Jeff seems to have somewhat missed the point,
IMHO, in his
writeup above. The
milliard is the
correct word for
one thousand million (
1x10^9). A
billion is
one million million (
1x10^12)
by extension.
The American terminology of calling 1,000,000,000 a billion has gained provenance over the years, until it is now taught in British schools and universities. That still doesn't make it right.
BTW, the billion is heralded as the only thing that's bigger in Britain than it is in America....