A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
4-Sidig perforeing: (Nor.) perforations on 4 sides
4 Skilling Våpen 1855: (Nor.) refers to the 1855 4 Skilling blue Norwegian Coat-of-Arms issue
“40th Anniversary of the Royal Wedding 1947-1987”: 1987 Aitutaki overprint.
5-Dollar Prexie: nickname for the U.S. 1938 Calvin Coolidge issue
F: fluorescent paper
F: 1: precedes the European postal code on addresses in France, such as F-75009 Paris. 2: Auction term meaning “Fine” quality. 3: Scott catalog number prefix for Registration. 4: “F” add-on rate., US nondenominated stamp, valued 4¢, placed on sale Jan. 22, 1991. 5: used to indicate that the plate was hardened and ready for use. 6: add-on rate., US nondenominated stamp, valued 4¢, placed on sale Jan. 22, 1991. 7: used to indicate that the plate was hardened and ready for use. 8: overprint on a French 1932-39 Peace with Olive Branch design to be used by soldiers and refugees escaping the Spanish Civil War to France. 9: Finland, applied in Helsinki between Dec. 1941 and July 1942. 10: Colombia-Scadta consular overprint for France. 11: “F” inscription, with flower, U.S. nondenominated stamp, valued 29¢, placed on sale Jan. 22, 1991. 12: overprint on a French 1932-39 Peace with Olive Branch design to be used by soldiers and refugees escaping the Spanish Civil War to France
$F: catalog abbreviation for currency in Fiji (Dollar)
FA: Scott catalog number prefix for Certified Mail
Få: (Nor.) few
Fabian’s Phantom Post: United States local post, cinderella by George Fabian, Illinois, established Nov. 22, 1975
Fabrica de Timbre: printer of postage stamps for Romania
Fabrica Nacional de Moneda y Timbre: (Sp.) Spanish Mint and Printing Works; prints all Spanish stamps
Fabrikwasserzeichen: (Ger.) papermaker’s watermark
F A C: auction abbreviation for Forwarding Agent Cachet
Face: Face: 1: Face value. 2: side of mail piece with the delivery address. 3: lettering of a certain style (i.e. Times Roman face, Helvetica bold face, etc.)
Facer canceler: postal equipment that “faces” the envelope to be read easily and then cancels the item
Face value: the monetary value of a postage stamp as printed, or surcharged in its design
Fach: (Ger.) specialty
Fachausstellung: (Ger.) commercial exhibit (stamp show)
Fachn: Egypt, Interpostal seals, 1884
Fachouda: Egypt, Interpostal seals, 1879-80
Faciale valeur: (Fr.) face value.
Facing: USPS placing of envelopes for sorting and mail processing operations
Facing identification mark (FIM): series of vertical bars used by automated postal equipment that identifies, orients and separates various classes of mail
Facing slip: U.S. post office term for slip placed on top of individual bundles of mail to indicate their destination
Facit: specialized Scandinavian postage stamp catalog
Facous: Egypt, Interpostal seals, 1879-84
Facsimile: a reproduction of a genuine postage stamp, intended for souvenir value and not meant to defraud
Facsimile Mail Service: USPS service that permitted customers to send fax messages and have them delivered by the post office, 1971
Factaj: (Rom.) Romania parcel post overprint, 1928
Facteur: (Fr.) postman
Facturas: (Sp.) inscription found on Spanish fiscal stamps used on invoices
Fading: a lightening of ink or paper due to natural or non-natural (i.e. bleaching) physical causes
Færge: (Dan.) ferry
FaerOer: (It.) Faroe Islands
Færøerne: (Dan.) the Faroe Islands, Faroes
Faeroerne Franco Betalt: (Dan.) handstamp on stamps of Denmark for Faroe Islands
Fabriksvandmærke: (Dan.) paper manufacturer’s watermark
F.A.F.L.: Syria military overprint, Free French Administration
FAG: Frank A. Green, BEP employee initials, 1906-1928; Plate Finisher, Siderographer
Fahl: (Ger.) faded
Fahnenstempel: (Ger.) any cancel with dater dial and obliterator
Fahnestock, B. A.: U.S. private die medicine proprietary stamp
Fahrbares postamt: (Ger.) mobile post office
Faidherbe: (Fr.) French colonial issued in 1906, depicting portrait of Gen. Faidherbe
Fairbanks, Richard: postmaster of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, approved the receipt of all foreign letters to the American colonies, appointed Nov. 5, 1639
Faire offre: (Fr.) make an offer
Faire suivre: (Fr.) to be forwarded
Fair warning: auction phrase to denote that a lot will be hammered down soon to alert bidders who may miss a lot of possible interest
Fairy Tales: slang for false entries included in published or verbal Prices Realized
Faja postal: (Sp.) wrapper, used in South America for mailing newspapers and magazines
Fake: a genuine stamp altered as to color, design, value, etc. to increase its monetary value for sale to collectors; these can include imperforate singles, blind perforations, omitted colors and inverts
Fälachung: (Ger.) cinderella
Falkensee: “Falkensee, Gemeinde”(Falkensee Township) area in former Soviet-occupied East Germany, local post, 1945
Falkenstein: German local post, 1887-1900
Falkland Islands: British island group south of South America; currency: 12 pence = 1 shilling, 20 shillings = 1 pound, 100 pence = 1 pound (1971) 1878, June 19: No.1, 1 penny claret, first stamps issued, 1880-90: mail contracted to German steamships of Kosmos Line, 1900-14: mail contracted to Pacific Steam Navigation Co., 1918: first War Tax stamp issued, 1936: Argentina issued a stamp with map design showing Falklands as part of Argentina, 1982, Sep. 13: first semipostal stamp issued, 1985: dependencies of South Georgia and South Sandwich became a separate colony, 1991, Jan. 7: first postage due stamp issued
Falkland Islands: 1: inscription White Out; unissued Great Britain cinderella by David Horry, 2001. 2: King Smoking Pipe, unissued Great Britain cinderella by David Horry, 2001
Falkland Island Dependencies: Islands of South Atlantic and Antarctic Oceans and British portion of Antarctica, all formed dependencies of the Falkland Islands; 1918: first War Tax stamp issued, 1944: first stamp issue, overprints on Falkland Island issue, 1944, Feb. 12: first stamp for Graham Land, 1944, April 3: first stamps for South Georgia, 1944, Feb. 21: first stamps for South Orkneys, 1944: first stamps for South Shetlands, 1946, Feb. 1: first stamps issued for four territories, 1963, July 16: reconstituted as the British Antarctic Territory, 1963, July 17: stamps resumed for South Georgia, South Georgia, 1985, Oct.: South Georgia and Sandwich Islands issued their own stamps
Falklandsöarna: (Swed.) the Falkland Islands
Falklandsøerne: (Dan.) the Falkland Islands
Fällige postgebühr: (Ger.) postage due
Fals: (Rom.) counterfeit, fake, forgery; Falsuri
Falsch: (Ger.) forged, counterfeit
Falschstempel: (Ger.) forged postmark
Fälschung: (Ger.) bogus, counterfeit; labels or postal markings made to defraud collectors. False franking: postage on a mail piece from a mass mailing where the face value of the stamp underpays the actual rate; the difference is paid directly to the USPS when the item enters the mail stream
False perforations: printed perforations on self-adhesive stamps, also known as “serpentine die cuts” and phony perforations
False watermark: made by applying the gum using a patterned roller
Falsificación: (Sp.) bogus, counterfeit; labels or postal markings made to defraud collectors
Falsificazione: (It.) bogus, counterfeit; labels or postal markings made to defraud collectors
Falsifié(e): (Fr.) falsified, forged, faked, counterfeited
Falsk stempel: (Dan.) forged cancellation, forged postmark.counterfeit cancel
Falso: (Sp.) false, bogus
Falso per posta: (It.) postal forgery
Falsuri: (Rom.) forgery
Falta de Porte: 1892, unofficial inscription on stamps of Mexico
Fältpost: (Swed.) fieldpost, inscription for free mail for Swedish troops in World War II as well as civilian mail addressed to the armed forces
Fältpostmärken: (Swed.) field post stamps
Fältpostpaket: (Swed.) field post parcels
Falz: (Ger.) stamp hinge
Falzlos: (Ger.) hingeless
Falzpur: (Ger.) hinged
Falzrest: (Ger.) hinge remnant
FAM: Frank A. Martie, BEP employee initials, 1906-1928; Plate Finisher, Siderographer
F A M: Foreign air mail
FAMcG: Felix McGuire, BEP employees initials, 1906-1928; Plate Finisher, Siderographer
Famous Americans: series of postage stamps honoring authors, poets, educators, scientists, composers and artists, 1940
Famracia belgrand: (Sp.) advertising label from Argentina
Fancy cancel: postmark with a pictorial design
Fancy cancel, oddest: the Ste. Genevieve de Batiscan province in Quebec, 1895, commemorated the Nicaraguan coat of arms in detail
Fancy registry cancels: the Post Office ruled, prior to Nov. 15, 1928, that the name and date of town not appear on registered mail so several local postmasters made or used a “fancy” cancel such as Fairfield, Iowa-Ear of Corn
Fancy type: ornamental type overprint
Fånge: (Swed.) prisoner, Krigsfange
Fangelejr: (Dan.) prisoner of war (P.O.W.) camp, Krigsfange
Fangelejrpost: (Dan.) prisoner of war (P.O.W.) camp mail, Krigsfangepost
Fångepost: (Swed.) prisoner mail, Krigsfange
Fanning Island: bogus issue using frame of St. Vincent stamp
Fanon: currency used in French Colonies
Fantail margin: missing marginal perforations from edge of the stamp to the end of the sheet
Fantan: U.S. Navy code name during WW II for Fiji Islands
Fantan-1: U.S. Navy code name during WW II for Suva, Fiji Islands. 2: U.S. Navy code name during WW II for Nandi, Fiji Islands
Fantasias: (Sp.) bogus issues, cinderella, fantasy
Fantasimerke: (Nor.) fantasy stamp
Fantasifrimärke: (Swed.) fantasy stamp
Fantasimærke: (Dan.) fantasy stamp
Fantasy stamps: make-believe stamps from make-believe entities, usually made to delight or defraud; Bogus stamps, Cinderellas
Fantippo: stamp-like label used in Dr. Doolittle books
F A O: United Nations inscription for Food and Agriculture Organization
F A R: (Sp.) Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias, Cuba telecommunications corps that established a postal system for personnel in Angola, 1985
Farajan: local post, Spanish civil war, Nationalist, 1937
Farbabart: (Ger.) color variety
Farbampeln: (Ger.) traffic lights
Farbänderung: (Ger.) change of color
Farbe: (Ger.) Color
Farbeprobe: (Ger.) trial color
Farbwechsel: (Ger.) change of color
Farchout: Egypt, Interpostal seals, 1882
Fardos Postales: (Sp.) 1: inscription for parcel post, El Salvador. 2: overprint on stamps of Italy, Italian Socialist republic, parcel posts
Far Eastern Republic: currently part of Russia, formerly part of Siberia, east of Lake Baikal; currency: 100 kopecks = 1 ruble 1918, July 10: provisional government established, 1920, Sept.: first issues were overprints and surcharges on stamps of Russia, 1921: stamps called the Blagoveshchensk Issue, 1921: stamps called the Chita Issue, 1922-23: stamps called the Vladivostok Issue, 1922, Nov.19: first stamp issued as part of Soviet Russia, 1923: final issue overprint on stamps of Russia with surcharge; Siberia
Fare un’offerta: (It.) to bid (at an auction)
Farfalla: (It.) butterfly (thematic)
Färg: (Swed.) color
Farge: (Nor.) color
Faridkot: India Feudatory State located in the central Punjab: currency:4 folus = 4 paisas = 1 anna 1879: No.1, 1 folus ultramarine, first local post stamps, 1886: first official stamps issued, 1887-93: first official stamp issued, 1887, Jan.1: signed as Convention State, stamps of British India overprinted “Faridkot State,” 1901, Mar.31: separate stamps discontinued, used stamps of Republic of India
Färja: (Swed.) ferry
Farley’s Follies: U.S. printing made on order of Postmaster General James A. Farley for the imperforate stamps of 1934-37
Färm: (Swed.) Ferm
Färöarna: (Swed.) Faroes
Faroe Islands: autonomous postal authority, North Atlantic Ocean, part of Denmark. official name of postal administration: Postverk Føroya currency: 100 ore = 1 Danish krone 1870: Danish stamps used, 1875, July 1: joined the UPU, included with Denmark, 1914-18: bisected stamps authorized, 1919, Jan. 3-23: No. 1, 2 ore green, surcharge on stamp of Denmark, 1940: British occupation values surcharged on stamps of Denmark, 1945: Danish stamps used again, 1948: islands were given self-government, 1975, Jan. 30: own stamps issued
Färöer Inseln: (Ger.) Faroe Islands
Farr, G. & Co.: Private die match proprietary stamps
Farrie Strike PS.: United Kingdom strike local post, 1971
Farthings: currency unit in Malta
Farve: (Dan.) color
Farveafart: (Dan.) color error, Farvefejltryk, Tryk – Farvefejl
Farvefejltryk: (Dan.) color error, Farveafart, Tryk – Farvefejl
Farveprøve: (Dan.) trial color proof
Farvefoto: (Dan.) color photo
Farwell Company: Chicago, Ill. manufacturer of stamp vending machines, 1910-12, distinct perforation
