile 9mm in diameter and the case was 19 mm long. George Lugar was also the designer of the German Luger pistol, which saw extensive use in WW1 and WW2.

The caliber that we know as 9mm today, was developed in 1902, by a German firearms engineer named George Lugar. Here is a little history of the 9mm, and how it got so many different aliases. Still, buying ammo can sometimes be confusing because there are also some rounds with similar names that are completely different.įor example, the 9mm Makarov, 9mm browning, 9x21 mm, and 9x23 Winchester are totally different rounds but have a similar 9mm projectile. If you have been using guns for a while you have probably heard many names for 9mm rounds: It had become the standard caliber, used in most semi-automatic pistols since it offers an excellent balance between stopping power, size, and availability. The caliber is more than a hundred years old and was developed before World War I in 1902. It is used by Militaries and law enforcement agencies worldwide, and by civilians as well.Īctually, the 9mm and 9mm Luger are simply different names for the same caliber. The 9mm is a common handgun round, used all over the world.
