9x19mm Parabellum, better known by its shortened name, "Nine Millimeter", is a German pistol cartridge based off of 7.65×21mm that is one of the most popular and widely known cartridges in the world.
9mm is used in many of the guns from the Beverly Hills Cop film series, including Axel Foley's Browning Hi-Power.
History[]
The name Parabellum is derived from the Latin: "Si vis pacem, para bellum" ("If you seek peace, prepare for war"). The cartridge is known as "9mm Luger" to differentiate it from the 9x18mm Makarov and 9mm Browning Short (better known as .380 ACP) cartridges.
It was introduced in 1901 and has been used by most major militaries in the world for over a century, although .45 ACP is more favored by serious shooters for its larger exit wounds and stopping power. Despite this prejudice against the cartridge, it has stood the test of time and proved to be quite popular as a self-contained pistol round that is used by military and police all over the world, mainly because it is cheaper and more available than the .45 ACP cartridge.