It became firmly rooted in the French language in the early nineteenth century, and it had a meaning widely recognized today: rapid economic growth fueled by advancement in technology and machines. Later, in the mid nineteenth century, French researchers began questioning the relevance of the word in describing the social and economic changes that had happened in the country. One researcher even called it evolution (Griffin, 2013). .
In Britain, a German writer, Friedrich Engels, used the term 'Die industrielle Revolution' in his study, 'The Condition of the Working Classes in England', to explain the state poor laborers in Manchester. According to Engels, the industrial revolution occurred because of the technical improvements in the cotton industry. The improvements were small in nature, but collectively they had a profound effect in the growth of the cotton industry. At that time, James Hargreaves had invented the Spinning Jenny, which increased the amount of processed yarn tenfold. Consequently, industries employed more weavers to weave the yarn to meet the demand for finished good. This marked the shift from farming to industrial jobs. It created a new class where people depended wholly on wages. Later innovations such as the steam engine developed by James Watt and the power loom invented by Cartwright helped accelerated the changes that happened in the cotton industry (Griffin, 2013). .
Another controversy surrounds the extent of application of the term 'industrial revolution'. Historians use the term to describe the economic growth in Britain only, thereby, disregarding the other countries that were also experiencing economic and social growth at that time. This somewhat belittles the developments that occurred in areas like Hamburg, Bohemia, Northern France, Lombardy, and the Zurich Islands. In fact, some of these regions experienced economic growth than Britain.