Tell me more ×
English Language & Usage Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for linguists, etymologists, and serious English language enthusiasts. It's 100% free, no registration required.
up vote 43 down vote favorite
4

What do you call a person who started something that is later followed by everyone? For example, someone started to stay late at night till 8 p.m. and later everyone started to stay till 8 p.m..

share|improve this question
23  
You call them a hipster. – Joe Masilotti Jan 14 at 14:55
The thing can be called a portent, but calling the thing starter a portenter sounds strange. – Zoot Jan 14 at 16:27
2  
In tech we use "early adopter," although there's no implication that others have yet followed suit. – editor Jan 14 at 18:38

13 Answers

up vote 109 down vote accepted

A trend-setter or trendsetter:

someone who starts a trend, or makes one more popular

The other answers on this page have a couple other fine suggestions — and a thesaurus lookup turns up more suggestions still —, but be aware that some of them require additional quali­fication. For example, it's typically "a harbinger of something", or "a precursor to something". So you won't be able to just say "he is a harbinger" and leave it at that; likewise, "he is a pre­cursor" will only raise questions if no further context is supplied. "He is a trendsetter", on the other hand, is perfectly self-explanatory and self-sufficient.

share|improve this answer
up vote 24 down vote

Pioneer is the word for that, but in this particular example, it may not be a good fit. Pioneer carries a positive emotion, and I would not use it for something perceived as negative (like staying late at work).

share|improve this answer
1  
Pioneer is some who does it first, but not necessarily someone who is then followed. Eg the Wright brothers pioneered aviation, but not many of us fly (pilot) aircraft – Bohemian Jan 15 at 14:15
up vote 20 down vote

I also rather like forerunner for someone who starts a trend — sometimes even harbinger or herald, depending.

The thing about harbinger and herald is that those portend (or augur) something upcoming if not imminent, while a forerunner is just ahead of his time.

share|improve this answer
5  
harbinger ... of DOOM! (sorry, couldn't resist.. ) – Macke Jan 15 at 6:48
up vote 16 down vote

My first answer was a trailblazer.

Noun A person who makes a new track through wild country. A pioneer; an innovator.

share|improve this answer
Welcome to EL&U. Please edit to add an explanation and to share your research. – MετάEd Jan 14 at 16:30
I think trailblazer would only be being used sarcastically in this context, though. It implies a positive effect rather than staying late at work, which implies negative. – Nick Jan 15 at 11:24
up vote 10 down vote

Maybe also initiator could fit?

one who initiates

share|improve this answer
up vote 8 down vote

Bellwether. Quoting from Wikipedia:

A bellwether is any entity in a given arena that serves to create or influence trends or to presage future happenings.

The term is derived from the Middle English bellewether and refers to the practice of placing a bell around the neck of a castrated ram (a wether) leading his flock of sheep. The movements of the flock could be noted by hearing the bell before the flock was in sight.

share|improve this answer
I have never heard a bellwether used in the context of a person. The modern usage with which I am familiar is when describing the long bond, which is the 30-year maturity U.S. Treasury bond. The T-bond, or 10 year T-note are bellwether securities. If you know of another use, applicable to a person, I would be very curious for details. Bellwether is a great word. – Feral Oink Jan 15 at 5:05
This is specifically the sense in which Connie Willis uses the word in her book Bellwether: a habitual, effortless trendsetter. – librik Jan 15 at 7:59
I'm still searching, can only find bellwether as a trend indicator, or bellwether stocks, or in the context of a news information source. Dictionary definitions say "entity" or "person" but I can't find examples of such. – Feral Oink Jan 15 at 7:59
@librik No, I don't think so. I checked several blurbs for Bellwether, as well as the article precis in Wikipedia. The novel involves scientists experimenting with sheep as bellwethers for deriving a forecasting methodology, applicable to human behavior. According to plot summaries of the book, human beings are bellwethers only in the sense that fads are started by a person or persons in the crowd, who without conscious intent or realization, happen to be a little ahead of the rest. – Feral Oink Jan 15 at 8:08
OK, if you haven't read the book, you won't know the punchline: there is one wacky young woman who, just following her own inclinations, ends up as the leading edge for all the fads in the story. If Pippa's doing it now, everyone else will be doing it soon. She's the Bellwether of the title. – librik Jan 15 at 8:16
show 1 more comment
up vote 5 down vote

I felt the need to float "Innovator" given editor's suggestion of "early adopter", mostly to make clear that, within frameworks for understanding adoption rates, innovators are generally considered to be the first to adopt the innovation and are themselves followed by the early adopters. Innovators cast the die or blaze the trail, and early adopters may or may not follow. There's a media-related term (particularly in advertising/marketing/PR) "opinion leader" which is used as part of the theoretical construct for how new innovations spread. It may also be useful in this case for explaining the idea that people who aren't directly involved in the act of innovating are perceived as a more-reliable (i.e., impartial) bellweather by the average eventual adopter.

share|improve this answer
up vote 5 down vote

You could also, depending on your style and context, use the word precursor:

a person, animal, or thing that goes before and indicates the approach of someone or something else; harbinger

Two example sentences related to original poster's request:

  • When I saw everybody's eyes on Jeremy as he glided across the hall in those "heelies" things, I knew he was the precursor to a new fad.
  • Janette is the precursor to the new trend at the office to wear silly pins on casual Fridays.
share|improve this answer
Welcome to ELU! It would be helpful if you could edit your answer to include a definition from a dictionary that fits the OP's word request. Any examples of your word in a quote would be welcome also. – Kristina Lopez Jan 15 at 5:25
I like precursor as a choice! I think of it primarily in the context of chemistry though. As @KristinaLopez said, it would be great to have a definition, and if possible, an example of precursor used in context as part of your answer. – Feral Oink Jan 15 at 7:55
@FeralOink Precursors also occur in literature and movies and the likes. – tchrist Jan 15 at 11:59
up vote 3 down vote

Avant-garde. From Wikipedia,

Avant-garde ([...] from French, “advance guard” or “vanguard”[1]) is a French term used in English as a noun or adjective to refer to people or works that are experimental or innovative, particularly with respect to art, culture, and politics.

Avant-garde represents a pushing of the boundaries of what is accepted as the norm or the status quo, primarily in the cultural realm…

The last sentence suggests that the behavior of the avant-garde is eventually followed by at least some people.

share|improve this answer
I have to admit I find this works better as an adjective than as a substantive. – tchrist Jan 15 at 12:00
up vote 3 down vote

Instigator might be appropriate in some contexts, if it's clear that others are now involved.

a person who brings about or initiates something

share|improve this answer
up vote 1 down vote

I would call them a progenitor.

share|improve this answer
up vote 0 down vote

Flag bearer will be an apt term.

share|improve this answer
up vote 0 down vote

I would call them an initiator. According to the OED:

initiator |ɪˈnɪʃɪeɪtə| a person or thing that initiates someone or something.

share|improve this answer

protected by Jason Bourne Jan 15 at 13:36

This question is protected to prevent "thanks!", "me too!", or spam answers by new users. To answer it, you must have earned at least 10 reputation on this site.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.