Faserpapier: (Ger.) granite paper; containing tiny, visible fibers to deter forgery
Fast color: stamp ink that can be soaked in various liquids without the color running
Fast, F: postmarks applied on mail carried on fast mail trains
Fast mail: authorized in 1874 for rail service between New York and Chicago via Central R.R.; started Sept. 16, 1875 and discontinued July 22, 1876, other railroads also had a similar service
Fast mail trains: trains that consisted almost entirely of mail cars, introduced in Sept. 1875
Fast Pony Express Service: package firm service the Chicago, Ill. area; used stamps, year unknown
Fastsättare: (Swed.) (stamp) hinge
Fastway Post New Zealand Ltd.: private post operator in New Zealand who uses own postage stamps
Fåtal: (Swed.) few
Father Mathew Temperance & Manufacturing Co.: U.S. private die medicine proprietary stamp
Fauconniere: Great Britain local post carriage label for Jethou, 1960
Fault: missing piece, tear, clipped perforation, hole, scuff, thin spot, crease, toning, oxidation, stain, short perforation, etc. on a stamp; can decrease the value of the item
Fauna & Flora: Donald Evans bogus issue, 1960-70
Faunce’s Penny Post: U.S. local post, Atlantic City, N.J., 1885
Faune: (Fr.) fauna (thematic)
Faute: (Fr.) fault, defect
Faux de toute piece: (Fr.) completely faked
Faux, Fausse: (Fr.) a forgery, counterfeit
Faux perforations: simulated perforations, used on Pitney-Bowes meter stamps,1932
Faux pour servir: (Fr.) forgeries which have been accepted by the post, or have been made with intent to defraud the postal system
Favola: (It.) fairy tales (thematic)
Favor cancel: a hand cancel that is applied in a special manner as a favor to the mailer
Favor’s Eastport & Boston Express: Boston to various cities in Maine via steamer Admiral, 1853-57, applied marking to mail
Fayence: French local post parachute mail, (L’Aero-club Populaire de Nice et de la Riviera), 1946
Fayoum: Egypt, Interpostal seals, 1872-84
Fazoglu: Egypt, Interpostal seals, 1879-80
FB: Franklin Butler, BEP employee initials, 1906-1928; Plate Finisher, Siderographer
FBB: Frank Brahler, BEP employees initials, 1906-1928; Plate Finisher, Siderographer
F.B.O.: Foreign Branch Office
F.B.S.: Friend’s Boarding School, U.S. local post for mail carried to the post office, Barnesville, Ohio, 1877-84. F/C: auction abbreviation for fiscal cancel
F C: auction abbreviation for fancy cancel
Fco: (It.) abbreviation for Franco, a pre-adhesive postmark
F C F A: Reunion
FCM: first class mail
FC, FCP: Fluorescent coated paper
FD: field
F D: “fausse direction” (Fr.) misdirected
FDAY: First Days; journal of the American First Day Cover Society
FDC: First Day Cover. F D I: First Day of Issue
Fdo. Poo: Fernando Poo
F D O I: First day of issue
Fearey, Jabez & Co.’s Mustang Express: U.S. local post, Newark, N.J., 1870
Fears & Bray’s Express: private mail serviced Boston, Pigeon Cove and Rockport, Mass., used a label; c1880
Feary & Co.’s Mustang Express: private mail firm serviced Newark, N.J. area; used labels, 1887
Február: (Hung.) February
Februar: (Dan., Nor.) February
Februari: (Swed.) February
Februarie: (Rom.) February
F.E.C. (Frank E. Clark): Private die match proprietary stamps
Fecha: (Sp.) date; statement on a stamp of when made
Fecha de llegada: (Sp.) date of arrival or receipt
Fecha de salida: (Sp.) date of departure or dispatch
Fechador: (Sp.) dated postmark, canceller
Fechne: Egypt, Interpostal seals, 1868-82
Fecske, S.S.: steamship marking of the Danube Steam Navigation Company built about 1880’s for middle Danube lines
Federacion Española de Sociedades Filatelicas: (Sp.) Spanish Federation of Philatelic Societies
Federacion Venezolana: (Sp.) Venezuela
Federal Boating Stamp: inscription on U.S. Internal Revenue Service tax stamps, 1960
Federal eagle envelopes: stamped envelope picturing the eagle in blue and gray design
Federal Register: publication in which rules and proposed rules issued by the USPS and other federal agencies are published
Federal Use Tax on Motor Vehicles: inscription on U. S. Internal Revenue Service tax stamps, 1942-48
Federated Malay States: Malaya. Federation of Malaya: Malaya
Federated Republic of Soviets in Russia: in Russian, used as an overprint for Imperial Russian consular tax stamps in 1922 applied to mail sent from Russia to Germany; Deruluft
Federation of Malaysia: Malaysia, Federation of
Federation of South Arabia: South Arabian Federation
Fédération Internationale de Philatélie (FIP): (Fr.) International Federation of Philately
Fédération Internationale des Sociétés Aérophilatéliques (FISA): International Federation of Aerophilatelic Societies
Federation of Ethnic Minorities: located in Burma, labels used to draw attention to human rights violations
Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland: Rhodesia
Federation of South Arabia: South Arabia
Federation of the West Indies: formed of ten British West Indies territories in 1958, dissolved in May 1962
Federstrichentweetung: (Ger.) pen cancellation
Feeder flight: an airmail connection flight at a specified mid-route point
Feed Lines: name given to lines on flat plates to help in the correct placement of paper on the plate
Féher: (Hung.) white (color), also becsületes
Fehldruck: (Ger.) printing error
Fehlend: (Ger.) missing or omitted
Fehler: (Ger.) Error, Fault
Fehlerhaft: (Ger.) defective
Fehlfarbe: (Ger.) color error
Fehlliste: (Ger.) want list
Feil: (Nor.) error, flaw
Feiltakking: (Nor.) perforation error
Feiltrykk: (Nor.) printing error
Fein: (Ger.) fine, a state of excellence
Fejl: (Dan.) fault, faulty
Fejlagtig: (Dan.) fault, faulty
Fejltryk: 1. (Dan.) Tryk – Fejl . 2. (Nor.) printing error.
Fejlperforeret: (Dan.) misplaced perforartions
Fejltakning: (Dan.) perforation error
Feltpost: (Dan.) fieldpost
Feltpostmærke: (Dan.) fieldpost stamp
Feltpoststempel: (Dan.) fieldpost cancel, fieldpost postmark
Fekete: (Hung.) black (color)
Feketésbarna: (Hung.) blackish-brown (color)
Fel: (Swed.) error
Feldpost: (Ger.) 1: field or army post. 2: Austria, Germany overprint for field or Army post
Feldpost 2kg: (Ger.) overprint on stamps of Germany, military parcel post (maximum 2 kg in weight)
Feldpostamt: (Ger.) Austrian Field Post Office
Feldpostbrief: (Ger.) field mail letter
Feldpostmærker: (Ger.) military mail
Feldpostmarke: (Ger.) field post stamp
Felso Szenegál és Niger: (Hung.) Upper-Senegal and Niger
Felso-Volta: (Hung.) Upper Volta
Feltpost: (Dan., Nor.) fieldpost
Feltpostmærke: (Dan.) fieldpost stamp
Feltpostmerke: (Nor.) fieldpost stamp
Feltpoststempel: (Dan., Nor.) fieldpost cancel, fieldpost postmark
Feltryck: (Swed.) printing error
Felülnyomat: (Hung.) overprint
Fem: (Dan., Nor.) five (number)
Femfärgstryck: (Swed.) Tryck – Femfärgs
Femstripe: (Nor.) strip-of-5
Femten: (Dan., Nor.) fifteen (number)
Femti: (Nor.) fifty (number)
Fen: “Fenigy” Poland currency overprint with Poctzta Polska, 1918
Fendu(e): (Fr.) split, cracked, slashed
Feng (F.): (Chin.) cover
Fengselpost: (Nor.) prison mail
Feng-tai: East China local post, SW of Pengpu, 1949
Fennig: currency unit in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Fenster: (Ger.) (window) thin spot on a stamp
Fente: (Fr.) slit, cut, small tear
F E P A: Federation of European Philatelic Associations
Ferdinand I, S.S.: steamship marking of the Danube Steam Navigation Company built at Trieste in 1839 for Levant lines
Ferdinand Maximilian, S.S.: steamship marking of the Danube Steam Navigation Company built in1850’s
Fergusson & Sons (J.W.): Stamp venturers subcontractor for printing US stamps
Feria Muestrario: (Sp.) fair, found in handstamps, cancels
Feribot: (Rom.) ferry boat
Ferie-maerke: (Dan.) non-postal holiday stamp, savings to pay for annual holidays
Ferien: (Ger.) vacation
Ferje: (Nor.) ferry
Ferjebåt: (Nor.) ferry boat
Ferjebåtmerke: (Nor.) ferry boat stamp
Ferjebåtpost: (Nor.) ferry boat mail
Ferjebåtstempel: (Nor.) ferry boat cancellation
Ferm: (Swed.) (also Färm) prompt
Fermé(e): (Fr.) closed
Fermented Fruit Juice: tax paid revenue stamp denominated in barrels and fractions of barrels, 1933
Fermented Liquor: overprint on U.S. Internal Revenue stamps, 1933
Fernando Po: Spanish colony, island off Gulf of Guinea, west African coast; currency: 100 centimos = 1 escudo = 2.50 pesetas, 100 centimos = 1 peseta, 1,000 milesimas = 100 centavos = 1 peso (1882) 1858-77: stamps of Britain used, 1868, July 1: No.1, 20 centimos brown, first stamp issued as Spanish colony, 1867-79: stamps of Spanish Cuba used inscribed Ultramar, 1879-1909: own stamps used, 1909-60: stamps of Spanish Guinea used, 1960: first semipostal stamp issued, 1968, Oct. 12: united with Rio Muni to form Republic of Equatorial Guinea, 1972: renamed Bioko
Fernigow: currency unit in North Poland, 1919-1923
Fern-Ost-Republik: (Ger.) Far Eastern Republic
Ferrarities: someone who owns a number of fakes; named after Baron Philipp La Renotiere Von Ferrary, a great collector who also owned a number of fakes and forgeries
Ferrary, Philip L.R. von, Count: (1850-1917) considered one the world’s greatest collectors, who by the 1880s, was considered to have the world’s greatest stamp collection known, died of a heart attack while trying to buy a Swiss stamp; his collection was confiscated by France and sold to pay the German War Reparations Account
Ferrocarriles: (Sp.) railways
Ferrocarriles Andaluces: (Sp.) Andalusian Railways, inscription on railway’s own stamps
Ferrol del Caudillo: local post, Spanish civil war, Nationalist, 1937
Ferrovia: (It.) train
Fervente: (Port.) bright color
Festad de Ciudade Lisboa: (Port.) Lisbon City Festival, Portugal and Azores postal tax stamps
Festiniog Railway: United Kingdom strike local post, 1971
Festoon-edged: edges of stamps, usually labels, with rows of semicircular cuts
Festpostkarte: (Ger.) commemorative post card
Fésusfogazat: (Hung.) comb perforation
F.E.T. (Falange Española Tradicionalista): (Sp.) found on civil war tax and charity stamps, Spanish right wing political party in 1933-34
Fetejh: city in Russia, local post aka Koursk
Fetridge & Co.: U.S. private die perfumery proprietary stamp
Feuchtwanger Strip: Civil War era encased postage stamps, but may be a fantasy item created in the 1890’s
Feudatory States: states in India established their own postal systems which carried mail within the state; individual states for additional information; Alwar, Bamra, Barwani, Bhopal, Bhor Bijawar, Bundi, Bussahir, Charkhari, Cochin, Dhar, Duttia (Datia), Faridkot, Hyderabad, Idar, Indore (Holkar), Jaipur, Jammu and Kashmir, Jasden, Jhalawar, Jind, Kishangarh, Las bela, Morvi, Morvi, Nandgaon, Nawanagar, Orchha, Poonch, Rajasthan, Rajpipla, Sirmoor, Sorouth, Travancore, Travancore-Cochin, Wadhwan
Feuille: (Fr.) sheet, page (album)
Feuille de timbres: (Fr.) sheet (of stamps)
Feuille-témoin: (Fr.) imprimatur sheet
Fez Mequinez: Morocco local post, 1897
Fez Sefrou: Morocco local post, 1894
Fezzan-Ghadmes: Libya
Fezzan Occupation Francaise: (Fr.) overprint on stamps of Italy and Libya for French occupation, 1943, Libya
Fezzan, Territoire du: Libya
FF: abbreviation for foreign flights
F F, F fr: catalog abbreviation for currency in Andorra, France and Monaco, (Franc)
F F C: First Flight Cover
FFUS: abbreviation for first flights by US airlines
F G: auction abbreviation for flag cancel
F.G.N: Nigeria unissued official overprint
F Grill: grill design used on US stamps in the 19th century
F I: Finland, including the Åland Islands, country code as used by UPU
FI: fiscals; a philatelic discipline recognized for FIP exhibitions
F I A F: (Sp.) “Federación Interamericana de Filatelia,” InterAmerican Federation of Philately
Fialovocerná: (Czech.) violet-black, purple-black (color)
Fialovocervená: (Czech.) violet-red, purple-red (color)
Fialovohnedá: (Czech.) violet-brown, purple-brown (color)
Fialovomodrá: (Czech.) violet-blue, purple-blue (color)
Fialovosedá: (Czech.) violet-grey, purple-grey (color)
Fialovy: (Czech.) violet, purple (color)
FIAP: Far East Philatelic Federation
FICC: First Issues Collectors Club
Ficha: (Sp.) small stock cards for mounting stamps
FIDES: Economic and Development Fund; common theme on stamps of the French Community of Nations, 1956
Fidji: (Fr., Swed.) the Fiji Islands
Fidschi-Inseln: (Ger.) Fiji Islands
Fidzsi Szigetek: (Hung.) the Fiji Islands
Fieldmail Supplies: United Kingdom strike local post, 1971
Field Post Office: a post office established for servicemen on active service
Fiera di Trieste: (It.) overprint on stamps of Italy, Trieste, 1950-53
Fiesta de la Hispanidad: (Sp.) national holiday celebrated on Oct. 12 to commemorate explorers of America
Fifi: British Colonial Royal Wedding frames from book “Surreal Stamps and Unreal Stickers.”
