The position of ombudsman was originally created in Sweden in 1809. The Swedish Parliament appointed an ombudsman to resolve difficult problems in the absence of the country's abducted king. Ombud, a common word in the Swedish language, means the people's representative, agent, attorney, solicitor, deputy, proxy, or delegate. The ombuds concept spread through the Scandinavian nations and, eventually, to countries around the globe. The United Nations views ombudsing as an important tool to help protect and promote international human rights and, as a result, many ombuds offices have been established in the governments of third world countries. In the United States and Canada, ombuds agencies have been created to assist citizens, consumers, and employees who wish to address concerns about administrative actions or lack of action. The ombuds function is utilized in state and local governments, nursing homes, the media, colleges and universities, industry, prisons, and, most recently, in agencies of the federal government.
Eastern Montana College was the first educational institution in the United States to appoint an ombudsperson (1966). In 1967, Michigan State University became the first major U.S. university to establish an ombuds office. During the period of nationwide campus unrest (the late 1960's and early 1970's), a number of universities established ombuds offices in an attempt to respond to demands for a neutral, confidential, and "safe" place to discuss concerns and voice complaints. It is now estimated that more than 200 colleges and universities in the United States and Canada have established ombuds offices. There have been discussions concerning the language used in the profession. Perhaps the most interesting has involved what to call the people performing the ombuds function. The word "ombudsman" has been used for many years in the United States. Some argue the Swedish word "man" has a gender-neutral meaning (unlike the English "man" that is often considered to be gender-specific). According to Prisma's Swedish-English Dictionary (University of Minnesota Press, 1989), "man", in Swedish, is defined as "male." Regardless of individual interpretation of the word's origin, many practitioners feel it is important to reflect current societal norms by substituting "person" for "man" or by dropping the ending completely. Other practitioners prefer to retain the traditional title of "ombudsman." The contributors to this handbook have chosen to use the terms "ombud," "ombudsperson," "ombuds office," and "ombudsing." Another language question arises when referring to the people who use the ombud's services. In a university setting, people asking for assistance are, for the most part, members of the academic community. Individually, they are referred to by their first names or titles. There is not, however, agreement on how to refer to these users as a group. Are they clients, complainants, visitors, or customers? Again, the practice varies according to the practitioner. In this handbook, the terms "client" and "complainant" are used interchangeably to describe these users of the ombuds services. The growing number of individuals in the profession has given rise to a variety of professional organizations (see below).