An abstract noun that refers to the quality of accomplishing something first
I am looking for a noun that means firstness as exemplified in the following
Examples
Roger Bannister was the first person to run a mile in under four minutes. Not many of us can achieve firstness in something.
Neil Armstrong exhibited firstness by being the first person on the moon.
Some people prefer to answer first in a quiz, even if they get the answer wrong. They prefer firstness over correctness.
I thought of primacy. However the dictionary meaning doesn't fit -- primacy refers to importance rather than temporal 'firstness'.
I specifically want it to mean that the person achieves or completes something sooner than anyone else. Not that they achieve it better or to more acclaim.
Question: What is a noun (or failing that a short phrase) that means 'firstness' and would fit into those sentences without changing any other words?
You may be looking for pioneer and pioneering:
The definition of pioneer from Merriam-Webster is:
a: person or group that originates or helps open up a new line of thought or activity or a new method or technical development
b : one of the first to settle in a territory
So pioneering means being one of the first that thinks of or does something.
"Whether intentionally or not, John always seems to be out “front, running” ahead of the pack and “blazing the trail.”
The above notions kind of imply “firstness,” and derived from them there are: “Trailblazer” and “Front-runner” for single-word nouns.
Trailblazer: “a person who is the first to do or discover something and so makes it possible for others to follow”
(from Oxford Learner’s Dictionary)
Front-runner or frontrunner is a term used to describe the leaders in a race, whether political or athletic.
(from Wikipedia)
Although “trailblazer” and “front-runner” might capture in one word the notion of “a person who is first,” neither of them capture the notion or characteristic of “firstness” that you are seeking.
Combining them, however, with something like “spirit,” “nature,” or “tendencies” to get noun phrases like “trailblazing/trailblazer spirit/nature/tendencies” and “front-running/front-runner spirit/nature/tendencies” could work in your first two examples with slight modification:
“Roger Bannister was the first person to run a mile in under four minutes. Not many of us have the front-running/front-runner spirit/nature/tendencies needed to achieve [what he achieved].”
“Neil Armstrong exhibited [his] trailblazing/trailblazer spirit/nature/tendencies by [doing what he did].”
Your third example would require creating a phrase with another word in order to make “front-running” work, like “reckless,” “compulsive,” or even “pointless”:
“Some people prefer to answer first in a quiz, even if they get the answer wrong. They prefer reckless/compulsive/pointless front-running over correctness.”
The only single word that I can see that could possibly work in all three examples would be “pacesetter/pacesetting,” and this only because it has two meanings:
pace•set•ter … [related forms: pace′set′ting adj. & n.] … n.
a person or group that serves as a model to be imitated or followed; leader.
-
one that sets the pace, as in racing.
(from ‘American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition.’ Copyright © 2011 and ‘Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary,’ © 2010 both via ‘The Free Dictionary’)
“Roger Bannister was the first person to run a mile in under four minutes. Not many of us can achieve pacesetting [pacesetter/setting status]/[be pacesetters] in something.” (definition #1)
“Neil Armstrong exhibited pacesetting/[is/was/became a pacesetter] by being the first person on the moon.” (definition #1)
“Some people prefer to answer first in a quiz, even if they get the answer wrong. They prefer pacesetting over correctness.” (definition #2)
What's wrong with first?
Roger Bannister was the first person to run a mile in under four minutes. Not many of us can achieve being the first at something.
Neil Armstrong was the first person on the moon.
Some people prefer to answer first in a quiz, even if they get the answer wrong. They prefer being first over being correct.
The word anteriority might work:
Anterior: Occurring before in time; earlier.
(AHD)
Its synonyms precedence and antecedence may work as well.
Consider precursoriness.
precursor: something that comes before something else and that often leads to or influences its development
M-W