During World War I, hamburgers were sometimes referred to as "liberty sandwiches" in the United States. This change in terminology was part of an effort to downplay or rename food items with German-sounding names due to anti-German sentiment during the war. The renaming was a patriotic gesture, and the term "liberty sandwich" was used as an alternative to the more common term "hamburger" to emphasize support for the war effort and patriotic sentiments
. Another alternative name for hamburgers during that time was "Salisbury steak" due to widely anti-German sentiment in the U.S
