First Ladies

First Lady is an unofficial title used for the wife or hostess of a non-monarchical head of state or chief executive. The term is also used to describe a woman seen to be at the top of her profession or art. Collectively, the President of the United States and his spouse are known as the First Couple and, if they have children, they are usually referred to as the First Family.

The term is sometimes used, primarily in the U.S., to refer to the spouse of other non-monarchical heads of state, even though they do not have that style in their own country. Some other countries have a title, formal or informal, that is or can be translated as first lady. The title is not normally used for the wife of a head of government who is not also head of state.

The term in the United States is also used to refer to wives of governors and, less formally, to wives of college and university presidents. It has even been used in reference to female spouses of men who were chairmen of major corporations. While there has never been a male spouse of a U.S. President, "First Gentleman" is used in the United States for the husband of a state governor. First Gentleman is the male equivalent of the title in countries where the head of state's spouse has been a man, such as the Philippines or Malta.

The designation First Lady seems to have originated in the United States, where one of the earliest uses in print, in 1838, was in reference to Martha Washington. Other sources indicate that, in 1849, President Zachary Taylor called Dolley Madison "first lady" at her state funeral, while reciting a eulogy written by himself; but no copy of that eulogy has been found.

In the early days of the United States, there was no generally accepted title for the wife of the president. Many early first ladies expressed their own preference for how they were addressed, including the use of such titles as Lady. One of the earliest uses of the term "first lady" was applied to Martha Washington in a profile by Mrs. C. H. Sigourney in 1838: Mrs. Sigourney, discussing how Martha Washington had not changed, even after her husband George became president, wrote that "The first lady of the nation still preserved the habits of early life. Indulging in no indolence, she left the pillow at dawn, and after breakfast, retired to her chamber for an hour for the study of the scriptures and devotion". However, the term "first lady" would not come into common use until the late 1800s.

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