Fifth Clause Post: British handstamp pertaining to the 5th Clause of an Act of Parliament regarding village posts
Fifth International Philatelic Exhibition: international stamps show held in New York City, 1956
Figaro: local post, Spanish civil war, Republican, 1937
Figure: 1: name given to 1914 French colonies postage dues with value in bold panel in center. 2: Name given to 1894 King Carlos portrait on Portuguese colonials
Fijasellos: (Sp.) stamp mounts
Fiji: member of British Commonwealth; group of 844 Pacific islands; currency: 12 pence = 1 shilling, 20 shillings = 1 pound, 100 cents = 1 dollar (1872, 1969) 1870, Nov. 1: No.1, 1 penny pink, first stamps were locally typeset, by Fiji Times newspaper, paper ran a letter and parcel service, 1871: stamps with cipher of native king, CR (Cakobau Rex), Fiji started own mail service, 1872, May 8: Fiji Times closed its mail service, 1874: overprinted V.R., “Victoria Regina” to mark change by King Cakobau to Crown Colony, 1916: first War Tax stamp issued, 1917: first postage due stamp issued, 1951, Sep. 17: first semipostal, 1970, Oct. 10: first stamps issued as independent territory, 1971, June 18: joined the UPU
Fiji: 1: hurricane relief inscription, unissued Great Britain cinderella by David Horry, 2001. 2: empty boat, unissued Great Britain cinderella by David Horry, 2001. 3: coxed fours, or four men in a boat; unissued Great Britain cinderella by David Horry, 2001. 4: man overboard; unissued Great Britain cinderella by David Horry, 2001. 5: two men in a boat; unissued Great Britain cinderella by David Horry, 2001
Fiji øerne: (Dan.) the Fiji Islands
Fila: (Sp.) row of stamps
Filamentos de seda: (Sp.) silk threads found in stamp paper
Filateli: (Nor.) philately
Filatelia: (It., Sp.) philately, also a stamp shop
Filatelica: (It.) philatelic; pertaining to stamp collecting
Filalistisk frankering!: “Philatelic handling label” for careful canceling and handling of mail, supplied by postal authority, Austria
Filatelista: (Sp.) philatelist
Filatelistamplat Brev: (Swed.) philatelically canceled cover
Fil de soie: (Fr.) silk thread
File crease, file: postal item that has been kept folded over for a long period of time
File proof: proofs taken from the finished master die to be kept in archival files of the printing firm
Filet: (Fr.) frame line
Filigrana: (Sp., It.) watermark
Filigrana acostada: (Sp.) sideways watermark
Filigrana de panales: (Sp.) honeycomb watermark
Filigrana lazos: (Sp.) horizontal watermark, used in 1855 issue of Spain
Filigrane: (Fr.) watermark
Filigrane de fabricant de papier: (Fr.) paper maker’s watermark
Filigranoscopio: (Sp.) watermark detector
Filigranul, filigrane (filigranele): (Rom.) watermark, watermarks
Filing crease: creases folded on a postal piece by recipient so that the mail item will fit into a folder
Filing holes: holes punched by the recipient so that the postal piece can be filed
Filipas Impresos: (Sp.) newspaper stamps of Philippines
Filipperne: (also Philippinerne) (Dan.) Philippines
Filipinas, Filip’as: (Sp.) Philippines
Filippine: (It.) Philippines
Filippinerna: (also Philippinerna, Philippinernsk) (Nor., Swed.) the Philippines, Philippine (adj.)
Filippinerne: (also Philippinerne, Philippinernsk) (Dan.) the Philippines
Filippinernsk: (also Philippinerna, Philippinernsk) (Dan., Nor., Swed.) Philippine (adj.)
Filler: stiff piece of paper or cardboard used inside a cover to provided stiffness for a clear cancellation and provide protection against bending of the cover while in the mail stream
Filo di seta: (It.) silk thread
Fils: Abu Dhabi, Bahrain currency unit
Final bid price: Hammer price
Fina marginaler: (Swed.) full margins, cmplete margins
Final master proof: combination of all separations to produce the complete design in photogravure or offset printing
Finanzstempel: (Ger.) revenue cancel. Fincastle, Va. Paid 10: Confederate Postmasters’ Provisionals
Finbatt-UNDOF: Finnish Battalion, United Nations Disengagement Force serving in the Golan Heights, 1979-93
Finchley Local delivery: United Kingdom strike local post, 1971
Finder’s fee: a fee paid to a broker or agent referring philatelic material for direct sale to a philatelic dealer, or for consignment to a philatelic auctioneer. The “Finder’s Fee” for this third party normally is a standard 5% of the purchase price or, in the case of the material being sold at public auction, 5% of the total “hammer price.”
Fine: design may be off center but will not touch any edge, imperforates may have small margins, very early perforated issues may have the perforations cutting into the design, used stamps wil have heavier than usual cancellations; ref.: Scott Catalogue
Fine perforation: perforation with small holes and teeth close together
Fine-Very Fine: stamps may be slightly off center on two sides, perfs are noticeably off center, imperforate stamp design will not touch any edge, some non-US stamps may be printed so that the design is naturally very close to the edges, used stamps will not have a cancellation that detracts fom the design; ref.: Scott Catalogue
Fingerbølstempel: (Dan.) thimble-type cancellation, small diameter circular datestamp
Fingerbøllstempel: (Nor.) thimble-type cancellation., small diameter circular datestamp
Finger Lakes Steamboating: organized Dec. 15, 1819, stopped 1870, had a monopoly in carrying the mail on Cayuga Lake, N.Y
Fingerbølstempel: (Dan.) thimble-type cancellation
Finland: northern Europe on Gulfs of Bothia and Finland, official name of postal administration: Suomen Posti Oy currency: 100 kopecks = 1 ruble, 100 pennis = 1 markka, 100 cents = 1 euro (2002) 1809- Dec. 1917: former grand duchy of Imperial Russia, 1856, March 3: No.1, 5 kopecks blue, first stamps issued under Russian Empire, 1889: name on stamps in Russian instead of Finnish, 1891: Russian czar Alexander III decreed that all mail from Finland had to be franked with the dot-in-circle issue, (in four corners of the stamps), 1901: Nicholas II, of Russia, son of Alexander III decreed that all mail out of Finland had to bear Russian stamps, 1917, Mar. 21:independent state within Russian federation, 1917, Dec. 6: Finland declared independence from Russia, first stamps for independent country, 1918, Feb. 12: joined the UPU, 1922, May 15: first semipostal issued, 1930, Sep 24: first airmail stamp issued, 1941, Nov. 1: military stamps issued, 1941-45: occupied Russian territory of Eastern Karelia, “Karjala” overprint on stamps of Finland, 2002: stamps in markka denominations issued in 1963 or afterwards valid through end of 2011, then change to euros; Aereo O/Y, Äland Islands, Aunus, Autopaketti, Ingermanland, North; Karelia, Eastern, Kenttäpostia
Finlande: (Fr.) Finland
Finlandez: (Rom) Finnish (adj.)
Finlandia: (It., Sp.) Finland
Finn: (Hung.) Finn
Finnland: (Ger., Ice.) Finland
Finnorszag: (Hung.) Finland
Finn Valley & West Donegal Railway: Ireland local post
Finn Valley Railway Company: Ireland local post
Fino: (It., Sp.) fine quality, a state of excellence
Finsk: (Dan, Nor., Swed.) Finnish (adj.)
Finska Jernvägens Post Kupéexped: (Swed.) “Finnish Railway Postoffice coach” postmark
Finske skeppspost: (Swed.) Finnish ship mail (ship post)
Finske skibspost: (Dan.) Finnish ship mail (ship post)
Finske skipspost: (Nor.) Finnish ship mail (ship post)
Finsko: (Czech.) Finland
Finsky: (Czech.) Finnish
Finsterwalde: (Ger.) Germany 1945-46 local post, town or area in former Soviet-occupied East Germany
Finwell Despatch Service: United Kingdom strike local post, 1971
Fiolavá: (Czech.) violet, purple (color)
Fioletowy: (Pol.) violet (color)
Fiolett: (Nor.) violet (color)
Fiolettblå: (Nor.) violet-blue (color)
Fiolettbrun: (Nor.) violet-brown (color)
Fiore: (It.) flower (thematic)
F I P: Federation Internationale de Philatelie; International Federation of Philately, the group that sets rules and standards for international exhibitions, founded in Paris, 1926
FIPCO: Federation Internationale de la Philatelie Constructive as a topical group, founded in 1950, merged with the FIP in 1964
F I P E X: Fifth International Philatelic Exhibition, held in New York City, April 28-May 6, 1956
F I P O: Federation of Olympic Philately
Fire: (Dan.) four (number)
Firearms Transfer Tax: inscription and overprint on U. S. Internal Revenue Service tax stamps for special classes of firearms, such as machine guns; 1917 to date
Fireblokk: (Dan.) block-of-4
Fire Hundre: (Nor.) four-hundred (number)
Firenze: Florence, Italy, allied occupation, local post, 1944
Firestripe: (Nor.) strip-of-4
Firma: (Sp.) signature, marks of genuineness on backs of stamps
Firmato: (It.) Expertise
Firmenfreistempel: (Ger.) company meter marking
Firs: (Dan.) eighty (number)
First acceptance: first airmail dispatch from a specified origin on an existing route ro service
First aerial Post/1911/U.P. Exhibition Allhabad: Aeroplane mail, first
First Bureau Issue: first set of definitive stamps to be printed by the BEP, 1894
First cachet: the very first cachet commercially produced by a cachetmaker
First Class Card, Presorted: US nondenominated stamp, valued 15¢, placed on sale Mar. 17, 1995
First Class Mail: a class of mail including letters, postcards and postal cards with all matter sealed or otherwise closed against inspection
First-class USA: 1: flower; U. S. non-denominated postage stamp, value 34¢, issued Dec. 15, 2000. 2: flag and farm; U. S. non-denominated postage stamp, value 34¢, issued Dec. 15, 2000
First day: the day on which a stamp is first officially sold by the Post Office
First day ceremony program: special items created for distribution to guests at first-day ceremonies
First day cover: a newly issued stamp affixed to an envelope and postmarked on the first day of sale at a city designated by the Postal Service
First Day Objects (FDO): various non-philatelic objects to which a stamp and first day cancel was applied
First day of issue (FDOI): the day on which a stamp is initially placed on sale by postal authorities
First day of issue office: a post office authorized to sell a new postage item on the first day of sale
First day of rate: postmark denoting the first day of usage of a new postal rate
First direct flight: first flight without an intermediate landing
First flight: initial flight of airline, route, or aircraft carrying official mail for the first time
First flight cover (FFC): an envelope bearing a cancellation and usually having a special descriptive cachet affixed which has been at the point of origin and carried on a first flight opening a new air mail route
First Foreign Trade Week: overprint on stamps of Philippines
First international rocket flight USA-Mexico: triangular label to commemorate the 1936 event
First issued: date when a philatelic item was first released to the public
First Issue of Revenue Stamps: US issues 1862-1871 to help pay for the Civil War
First Trans-Atlantic Air Post April, 1919: overprint on stamps of Newfoundland for transport on H.G. Hawker’s unsuccessful attempt to be the first crew to fly across the Atlantic Ocean; the crew and mail were rescued
F I S A: Fédération International des Sociétés Aérophilateliques (International Federation of Aerophilatelic Societies)
Fiscal: non-postal revenue or tax stamp
Fiscal cancellation: a cancellation applied to a stamp by pen, indelible pencil or rubber stamp, and used for revenue, rather than postal purposes. This usually reduces the market value of the stamp considerably
Fiscally cancelled: a stamp available for both postal and revenue purposes which has been used in connection with the fiscal charge, is known as fiscally used or cancelled, to distinguish it from similar stamps being postally used
Fiscal-postal stamp: a stamp valid for prepayment of postage and for revenue purposes
Fiscal stamps: stamps intended to collect taxes, fees and duties for the revenue as opposed to prepay postage; Revenue stamps
Fiscal year: U.S. 12-month period uses for bookkeeping purposes; starts three months ahead of the calendar year
Fiscaux-postaux: (Fr.) “fiscal post” stamps intended to collect taxes, fees and duties for the revenue as opposed to prepay postage
Fisch: (Ger.) fish (thematic)
Fisher’s Express: private parcel firm serviced Boston and Stoughton, Mass., used a label; year unknown
Fishing stamps: state revenue stamps that show prepayment of fees for fishing; may be all inclusive or limited only to certain types of fish
Fiskal annullering: (Dan.) fiscal cancellation, revenue cancellation
Fiskalmarke: (Ger.) revenue stamp
Fiske & Co’s Express: private mail firm serviced eastern U.S. and Canadian towns; used a corner card; 1854?
