Why was World War 1 referred to as a total war?

Answer 1

Answer World War I triviaI'm not 100% on this one, but I believe that it was called a "World War" because it was the first war in modern history where countries from all continents chose sides. Not everyone sent combatants, but many countries allowed agents to operate withing their borders and were considered part of the Germany,Austria-Hungary pact. Japan and Italy (our enemies in WW2) were allied with the US, UK and others. AnswerWorld war I was initally described as the Great War or in some circles as the war of 1914 to 1919. It was not generally described as World War I until war broke out again in Europe in September 1939. The new war then became known as World War II and the earlier war as World War I. Furthermore, these descriptions are American rather than European. So as American political and cultural influence rose after 1945 the American terminology became more widely used. But the Great war was in fact a world conflict with battles fought from Northern Europe through the Middle East.