<P> Oxford English Dictionary reportedly states that the word ' terrorist ' ( French : terroriste ) was invented in the year 1794 , during the French Revolution . The first meaning of the word ' terrorist ' was then : adherent or supporter of the Jacobins . Apparent from the context given in an article in the Guardian , the indication ' Jacobins ' in that Oxford definition bears on the group around Maximilien Robespierre , also called ' Montagnards ' , that after 1794 were held responsible by some commentators for the repressive and violent government over France between June 1793 and July 1794 , a period analogously labeled ' Reign of Terror ' by commentators . The given definition in Oxford Dictionary shows , the term ' terrorist ' in its first use was meant as abusive term for someone 's political or historical ideas or allegiances , not as description of his personal actions . </P>
the origins of the word terrorism within western civilization can be traced back to
the year 1794 , during the French Revolution