Fiske & Rice’s Express: U.S. local express label,1851-54
Fitch’s Express: private parcel firm serviced Chicago, Ill area; used a label, 1896-99?
Fitz & Choate’s Express: private mail firm serviced Boston and Ipswich, Mass., used a label, year unknown
Fitz’s Express: private mail firm serviced Boston and Ipswich, Mass., used labels, year unknown
Fiume: city and area on the Adriatic Sea; now called Rijeka; currency: 100 filler = 1 korona, 100 centesimi = 1 corona (1919), 100 centesimi = 1 lira 1870: stamps of Hungary used, 1871: Austrian stamps used, then stamps of Hungary used again 1915: stamps of Hungary overprinted Fiume for Italian annexation, 1918-19: Allied occupation, 1918, Dec.2: No.1, 10 filler rose, stamps of Hungary overprinted Fiume; first postage due stamp, 1919: first semipostal stamp issued, issued by Italian Free Corps, 1919-24: part of Austro-Hungarian Empire, 1920, Nov. 12: independent state, 1921: first overprinted stamp as a free state, separate overprints for the Carnero, Arbe and Veglia islands, 1924, Jan. 27 – 45: Fiume annexed to Italy, Italian stamps used, 1941, May: Fiume -Kupa, stamps of Yugoslavia overprinted “Zofk-Zona Occupata Fiumano Kupa” Fiume Kupa Occupied Zone, then Italian stamps used, 1943, Sept. 8: Repubblica Sociale Italiana, Italian Social Republic stamps of Italy used, 1945, May: Yugoslav occupation “Fiume/Rijeka,” 1945-46, July: provisional overprint on stamps of Italy for Fiume, 1947: annexed to Yugoslavia
Fiume: now known as Rijeka, Yugoslavia
Five and ten: referred to the 1847 five and ten cent U.S. stamps
Five Cent Parcel Delivery Co.: private parcel firm serviced Boston, Mass., area; used stamps, 1890-91?
Five Cent Parcel Despatch Co.: private parcel firm serviced Boston, Mass., area; used stamps, 1893?
Five-digit presort: bulk mail presorted to five Zip Code digits and bundled
F J: Fiji, country code as used by UPU
Fjorten: (Dan.) fourteen (number)
FJV: Ferdinand J. Voight, BEP employee initials, 1906-1928; Plate Finisher, Siderographer
FK: 1. Falkland Islands (Malvinas), country code as used by the UPU, 2: fluorescent ink
F.K.S. Emergency P.S.: United Kingdom strike local post, 1971
F L: 1: precedes the European postal code on addresses in Liechtenstein, such as FL-9490 Vaduz. 2: auction abbreviation for topical flowers. 3: USPS abbreviation for Florida. 4: USPS abbreviation in address for number of floor in building
FLA: Frank L. Adrian, BEP employee initials, 1906-1928; Plate Finisher, Siderographer
Fla.: abbreviation for Florida prior to Zip Code usage
Flachdruck: (Ger.) flat plate printing
Fläck: (Swed.) blemish, blot, spot
Fladtryk: (Dan.) Tryk – Flad
Flag cancel: cancellation with a flag as the obliterator
Flaggenstempel: (Ger.) flag cancel
Flag of Truce mail: postal route between the North and South during the American Civil War in operation from Sept. 1861 to Feb. 1862
Flags: refers to the series of 13 U.S. stamps issued in 1943-44 picturing the flags of the overrun countries
Flamme(s): (Fr.) duplex cancel, slogan cancel
Flanders, A. H M.D.: U.S. private die medicine proprietary stamp
Flap seal: the design on the flap of an envelope, usually an embossed design
Flashline Postal Service: United Kingdom strike local post, 1971
Flat: 1: USPS term for large size mail that is sorted without bending. 2: format in which finished coil stamps of 100 are shipped to the Post Office
Flat-bed printing: printing process done be pressure applied to the paper on a plate held flat on the bed of a press
Flat plate: a stamp printed on a flat-plate or flat-bed press; this process is slower than the rotary press method of printing from curved plates
Flat plate imperforate coil stamps: U.S. stamps issued in coils of 500 or 1,000, made for imperforate sheets of the regular issues, saved in strips of four or longer to authenticate
Flat Plate Press: a printing press that prints from a flat plate vs a curved plate; used up to 1915 to print stamps
Flavell’s Express: private parcel firm serviced firms in Mass., used a label; year unknown
Flaw: a blemish in the stamp design that occurred during manufacture and may also be considered a variety
Flèche: (Fr.) arrow, point, dash
Fleck: (Ger.) spot, stain
Fleet Mail Office (FMO): Canadian office in either Halifax or Victoria that handles mail for Canadian naval personnel
Fleet post office: military postal facilities for serving men and women in the naval forces, staffed by military personnel
Fleet ship letter: British term for letters posted on board ships and bearing a censor cancellation; may be stamped “Received from H.M. Ships.”
Fleet Street Strike: United Kingdom strike local post, 1971
Flekk: (Nor.) (a) blemish, blot, spot
Fleming Bros.: U.S. private die medicine proprietary stamp
Flemish and Walloon Legions: Belgium, German occupation 1941-42. (Scott not listed)
Flensburg: German local post, 1945-48
Flera: (Swed.) several
Flere: (Dan., Nor.) several
Flerfarget: (Nor.) multicolored
Flerfärgstryck: (Swed.) Tryck – Flerfärgs
Fleur: (Fr.) flower (thematic)
Fleuron: (Fr.) a circular date handstamp with a floral design element
Flexography: a type off letter press or relief printing that utilizes rubber or plastic plates that are molded around a printing cylinder; used mainly for stamped envelopes and precancels
Flier: US canceling machine by International Postal Supply Company, introduced in 1888, since in service during 2000
Flight cover: an envelope actually flown in the vehicle being commemorated
Flight leg: a point-to-point dispatch or segment of a longer route
Flix: local post, Spanish civil war, Republican, 1937
Floating off: term used when stamps are placed on top of water, face up, to remove any dirt, old hinges, etc, on back side
Floating plate numbers: plate block numbers whose positions vary from pane to pane creating a large number of combinations
Floating safe stamp: special stamp issued by the Netherlands and Colonies in connection with specially constructed safes, installed on deck, which were designed to slide to slide into the sea and float in the event of the ship sinking, 1921
Flocculate: particles of pigment flocculate, or join together when inks dry
Flocked: powdered cloth adhered to the cachet on an envelope in the desired design
Flødefarvet: (Dan.) cream (color)
Flood relief: surcharge on stamps of Bhutan, 1964, 1968
Flor: (Sp.) flower (thematic)
Flora and Fauna stamps: series of stamps started in 1990
Flor de Lis: (Sp.) fleur-de-lis, used as an overprint on French stamps in 1872
Florence: also known as Firenze, Italy
Florida: 1: Uruguay air mail issue for flights between Montevideo and Florida, Aug. 25, 1925. 2: U.S. territory March 30, 1822; state March 3, 1845; ceded by Spain, Feb. 22, 1819. 3: Republic of West Florida, Territory of East Florida
Florida Express: 1: possible local post or express company label. 2: S. Allan Taylor label
Florin: currency unit in Austria offices in Lombardy-Venetia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Hungary, Montenegro, Aruba, and the Netherlands Antilles
Flota Argentina de Navegacion de Ultramar: (Sp.) Argentine Overseas Fleet, handstamp used on ship covers
Fløtefarget: (Nor.) cream (color)
Flower: common theme on stamps of the French Community of Nations, 1958-9
Flown: carried on air flight and bearing evidence of being flown
Flown cover: cover that has been carried by air, also known as flight cover
Flown cover, official: cover that has been carried by air with postal authorization, bearing governmental agency markings or official overprinted/issued stamps
Floyd’s Penny Post: U.S. local post, Chicago, Ill. 1860.
FLS: auction abbreviation for Folded Letter Sheet (with no contents)
Flt: auction abbreviation for fault
Fluchtlingshilfe Montenegro: (Ger.) overprint on stamps of Jugoslavia for Montenegro, German occupation semipostal; 1944
Flüechtlines hiles-aktion: (Ger.) label for donations to refugee aid station
Flugblatt: (Ger.) propaganda leaflet
Flugfrimerki: (Ice.) Iceland, airmail
Flugpost: (Ger.) airmails
Flugpost Ausgabe: (Ger.) airmail issue
Flugpostbrief: (Ger.) cover carried by air and postmarked at point of origin, departure or intermediate points on the route
Flugpostmarke: (Ger.) stamp issued primarily for airmail use
Fluorescent: an optical brightener that emits a distinctive, intense glow when viewed with either a long or short wave ultra-violet light; fluorescent tubes in fixtures can emit damaging quantities of UV light that can discolor stamps and covers
Fluorescent coated paper (FCP): paper with material that causes the paper to fluoresce when exposed to ultraviolet light
Fluorescent ink: ink that glows brightly when its luminescent ingredients are activated by ultraviolet light, and which ceases to glow when the light is extinguished
Fluorescerende: (Nor.) (with) fluorescence
Fluoreszierend: (Ger.) Fluorescent
Flushing & North Side Railroad Express Co.: express mail and parcel service on the Flushing and North Side Railroad in New York City; issued labels, 1870-74?
Flygbolag : (Swed.) airline
Flygpaketmärken: (Swed.) air mail parcel post stamps
Flygplat: (Swed.) airport
Flygpost: (Swed.) air mail
Flygpostkuvert: (Swed.) airmail envelope
Flying mail car: Fairchild plane designed to carry mail from New York to San Francisco, made first trip Oct. 1, 1946, sorting mail while in flight
Flyktingläger: (Swed.) refugee camp
Flyktinglägerpost: (Swed.) refugee camp mail
Flyktningpost: (Nor.) refugee camp
Flyktningleirpost: (Nor.) refugee camp mail
Flynn’s Penny Post: unknown origin label
Flypost: (Nor.) airmail, Luftpost
Flyselskap: (Nor.) airline
Flyspeck philately: term used for the microscopic study of stamps such as extra dots in the design, or a slight break in the frame line, etc
Flyttebrev: (Swed.) Swedish term for redirected or forwarded mail to a new address
Flyveselskab: (Dan.) airline
Flyvemaskine: (Dan.) airplane
F M: 1: USPS abbreviation for Federated States of Micronesia. 2: Micronesia (Federated States of); country code as used by the UPU
F.M: (Fr.) “Franchise Militaire.” France military overprint/inscription, permits free franking, 1901
F M O: Fleet Mail Office
F.N.: watermark, Federation of Nigeria on Nigerian issues after independence
FNC: Fairfax N. Coackley, BEP employee initials, 1906-1928; Plate Finisher, Siderographer
F.N.F.L: (Fr.) “Forces Navales Francaises Libres,” Free French Naval Forces, French colonies overprint
F.N.M.T. -B: (Sp.) Fabrica Nacional de Moneda y Timbre, “National Printer of Money and Stamps,”inscription on stamps commemorating the Barcelona Philatelic Exhibition in 1960
FO: Scott Catalogue listing for foldover, where a foldover of the stamp sheet during printing may block ink from appearing on the
F O: 1: precedes the European postal code on addresses in Faröe Islands, such as FO-159, Torshavn. 2: Faröe Islands, country code as used by the UPU. 3: catalog abbreviation for currency in Hungary (Forint)
Fogazatt: (Hung.) perforated, perforation
Fogg’s Express: parcel firm serviced Boston and Newburyport, Mass.; issued a label; 1888
Foglietto: (It.) sheet of a stamp or stamps, surrounded with a paper margin issued for a specific event or purpose, souvenir sheet
Foglio: (It.) sheet (of stamps)
Foil stamps: stamps printed on paper with a facing of metal foil
Fold: 1. printing variety caused by the paper being folded when the ink was applied during the printing process. 2. em>(Dan.) crease (in a stamp or cover)
Folded business postcard: aka Commercial Correspondence Postcard and / or Self-Sticking Postcards (Ger.); Hygienic Postcards (UK); the desired address is typed above a fold mark, then the message is entered permitting the sender to seal the one to three strips of adhesive on the back of the card, fold it to show the address on the front and mail it; used mainly in Europe, Africa and the Middle East. Approved for international use at the UPU 1910 meeting in Spain and officially discontinued in 1984, although known to have been manufactured as late as 2002 in Germany.Folded letter: one piece of paper with the message written on both sides, folded with a blank space to the outside, which is used for the address
Folded transfer: in lithography, when a transfer, used in building up the design on the printing base, becomes folded and part of the stamp’s design show signs of the fold
Foldover: accidental folds made at some point in the production of the material
Foldvar, SS: steamship marking of the Danube Steam Navigation Company built about 1850’s for Middle Danube lines, also served on lower Danube in the 1860s
Folkerepbulik Kina: (Dan.) Peoples Republic of China
Folkstone Letter Deliv.: United Kingdom strike local post, 1971
Folus: India Faridkot currency unit
Fomento-Aero-Comunicaciones: (Sp.) surcharge on air post postal tax stamps of Ecuador
Foncé(e): (Fr.) deep, dark (color)
Fond: (Fr.) background
Fonden’s Letter Delivery: United Kingdom strike local post, 1971
Fondo: (Sp.) bottom margin
Fondon: local post, Spanish civil war, Republican, 1937
Fondo unido: (Sp.) background same color as design;1854 issue
Fondul Aviatei: (Rom.) Aviation Fund, Romania semi-postal inscription
Fonopost: recording of a voice transmitted by mail; shown at UPU Congress at Buenos Aires April 1, 1937, sender had voice recorded on an unbreakable record which was mailed in a sealed envelope
Font: a certain style and size of type
Foochow, German: China diagonally overprinted on a stamp of Germany, surcharged “5 pf” for use in the German post office at Foochow, June 1, 1900
Food Orders: stamps issued by U.S. Department of Agriculture, for welfare recipients
Food stamp: U.S. Dep’t. of Agriculture certificate used for purchase of food items; also known as food coupon
Forato: (It.) rouletted
Förband: (Swed.) joined
Forbin: Catalogue de Timbres-Fiscaux, 1915 (worldwide revenue stamp catalog)
Forbundet: (Dan.) joined
Forbundsrepublik: (Dan., Nor.) federal republic
Forbundsrepublik Tyskland: (Dan.) Federal Republic of Germany
Forbundsrepublikken Tyskland: (Nor.) Federal Republic of Germany
Forcados River: rubber stamp cancel on stamp of Great Britain for Royal Niger Company, 1894
Force majeure: (Fr.) causes beyond control
Forces Francaise Libres / Levant: (Fr.) overprint on stamps of Syria, Free French Forces, 1942-43
Forces’ Postal Service: United Kingdom strike local post, 1971
Foreign: term used by collectors to describe stamps of all nations except their own
Foreign Affairs, Dept. of: inscription on officials of Hawaii
Foreign air mail (FAM): international contract airmail route flown by a U. S. airline under contract with the US Post Office to carry mail from a point in the USA to a foreign country and vice versa
Foreign entry: when original transfers are erased incompletely from a plate, they can appear with new transfers of a different design which are then entered on the plate
Foreign mail marking: designs used to indicate mail sent from New York City to foreign countries during 1871-77; about 200 different handstamps were used during that period
Foreign mail stamps: stamps issued by some countries especially for use on mail addressed to other nations
Foreign stamp: when used by an American, a description of stamp issued by a postal administration other than that of the U. S
Foreign transfer: plate variety where bits of the design elements are visible on the finished stamp are those of a different stamp design
Forente Nasjoner: (Nor.) United Nations
Forente Stater: (Nor.) United States
Forerunner: a stamp from one nation used in another area before the new nation had stamps of its own
Fores: (Sp.) local post, Spanish civil war, Republican, 1937
Forfalskning: (Dan., Nor.) forgery, counterfeit, Uægte.
Förfalskning: (Swed.) counterfeit, fake, forgery
Førfilateli: (Nor.) pre-philatelic
Förfilateli: (Swed.) pre-philatelic
Forgalmi Idotartam: (Hung.) period of time of postal validity
Forgery: reproduction of a genuine postage stamp made to defraud the stamp collector and/or the postal administration
Forgery, autograph: someone other than the person signing that person’s name; in stamp collecting, it does not matter if it was done with or without permission, since it is not the original of the signer’s name
Forgery busting: term applied to the ability to spot and identify the forger’s “signature” or trade mark
Forgery, propaganda: made for air-dropped leaflets during a war, hopefully to be considered as normal mail in the country where mail was dropped
Forgery signature: identification of the work of a forger as detected from certain characteristics of his previous forgeries
Forgottonia: overprinted U.S. stamps for proposed republic in Western Illinois
Forjadores de America: (Sp.) “Explorers of America,” on stamps issued Oct. 12, Spain’s National Day
Förkortningar: (Swed.) abbreviations
Førkrigspost: (Nor.) pre-war post, pre-war mails
Formalities, Administrative: public services; French Colony revenue inscription
Format: general physical characteristics of a stamp such as size, shape, dimensions, etc
Formato: (It.) size
Formosa: China, Republic of, Taiwan, Nationalist China. Formosa, China: Formosa local post, 1887-88
Formosa: Japanese occupation, 1945 (Scott- Japan Taiwan)
Formose: (Fr.) Formosa
Fornede Arabiske Republic: (Dan.) United Arab Republic
Forneden: (Dan.) below
Fornede Nationer: (Dan.) United Nations
Fornede Stater: (Dan.) United States
Foro di Spillo: (It.) pin-hole
Føroyar: (Dan.) Faroe Islands
Foroven: (Dan.) above
Førr: (Nor.) forty (number)
Førstedagsbrev: (Dan., Nor.) first day cover, FDC
Förstadagsbrev: (Swed.) first day cover, FDC
Førstedagsstempeletebrev: (Dan., Nor.) first day of issue cancellation cover
Forsyth, Ga. Paid 10: Confederate Postmasters’ Provisionals
Fort cancellations: markings originating in Army forts
For Testing Purposes Only: inscription on self-adhesive dummy stamp used in Automated Teller Machines
Fondul Aviatei: (Rom.) Aviation Fund, Romania semi-postal inscription
Foochow, German: China diagonally overprinted on a stamp of Germany, surcharged “5 pf” for use in the German post office at Foochow, June 1, 1900
Formula Cards: postal cards issued by the Post offices of several countries before the issuance of regular postal cards and without an imprinted stamp
Forside: (Dan.) front (side)
Førstedagsbrev: (Dan.) first day cover
Førstedagsstempel: (Nor.) first day of issue cancel
Førsteflyvning: (Dan.) first flight
Førstetryk: (Dan.) Tryk – Første
Forte valeur: (Fr.) high denomination
Fort Jameson: now known as Chipata, Zambia
Fort Lamy: now known as N’Djamene, Chad
Fort Meyers: bogus, Florida, U.S. local post, mid-1990s
Forty-sevens: the U.S. 5-cent and 10-cent stamps issued in 1847
Forward: redirection of mail to recipient’s new address
Forwarder’s handstamp: a postal marking indicating passage to and from one country to another, used in the Venetian Republic by Austria in1797, may be first usage
Forwarding: the sending of a mail piece to an address other than the one on the cover
Forwarding agents: collecting and routing agents for international mails; many added their own markings to mail they handled
Forwarding markings: handstamps with words “Forwarded by” and name of firm, indicating forwarding to or from a post office or ship, usually found on covers prior to international mail agreements
Fosforescente: (Sp.) phosphorescent
Fósforos: (Sp.) matches, revenue inscription
Fotocalcografia: (It.) photogravure
Foua: Egypt, Interpostal seals, 1880-82
Four Bar Cancel: handstamp made up of a circular postmark and four bars
Four pence: surcharge on Bahamas 1883 issue
Four State Bar Code: each bar in the 31-digit code cane be in one of the four different shapes or sizes
Fourth Bureau Issue: series of stamps issued in 1922, includes sheets, coils and booklets
Fourth Class Mail: includes U.S. domestic parcel post, including bound printed matter and films
Fowle, Seth W. & Son, J.P. Dinsmore: U.S. private die medicine proprietary stamp
Foxing: type of mildew damage which appears as tan or brown spots on surface of old paper; often insect or bacteria waste
F P: 1: auction abbreviation for topical famous people. 2: Fiscal Philatelist (Great Britain)
“F.P.” handstamp: Copenhagen Foot Post
FPA: Filatelia Pan-American
F P O: 1: Fleet Post Office postmark used for America’s servicemen attached to the U.S. Navy. 2: on a British origin cover, it indicates Field Post Office
F Press: BEP webfed offset-intaglio press that produces four color offset, three color intaglio, 1991
FR: international postal code for Faeroe Islands
F R: French West Africa overprint on stamps of Mauritania and Senegal, 1943-44
F.R.: France, country code as used by the UPU
Fra: (Ice., Swed. ) “from” postal marking indicates country of mail origin
Frachtstempelmarke: (Ger.) bill of lading tax stamp
Fractional control: key letter separated by a rule or bar from the year numerals, found on stamps of Great Britain
Fractional currency: paper money issued by the U. S. Treasury during the Civil War, due to shortage of currency, reproducing postage stamps; Postage currency
Fractional rates: early U.S. stampless covers had rates of 6 1/4, 18 3/4, which is old Spanish and Mexican reales, etc., which were considered as legal tender due to shortage of U.S. fractional currency
Fractional stamps: stamps cut into halves, thirds, quarters, etc to mark a corresponding fraction of the original face value
Fractured FDC: covers with additional markings that proved they passed through the mail
Fragment d’enveloppe: (Fr.) cut square
Fragmento: (Sp.) cut square, fragment, piece
Fragtbrev: (Dan.) baggage tag for use on Postfærge “Postal ferry”; Postfærge
Frama: 1: adhesive postage label dispensed by an electric coin-operated machine producing postally valid labels of any denomination. 2: name of machine manufactured by Frama firm of Switzerland
Frame: the outer printed border of a stamp design
Frame bars: the tall bars at the beginning and end of the bar code that alert the bar code machine that a bar code is passing through and ending
Framed mark: box or octagonal frame around “Ship Letter” or other instructional marking on mail
Frame-only essay: a print of the frame portion of the stamp, without the design or vignette section; classified as an essay because it is not complete or approved
Frammento: (It.) cut square, piece, fragment
Framsida: (Swed.) front (side)
Från: (Dan.) “from” postal marking indicates country of mail origin
Franc: Austria overprint, offices in Crete
Franca: (Sp.) 1: overprint on stamps of Peru, used in postal district of Hairez, Peru in 1884. 2: marking on internal mail in Brazil and Mexico to indicate prepaid postage. 3: used in Ecuador, 1866, complicated diamond pattern to prevent washing of stamp for reuse, Ancachs
Franca Alta: (Sp.) now Monterey, California
Francaise: (Fr.) France
Franchaise stamps: : issued to nongovernmental organizations and some private citizens to permit their mail to be delivered without paying postage
Franc de droits: (Fr.) “free of dues” label used on overseas packages meaning that customs duties have been prepaid
France d’Outre-Mer: 1943; French Colonies semi-postal issue
France: western Europe; official name of postal administration: La Poste currency: 100 centimes = 1 franc , 100 cents = 1 euro (2002) 1627: Cardinal Richelieu established postal service between Paris, Dijon, Toulouse, Lyons and Bordeaux, 1849, Jan. 1: No.1, 10 centimes bister, first stamp issued, features Ceres, goddess of the harvest, 1850-71: cancels in diamonds or circles, 1850-76: cancels in dots containing a number for office of dispatch, 1859: first postage due stamp issued, 1870: occupation stamps for Alsace and Lorraine occupation by Germany, replaced by stamps of the German Empire on Jan. 1, 1872, 1876, Jan. 1: joined the UPU, French Overseas Departments included: French Guinea, Guadeloupe, Martinque, Reunion, Mayotte, St. Barthelemy, St. Martin, St. Pierre and Miquelon, Territories included: Bassas da India, Clipperton Island, Crozet Islands, Europa, French Polynesia, French Southern and Antarctic Territories, Glorieuses, Juan de Nova, Kerguelen Islands, New Caledonia, St. Paul and Amsterdam Islands, Terre Adelie, Tromelin, Wallis and Futuna Islands, 1901: military stamps issued, 1914: first semipostal issued, 1916: German stamps surcharged for their Western Military Command, 1916, 1927, June 25: first airmail stamp issued, 1940: occupation stamps for Alsace occupation by Germany, overprint on stamps of Germany, 1940: occupation stamps for Lorraine occupation by Germany, overprinted Lothringen on stamps of Germany, 1944: Allied Military Government of the U.S. and G.B. for civilian use, 1958, Jan.14: official stamps for European Council issued
France: see: Affranch, Alsace, Alsace and Lorraine, Ambulante, Andorre, Anna, Benin
France and Algeria: 1888: joined the UPU, 1907, Oct. 1: changed UPU affiliation to France
France d’Outre-Mer: (Fr.) French overseas colonies, semi-postals, 1943
France libre: (Fr.) “Free France” French Colonies overprint. France Libre
France, Offices in Palestine-Consular Post office in Jerusalem: 1948, Apr. 25: Due to the disruptions caused by the first Arab-Israeli War, the Mandate postal service ceased to function in Jerusalem, 1948, May 5: The French Consulate created a courier service to carry mail to Paris for the benefit of French civilians and businesses; overprints on consular revenues. 1948: Followed by overprints on french definitive stamps, 1949, Jan. 1: service ceased operations
France, Offices in the Turkish Empire: 1885: first stamps for offices in the Levant, Cavalle, Dedeagh, Port Lagos and Vathy
Franchise de Corps Épeditionnaire: (Fr.) label for fund raising for French Volunteer Legion against Bolshevism; sold to raise funds for volunteers to fight with the Germans on the Eastern Front
Franchise militaire (FM): (Fr.) France military overprint/inscription, permits free franking, 1901
Franchise stamps: issued by some governments for private charitable groups entitled to send mail free of postage; Control number
Francia: 1. (It., Sp.) France, stamped on mail from France, about 1870. 2. (Hung.) French
Francia Antarktisz: (Hung.) French Southern and Antarctic Territories
Francia Egyenlitoi Afrika: (Hung.) French Equatorial Africa
Francia Guyana: (Hung.) French Guiana
Francia India : (Hung.) French India
Francia Indokina: (Hung.) French Indochina
Francia Nyugat-Africa: (Hung.) French West Africa
Francia Oceána: (Hung.) French Oceana
Franciaország: (Hung.) France
Francia Polinézia: (Hung.) French Polynesia
Francia Posta: (Hung.) French post
Francia Szomálipart: (Hung.) French Somali Coast
Franciaország Gyarmatai: (Hung.) French colonies
Franciaország Területei: (Hung.) French territories
Francia Posta: (Hung.) French post
Francie: (Czech.) France
Francisco Bertrand: Honduras
Franco: (Sp.) free frank, postpaid
Franco: overprint on stamps of Hungary postage dues for regular use
Franco betalt-stämplar: (Swed.) postage paid cancellations
Francobollo: (It.) postage stamp, free frank
Franco bollo: (Without country name) perforated stamps of Italy, imperforated stamps of Sardinia
Francobollo au francobollo: (It.) stamps on stamps (thematic)
Francobollo di stato: (It.) inscription for official stamps
Francobollo per expresso: (It.) special delivery stamp
Francobolli loo anno: (It.) jubilee (century)
Francobollo commemorativo: (It.) commemorative stamp
Francobollo d’Cenno di Ricevuta: (It.) stamp issued as a prepayment fee as an acknowledgment of receipt of a registered package
Francobollo de governo in esilio: (It.) government in exile
Francobollo di admissione: (It.) admission stamp
Francobollo di franco bollo postale: (It.) (on stamps with crossed keys) Roman States
Francobollo di guerra: (It.) war stamp, stamp issued during war conditions
Francobollo di Posta Aerea: (It.) stamp issued primarily for airmail use
Francobollo di Posta Aerea, semi-officiale: (It.) air mail stamp issued privately, but accepted by the postal agency; the U.S. “Buffalo Balloon” stamp is an example
Francobollo di Posta Militare: (It.) field post stamp
Francobollo di recapito autorizzato per pacco posali: (It.) authorized delivery stamp for parcel post, Italy
Franco Bollo di Stato: (It.) Italy, official
Francobollo di Toscano: (It.) Tuscany
Franco Bollo Giornali Stampe: (It.) newspaper stamps of Italy and Sardinia
Francobollo per lettere in ritardo: (It.) too late stamp
Franco bollo postale: inscription on stamps of Roman States
Franco Bollo Postale per Giornali: (It.) newspaper stamps, Fiume
Franco Bollo Postale Romagne: (It.) Italian States-Romagne
Franco Bollo Postale Toscano: (It.) Italian States-Tuscany
Franco Bollo Provincie Modones: (It.) Italian States-Modena
Francobollo recapito autorizzato per lettera: (It.) authorized delivery stamp for correspondence, Italy
Francobollo ricordo: (It.) commemorative stamp
Franco de Porte: (Sp.) free of charge
Franco Marke: (Ger.) German States-Bremen 1856-60, official free frank
Franco Poste Bollo: (It.) Italian States-Naples, Two Sicilies
Franco Scrisorei: (Rom.) Romania-Moldovia-Walachia, 1862-63, free frank for letter
Franco marke: Bremen, German States
Francophonie: group of nations in which French is a first, official or culturally significant language
Francouzská Guyana: (Czech.) French Guiana
Francouzská Polynézie: (Czech.) French Polynesia
Francouzsky: (Czech.) French (adj.)
Francouzsky Maroko: (Czech.) French Morocco
Franco vignettes: Switzerland, used by postal authorities for official notification and forms, 1911-1970
Frandia: Donald Evans bogus issue, 1960-70
Frank: 1: a stamp, mark or signature that indicates payment of postage on a piece of mail. 2: mark on a cover which is authorized to be carried without postage charge due to position of sender; Free frank. 3. currency unit of Albania
Frankatura: 1. (Pol.) machine cancel. 2. (Czech.) franking (of postage stamp[s])
Frankaturgültig: (Ger.) valid for postage
Franked mail: 1: mail sent without postage prepayment by various officials. 2: a type of prepayment as in “folded letter franked with pair of 5¢ Franklin 1847.”
Frankeer Zegel Cent: 1: currency overprint on marine insurance stamps of Netherlands, Curacao, postally valid. 2: currency overprint on fiscal issue, Surinam, postally valid
Frankenau: German local post, World War II
Frankenberg: German Democratic Republic local post, 1946
Franking: any postal payment with or without stamps
Franking privilege: right of government officials to send letters and packages free of postage
Frank, L.: Private die match proprietary stamps
Frankfurter Packetfahrt-Gesellschaft: Frankfurt, Germany local post, 1890-96
Frankierung: (Ger.) franking
Franklin; also known as Frankland: a “state” formed in August 1784 in the northwest corner of what is currently Tennessee; stopped its existence in 1788; never officially recognized
Franklin, Benjamin: 1737: British crown appointed him Postmaster of Philadelphia, 1753: Franklin and William Hunter became co-Postmasters General for the American Colonies, 1774: British Crown dismissed Franklin due to his revolutionary activities, 1775: named Postmaster General of the United Colonies by the Continental Congress
Franklin City Despatch Post: Bouton’s Manhattan Express
Franklin, N.C. Paid 5: Confederate Postmasters’ Provisionals
Frankreich: (Ger.) France
Frankeerzegel: Netherlands Antilles, Surinam overprint
Frankokuvert: (Swed.) stamped envelope (postal stationery)
Frankovany: (Czech.) franked (with)
Frankreich: (Ger.) France
Frankrig: (Dan.) France (adj.)
Frankrike: (Nor., Swed.) France
Franquedo S. Buenava: receiving handstamp authenticated delivery of a registered letter used by missions in California and Mexico City
Franqueo: Arequipa provisional issue of Peru
Franqueo deficiente: Ecuador, Nicaragua, Paraguay, and Salvador postage due inscription
Franqueo oficial: Ecuador, Guatemala official postage
Franqueo pagado: (Sp.) postage paid, used by Ministry of Communications
Franquicia: (Sp.) Spanish franchise stamps
Franquicia Postal, Espana Correos Ejercito Expeditionary Melilla 1893: (Sp.) “Postal Franchise, Spanish Posts Expeditionary Army Melilla 1893” labels, produced for each regiment and fleet
Fraser & Co.: 1848-49; Carriers’ Stamps
Franqueo: (Sp.) postage, franking of a letter
Franqueo Deficiente: (Sp.) postage dues
Franqueo insuficiente: (Sp.) insufficient postage
Franqueo Espana: (Sp.) Carlist issues of Spain, 1874-50
Franqueo impresos: (Sp.) Spain, newspaper stamps
Franqueo mecanico: (Sp.) meter frank
Franqueo mixto: (Sp.) mixed franking
Franqueo Oficial: (Sp.) official postage
Franquicia Postal: (Sp.) mark, label or stamp indicating exempt from postage, 1881
Fransk: (Dan., Nor., Swed.) French (adj.)
Fransk Ækvatorial Afrika: (Dan.) French Equatorial Africa
Franska Ekvatorialafrika: (Swed.) French Equatorial Africa
Franska Guiana: (Dan., Nor., Swed.) French Guiana
Franska Guinea: (Dan., Nor., Swed.) French Guinea
Franska Indien: (Dan., Nor., Swed.) French India
Franska Indokina: (Dan., Nor., Swed.) French Indochina
Franska Kongo: (Swed.) French Congo
Franska Nigerområde: (Dan., Nor., Swed.) French Niger Territory
Fransk Antarktis: (Dan.) French Southern and Antarctic Territiories
Franska Oceanien: (Dan., Nor., Swed.) French Oceana
Franska Polynesien: (Dan., Nor., Swed.) French Polynesia
Franska Sudan: (Swed.) French Sudan
Fransk Congo: (Dan.) French Congo
Franske kolonier: (Dan.) French Colonies
Franske zone: (Dan.) French Zone
Franske skeppspost: (Swed.) French ship mail (ship post)
Franske skibspost: (Dan.) French ship mail (ship post)
Franske skipspost: (Nor.) French ship mail (ship post)
Franske Sone: (Nor.) French Zone
Franske Zon: (Swed.) French Zone
Franske Zone: (Dan.) French Zone
Fransk Guiana: (Dan.) French Guiana
Fransk Indien: (Dan.) French India
Fransk Indokina: (Dan.) French Indochina
Fransk Nigerområde: (Dan.) French Niger Territory
Fransk Oceanien: (Dan.) French Oceana
Fransk Polynesien: (Dan.) French Polynesia
Fransk Post av Egypten: (Nor., Swed.) French Post Offices in Egypt
Fransk Post av Kina: (Nor., Swed.) French Post Offices in China
Fransk Post av Kreta: (Nor., Swed.) French Post Offices in Crete
Fransk Post av Tyrkiet: (Nor., Swed.) French Post Offices in the Turkish Empire (Levant)
Fransk Post av Utländsk: (Swed.) French Post Offices Abroad
Fransk Post av Udlandsk: (Nor.) French Post Offices Abroad
Fransk Post av Zanzibar: (Swed.) French PostOffices in Zanzibar
Fransk Post i Egypten: (Dan.) French Post Offices in Egypt
Fransk Post i Kina: (Dan.) French Post Offices in China
Fransk Post i Kreta: (Dan.) French Post Offices in Crete
Fransk Post i Tyrkiet: (Dan.) French Post Offices in the Turkish Empire ( Levant)
Fransk Post i Udlandet: (Dan.) French Post Offices Abroad
Fransk Post i Zanzibar: (Dan.) French Post Offices in Zanzibar
Fransk Somalikust: (Swed.) French Somali Coast
Fransk Somalikyst: (Dan., Nor., Swed.) French Somali Coast
Fransk Sudan: (Dan.) French Sudan
Fransk Västafrika: (Swed.) French West Africa
Fransk Västindien: (Swed.) French West Indies
Fransk Vestafrika: (Dan., Nor.) French West Africa
Fransk Vestindien: (Dan., Nor.) French West Indies
Frantuzesc: (Rom) French (adj.)
Från utlandet: (Swed.) Swedish registration lab; used until the 1970s
Franz Ferdinand, S.S.: steamship marking of the Danube Steam Navigation Company built in the 1840s for middle and upper Danube lines
Franz Joseph Land: bogus Russian area Republic; local post overprint and stamps; 1872: labels for a North Pole Expedition
Franz Josef, S.S.: steamship marking of the Danube Steam Navigation Company built about 1850’s for Levant lines
Französisch Aquatorial Afrika: (Ger.) French Equatorial Africa
Französisch-Geblete in der Antarktis: (Ger.) French Southern and Antarctic Territories
Französisch Guiana: (Ger.) French Guiana
Französisch Guinea: (Ger.) French Guinea
Französisch Kongo: (Ger.) French Congo
Französisch-Polynesien: (Ger.) French Polynesia
Französisch Somaliküste: (Ger.) French Somali Coast
Französisch Sudan: (Ger.) French Sudan
Frappé (e): (Fr.) strike, struck
Fraudulent: rubber stamp on covers for mail returned to sender because the receiving address was involved in illegal operation, such as a lottery
Frazer & Co.: U.S. local post, Cincinnati, Ohio, 1845-51
Frazionato: (It.) bisected parcel post stamp that is cut in half; postage half goes on the package, the other half is the receipt and shows the amount of postage paid
Franz-Joseph Land: 1: North Pole bogus issue for Fiala-Ziegler Polar Expedition, 1903-05. 2: 2002, Jan. 14: illegal labels, purporting to be stamps, Russian Federation report to the UPU; not valid for postage
Französisch Aquatorial Afrika: (Ger.) French Equatorial Africa
Französische Besetzungsgebiet: (Ger.) French occupation
Französisch Hinterindien: (Ger.) Indo-China
Französische Kolonien: (Ger.) French Colonies
Französisch Kongo: (Ger.) French Congo
Frazer & Co. City Despatch: local mail service, Cincinnati, Ohio, 1845-51.
Fraziersville, S.C. Paid 5: Confederate Postmasters’ Provisionals
Frazionato: (It.) bisected stamp.Frank: an indication on the front of an envelope that it is to be carried free of postage; In the U.S., usually limited to official correspondence such as Members of Congress or the President; also applies to servicemen’s mail while serving in war zones
Freak: partial while error is total; an irregularity in a stamp that makes it different from a normal stamp such as albino, color shift, color smear, double print, foldover, inking smear, miscut, misperforation, paper crease, partial perforation, partial ink, streak, under and overinked stamp, etc
Fredag: (Dan., Nor., Swed.) Friday
Frederica bypost: Denmark local post, 1888-91
Fredericia: Seaport, in Vejle county, Denmark, ca. 110 WSW of Copenhagen. Local post established August 1886, with first “Fredericia Bypost og Pakke Expedition” local stamps issued August 1888, and with several others issued through 1890. More than 80 different proofs and trial color proofs exist for the issues. The local post service closed 14 May 1891. Denmark: Middlefart-Fredericia Flight, 1911
Fredericksb’g, Va. 10: Confederate Postmasters’ Provisionals
Frederikshab: formerly known as Pamiut, Greenland
Fredersdorf: town in former Soviet-occupied East Germany, local post, 1945
Free: 1: permitted members of our armed forces to endorse the word “free” and their first-class mail would be accepted for delivery, Public Law 507, March 27, 1942. 2: inscription on World War II era labels , supposedly used by military personnel to indicate that their mail was being sent free of postage; postal regulations prohibited the use of such labels
Free Derry: 1. fantasy from magazine, National Lampoon. 2. United Kingdom strike local post, 1971
Freedman’s Bureau: envelope imprint denotes society organized after the Civil War to help liberated slaves in the war zone
Freedom From Hunger: 1: common theme on stamps of the French Community of Nations, 1963, 2: common design of the British Commonwealth of Nations, 1963
Freedom Island: fantasy labels
Free Ethiopia: charity labels made to look like postage stamps
Free form: a stamp with an irregular shape
Free frank: mail permitted to be used without payment of postage; by government officials as authorized; used by armed forces; also known as Soldiers Mail
Free franking, earliest: The British Council of State, in 1652, permitted letters to pass free between Members of Parliament of some government officials; a wax seal was used to designate this class of mail
Free franking, U.S.: mail sent free of charge as authorized by Congress in 1755 for its members, high ranking government officials and military commanders
Free French Forces, Levant: Levant; Free French Forces
Free Ireland: triangular label issued in 1956 to protest the British presence in Northern Ireland
Free mail: mail transmitted free of charge due to natural disasters, franking privilege, and troops on active service; granted to soldiers in the Continental Army, providing that mail was initialed by an officer, 1776
Free matter: USPS term for mail sent to or by the blind and other disabled persons; must be marked “Free Matter for the Blind or Handicapped
“Freeman & Co.’s Express: U.S. local post, New York, N.Y., about 1855
Freepost: British term for envelopes, postcards and labels permitting recipients to reply without paying postage; also known as Reply Paid
Free postage: 1: envelopes sent by military personnel where no postage is required. 2:internal mail of Andorra is free; internal and mail from Greenland to Denmark was free before Dec. 1938, except for parcels
Free Postal Service: United Kingdom strike local post, 1971
Free State of Obsession Stampalia: label, known as mail art
Free Vinland: independent West Vinland
Frei Durch Ablosung Nr. 16 (21): (Ger.) “Free Through Redemption” Prussia official use stamps, 1903, Baden,1905, (Prussia)
Freie Stadt Danzig: (Ger.) free town or city, Danzig
Freimachung im Fenster: (Ger.) postage in window, vending machine labels
Freim.-Ah.-Ausg.: (Ger.) provisional issue
Freiman: (Ger.) German displaced persons camp local post, near Munich, 1945
Freimarke: (Without country name) (Ger.) position where postage is to be placed (when indicated on stamp)
Freimarke: (Ger.) definitive stamp
Freistaat Bayern: (Ger.) ‘Free State of Bavaria” Bavaria, Germany overprint
Frei Stadt Danzig: (Ger.) Free State of Danzig
Freistempel: (Ger.) printed meter marking
Frejus: France semipostal overprint
Fremdarbeiter Lager: (Ger.) Immigrant Worker Camps
Fremont, Republic of: label for house boat on the left bank of the ship canal in Oregon
French Colonies: currency: 100 centimes = 1 franc 1859-1906, 1943-44: stamps issued for French colonies which did not have their own stamps, inscribed “Colonies Empire Française,” “Repub Franc” or “Republique Française,” note that similar French stamps were perforated, stamps of French Colonies were imperforated, 1862: No.1, 1 centime pale blue, 1884: first postage due stamp issued in an imperforated version, 1885: stamps of French Colonies surcharged for St.Pierre & Miquelon, 1886: Cochin, China surcharge on stamps of French Colonies, also overprinted for use in Martinque, 1887: surcharged for Senegal, 1889: overprinted for use in Madagascar, Nossi-Be, 1890: surcharged for Diego Suarez, 1894: stamp issued for use in Ste.-Marie de Madagascar, 1943: first semipostal stamp issued, 1944; first airmail stamp issued.
French Congo: central Africa; currency: 100 centimes = 1 franc 1881: used French Colonies general issues, 1888, Dec. 11: made a colony incorporating Gabon, Ubangi-Shari and Chad, 1888, Dec. 11-Apr. 20, 1891: name changed to Gabon-Congo, 1891, Mar. 24: No.1, 5 centimes lilac blue, first provisional issues, Congo Français, overprint on stamps of French Colonies, 1894: Ubangi military bases attached to French Congo, 1900: Chad military bases attached to French Congo, 1904, July 1: colony redefined; central portion renamed Moyen (Middle) Congo and administered together with Ubangi, Shari and Chad, 1906: Gabon separated, French Congo did not exist, Chad and Ubangi stayed with Middle Congo and was renamed Ubangi-Chari-Chad, 1907: first stamps inscribed “Moyen (Middle) Congo,” 1910, Jan. 15: renamed French Equatorial Africa, but component colonies had its own postal administration, 1915: Ubangi-Chari-Chad made an autonomous civilian colony, 1920: Chad made a civil colony, 1937-59: used stamps of French Equatorial Africa, 1958, Nov. 28: became the Congo Republic
French Equatorial Africa: north of Belgian Congo, south of Libya; currency: 100 centimes = 1 franc 1862-88: first Gabon regime, 1889-91: Gabon-Congo regime, 1891-1904: first French Congo regime, administered Gabon, Middle Congo, Ubangi-Shari and Chad, 1904-10: second French Congo regime, administered Middle Congo, Ubangi-Shari and Chad all together, 1907: Middle Congo governed separately, 1910: Gabon and Middle Congo united as French Equatorial Africa, 1910-36: first A.E.F. Regime; Afrique Equatoriale Française, umbrella regime administered four colonies: Ubangi-Shari, Chad (from 1920), Middle Congo and Gabon; Chad was a military territory until civilian status was achieved in 1920, 1924: all current stamp issues were given A.E.F. overprints to indicate overall governing regime, Gabon governed separately until 1910, 1936, March 16-1940: No.1, 1 centime brown-violet, second A.E.F. Regime: name made first appearance on stamps as overprint “Afrique Equatoriale Française” on stamps of former colonies of Gabon and Middle Congo, postal services unified, 1937: first airmail, postage due stamps issued, 1938, Oct. 24: first semipostal stamp issued, 1940-59: third A.E.F. regime; return of administrative responsibilities to the various territories after 1947 in preparation for their autonomy in 1959, 1959: four territories became autonomous republics within the French community; two took new names; Middle Congo became People’s Republic of Congo, Ubangi-Shari became Central African Republic
French Guiana: north-east coast of South America; currently Guinea Republic; home of Devil’s Island; currency: 100 centimes = 1 franc 1860: French Colonies general issues used, 1886, Dec.: No.1, 5 centimes green, own stamps, French Colonial General issue overprinted “Guy. Franc” and surcharged 1915: first semipostal stamp issued, 1921: local stamps of Compagnie des Transports Aeriens Guyanais used to prepay internal airmail fee, 1925: first postage due stamp issued, 1940: first airmail stamp issued, 1946: became an overseas Department of France, stamps of France
French Guinea: coast of west Africa; currency: 100 centimes = 1 franc 1881: French Colonies general issues used, 1887-92: stamps of Senegal used, 1892: No.1, 1 centime lilac-blue, own stamps issued, 1905: first postage due stamp, 1915: first semipostal stamps, 1940: first air mail stamp, 1944-59: Guinea incorporated into French West Africa, stamps of French West Africa used, 1958, Oct. 2: became Republic of Guinea, 1959: issued own stamps
French India: five former French settlements on coast of India; Karikal, Mahé, Pondichéry, Chandernagor and Yanaon; currency: 100 centimes =1 franc, 24 caches = 1 fanon (1923), 8 fanons = 1 rupie 1849: possibly used stamps of France, 1854-1947: stamps of India used in some settlements, 1859-92: used French Colonies general issues, 1892, Nov.: No.1, 1 centime lilac-blue, own stamps issued, 1916: first semipostal issued, 1923: first postage due stamp issued, 1942: first airmail stamp issued, 1949-54: absorbed into Republic of India
French Levant: 1857-85: used stamps of France, 1885, Aug. 5: first stamps issued, 1812: French post office opened in Constantinople, suspended 1827-35, 1914, Oct. 13: post offices closed, 1921, Aug. – July 1923: Constantinople reopened, 1942: overprint of stamps of Syria for Free French Administration in Syria
French Mailboats: Mailboats
French Mandate in Lebanon: stamps of France overprinted “Grand Liban” for use in Lebanon, 1924
French Mandate of Alaouites: Alaouties
French Morocco: northwest coast of Africa; currency: 100 centimos = 1 peseta, 100 centimes = 1 franc (1917) 1862, Nov.: used stamps of France, 1863: first French post office opened, 1891: offices opened in Arzila, Casablanca, El Ksar el Kebir, Fez, Larache, Mazagan, Mogador, Rabat and Safi. 1891, Jan. 1: No.1, 5 centimes red, first stamps, 1896: first semipostal stamp issued, 1912: French protectorate established, 1915: first postage due stamp issued, 1922: first airmail stamp issued, 1942, March: amalgamated with Spanish post office, 1956, Mar. 2: Morocco became an independent kingdom with Spanish and Tangier Zones of Morocco, French Morocco stamps withdrawn, 1956-58: used French denominated stamps in the former French Protectorate, 1956-58: used Spanish denominated stamps in the former Spanish Protectorate, 1958: Spanish language stamps discontinued; Morocco
French Occupation of Germany: stamps inscribed “Zone Français” 1945
French Occupation of Hungary: stamps of Hungary overprinted “Occupation Français” 1919
French Occupation of Libya: stamps of Italy and Libya overprinted “Fezzan Occupation” and “R.F. Fezzan Français.’
French Oceania: French Polynesia
French Offices in Beirut: Beirut
French Offices in Cavalle: Cavalla(e)
French Offices in China: China, French offices
French Offices in Crete: Crete, French offices
French Offices in Dedeagh: Dedeagh, French offices
French Offices in Egypt: Egypt, French offices
French Offices in Ethiopia: Ethiopia, French offices
French Offices in Japan: Japan, French offices
French Offices in Levant: Levant
French Offices in Madagascar: Madagascar, French offices
French Offices in Morocco: French Morocco; Morocco
French Offices in Port Lagos: Turkey, French offices
French Offices in Port Said: Egypt, French offices
French Offices in Saar: Saar, French offices
French Offices in Tangier: Tangier, French offices
French Offices in Turkey: Ethiopia, French offices
French Offices in Vathy (Samos): Vathy, offices in Turkish Empire
French Offices in Zanzibar: Zanzibar, French offices
French overseas departments: uses the stamps of France; includes former colonies of French Guiana, Guadaloupe, Martinique, Mayotte, Reunion and St.Pierre and Miquelon
French Polynesia: French islands in the South Pacific Ocean; aka French Oceania; currency: 100 centimes = 1 franc previously known as French Oceanic Settlements and Oceanic Settlements, includes Tahiti; 1880: French Colonial general issues, 1882: locally overprinted, 1892: No.1, 1 centime lilac-blue, first stamps issued, 1903: formed as French colony, including Tahiti, 1915: first semipostal issue, 1926: first postage due issue, 1934, Nov. 5: first airmail stamp issued, 1956: became French Polynesia, 1958: stamps inscribed Polynésie Française issued, 1977, June 10: first official stamp issued
French Revolution: common design on stamps of the French Community of Nations, 1939-45
French School of Philately: French philatelists were the first to try to classify stamps by the number of teeth or indentations that appeared along the length and width of individual stamps
French Somali Coast: Dijibouti Republic
French Southern and Antarctic Territories: “Terres Australes et Antarctiques Française” currency: 100 centimes = 1 franc, 100 cents = 1 euro (2002) 1906-26: Kerguelen used stamps of France, 1928: used stamps of Madagascar, 1955, Oct. 28: No.1, 15 francs green/ultramarine, first stamps issued includes Adelie Land in Antarctica, islands of Nouvelle Amsterdam and St. Paul, and Crozet and Kerguelen archipelagos, 1956, Apr. 25: first air mail stamp issued, Adelie Land
French Sudan: northwest Africa, currently Mali Republic; currency: 100 centimes = 1 franc 1890: French Colonies general issues,1894, April 12: No.1, 15 carmine/rose, issued its own stamps, 1899: broken into Dahomey, French Guinea, Ivory Coast, Senegal and Senegambia and Niger (Upper Senegal and Niger), 1921-45: Upper Senegal and Niger named French Sudan, stamps inscribed Soudan Français, 1921: French Sudan issues resumed; first postage due stamp issued, 1938, Oct.24: first semipostal stamp issued, 1940, Feb. 8: first air mail stamp issued, 1945: French Sudan incorporated into French West Africa, 1959: autonomous republic within French community, French Sudan joined Senegal to form Mali Federation, 1960: Senegal seceded from the Federation and former French Soudan had its own stamps as Mali Republic
French Voluntary Legion: French volunteers who fought with German Army in the Soviet Union, 1941-45
French West Africa: northwestern Africa; joint administration of former Dahomey, French Guinea, French Soudan, Ivory Coast, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal, and Upper Volta; 1943: No.1, 1 1/2 francs dark violet, surcharges on stamps of Senegal and Mauritania, 1944, Dec: first semipostal stamp issued as Federation of French colonies in West Africa, 1945: first definitive superceded separate issues, first airmail stamps issued, stamps inscribed “Afrique Occidentale Francaise” issued, 1947: first postage due stamp issued, 1958, June 2: official stamps issued, 1958: Guinea became a separate republic, others stayed within French community with their own stamps, 1959, March 21: inscribed Dakar-Abidjan, 1962: last usage of French West Africa issues; Abidjan, A.O.F., French Guinea
French West Africa: label used as promotion for Tarzan movie (in English)
French Zone of Germany: part of post-WW II occupation of Germany by Allies; includes Baden, Rhineland-Palatinate, Saar and Württemberg; 1945-46: general issue for the whole zone, 1947-49: separate issues for three areas without Saar who issued its own stamps, 1949: became part of West Germany
Frentes y hospitales: (Sp.) charity stamps issued by Nationalists during the Spanish civil war to raise funds for hospitals
Fresh: postal item in fine, original color
Fresh entry: new entry on an engraved printing plate for one that was erased
Freshwater Yarmouth, Newport Railway: British local post
Fresno and San Francisco Bicycle Mail Route: United States local post
Frestonia: area in London that seceded for publicity purposes
Freudenstadt: German local post, World War II
Frey’s Valentine Express: serviced San Francisco, Calif, possibly used a corner card; year unknown
Friden Inc./Singer Business Machines/FME Inc./Friden Alcatel Corp./Friden Neopost: U.S. Postage meter machines from 1963 to current; acquired by Singer Co. in 1963, became Singer Business Machines Division in 1972
Friederich, S.S.: steamship marking of the Danube Steam Navigation Company built about 1850’s for lower Danube lines
Friedrich Wilhelmshafen: now known as Madang, Papua New Guinea
Friendly Islands: Tonga. Friend’s Boarding School: U.S. local post, Barnesville, Ohio 1877
Frigiliana: local post, Spanish civil war, Nationalist, 1937
Frimærke(r): (Dan.) postage stamp(s)
Frimärke: (Swed.) postage stamp
Frimærkealbum: (Dan.) postage stamp album
Frimærkeudstilling: (Dan.) stamp exhibition, stamp show, philatelic exhibition
Frimærkeekspert: (Dan.) stamp expertizer
Fri marke Kgl.Post: Denmark, 1851
Frimarke lokalbref: (Swed.) “Free Stamp for Local Letters” Stockholm, Sweden free city postage, 1856
Frimärken på försändelser: (Swed.) stamps on covers
Frimärksdosor: (Swed.) stamp boxes
Frimerke: (Nor.) postage stamp
Frimerkehefte(r): (Nor.) unexploded stamp booklet(s)
Frimerkesamler: (Nor.) philatelist, stamp collector
Frimerkeutstilling: (Nor.) philatelic exhibition
Frímerki: (Ice.) stamp exhibition, Iceland
Fr. Josip Earth: bogus label for Franz Joseph Land
F R P S L: Fellow of the Royal Philatelic Society, London
Frnt: USPS abbreviation in address for front
Froissé (e): (Fr.) crease, creased
Fromage Colonaise Francaise: bogus French cheese colony stamps
From the Franklin D. Roosevelt Collection Authenticated by H. R. Harmer Inc.: handstamp applied to back of tens of thousands of philatelic items from the president’s collection, 1946
Front: the address side of a cover completely detached from the rest of the envelope; much less desirable than the entire cover; the exception being Mexico, South and Central America where the front of registered letters were returned to the sender as proof of delivery; entire registered letters from these countries are not found, only fronts which are highly sought after
Frontales: (Sp.) Front
Front Atlantique: Atlantic Front, local post, German occupation, 1945
Frontier letters: mail within 30 km of an European border country received special concessionary rates; 1880s
Frontowa Poczta Polowa No 15: (Pol.) front field post office handstamp, 1919, Polish-Ukrainian War
Frühststempel: (Ger.) earliest postmark or marking of a given type
FRY: Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
Frye & Co.s Express: parcel firm serviced Boston, Mass. to Portsmouth, N.H.; used labels; 1876-82
F S A T: auction abbreviation for French and Southern Antarctica Territories
F. Schroeter Local Post: Bergen – F. Schroeter Local Post
F Stamp Rate: United States non-denominated postage stamps, value 4¢, 1991
F T B: Forced to Buy, as when a dealer prices covers at 3 for $10 and you can not purchase only one
F.T.T. Trieste, Zone A: overprint on stamps of Italy
F U: auction abbreviation for Fine Used
Fu-chou: formerly Foochow, People’s Republic of China
Fuengirola: (Sp.) local post, Spanish civil war, Nationalist, 1937
Fuente del Maestre: (Sp.) local post, Spanish civil war, Nationalist, 1937
Fuente de Piedra: (Sp.) local post, Spanish civil war, Nationalist, 1937
Fuente Obejuna: (Sp.) local post, Spanish civil war, Nationalist, 1937
Fuentes de Andalucia: (Sp.) local post, Spanish civil war, Nationalist, 1936
Fuera de curso: (Sp.) obsolete, no longer available
Fuerstentum Liechtenstein: Principality of Liechtenstein
Fuerzas de bloqueo del Mediterraneo: (Sp.) Mediterranean Blockade Forces, used during the Spanish civil war
Fu-Feng: Shensi, Northwest China local post, 1949
Fugitive color: color that is liable to fade, wash out or change, used to prevent tampering with the stamp
Fugitive inks: an ink that dissolves or disintegrates in water; used in the production of some stamps to prevent forgery and make it impossible for re-use; some stamps or Netherlands Indies are printed entirely with water soluble fugitive inks
Fujeira: Oman Peninsula, Persian Gulf Sheikdom, part of United Arab Emirates; currency: 100 naye paise = 1 rupee 1952: became independent from Trucial States, 1964, Sept. 22: No.1, 1 naye paise multicolor, first stamps issued, 1965, Aug. 16: first airmail stamps issued, 1965, Oct. 14: first official stamps issued, 1971, Dec. 2: voted to join the United Arab Emirates
Fukien-Chekiang-Kiangsi: 1931: Chinese Red Post, 1948: East China Liberation area, 1949: parcel post stamp issued
Fulcrum: U.S. Navy code name during WW II for Auckland, New Zealand
Full face McKinley card: widow of President McKinley did not like the portrait, cards ordered destroyed except for one box of 500
Full Face Queens: nickname for full face portrait on stamps of Queen Victoria
Fulling effect: a light print of the stamp design seen on the back of the stamp, usually on letterpress printed stamps
Full Length Victorias: nickname for stamps of Victoria, Australia, depicting Queen Victoria in a full-length pose, 1852-56
Fully Imperforate: a stamp without perforations on all sides. Imperforate, Semi-imperforate
Fülöp Szigetek: (Hung.) the Philippine Islands, Philippines
Fumigated mail: disinfected mail
Funafuti: One of the Tuvalu islands
Funchal: capital of Madeira; Portuguese island off west coast of Africa; currency: 1,000 reis = 1 milreis 1868-80; Madeira had its own stamps, 1892-pre: used stamps of Portugal, 1892: No.1, 5 reis yellow, had its own stamps, 1905-31: stamps of Azores used, 1931: stamps of Portugal used. 1980, Jan. 2: stamps for Madeira reintroduced
Fun Collectibles: nickname given to stamps issued by Third World countries that have no perceived financial growth potential
Functional watermark: parallel lines to act as a guide for the writer
Fundo: (Port.) bottom margin
Funfkirchen: now known as Pecs, Hungary
Fungo: (It.) mushrooms (thematic)
Für die soldaten im felde: (Ger.) label from Austrian war welfare office, 1914-16
Für Kriegs-beschädigte: overprint on stamps of Germany for semi-postal
Furnace Cover: nickname for a 2¢ Hawaiian Missionary cover found in a furnace in a abandoned building in the early 1900s
Furness Railway, The: British local post
Fur’s fliegerheim: inscription for the airmen’s home; on German air labels, pre-WW I, portraits of early German airmen and the royal family; privately printed for forces personnel to apply to their mail, which was post free
Furstentum: Principality of Liechtenstein
Furusato: (Perfectural): stamps of Japan
Fusée: (Fr.) rocket
F US Postage: United States non-denominated postage stamp, value 29¢ cents, 1990
Fussball: (Ger.) football (thematic)
Fussbotenpost: (Ger.) Berliner messengers established by Berlin merchants 1800-06
Futbol: (Sp.) football (thematic)
Futschau: (Ger.) China diagonally overprinted on a stamp of Germany, surcharged “5 pf” for use in the German post office at Foochow, June 1, 1900
Futsches Reich: Germany colloquialism for Ruined Empire from a British WWII propaganda forgery of a standard Hitler-head stamp
Futuna: Wallis and Futuna Islands
Future delivery: overprint on U.S. revenue stamps for tax collection with goods to be delivered at a later date
F/W: Franked With
F V: Face Value
Fyrblock: (Swed.) block-of-4
Fyrfärgtryck: (Swed.) Tryck – Fyrfärgs
Fyrre: (Dan.) forty (number)
Fyrst: (Dan.) prince
Fyrstedømme: (Dan.) principality
FYRUM: Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.