Big Four or Big 4 may refer to:

Groups of companies

Big Four accounting firms The Big Four are the four largest professional services networks in the world, the global accounting networks Deloitte, Ernst & Young (EY), KPMG, and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC). The four are often grouped because they are comparable in size re ...

: Deloitte, Ernst & Young, KPMG, PwC * Big Four (airlines) in the U.S. in the 20th century: American, Eastern, TWA, United * Big Four (banking), several groupings of banks in different countries *

Big Four (British railway companies) "Big Four" was a name used to describe the four largest railway companies in the United Kingdom in the period 1923–1947. The name was coined by ''The Railway Magazine'' in its issue of February 1923: "The Big Four of the New Railway Era". The ...

in the period 1923–1947: GWR, LMS, LNER, SR * Big Four (radio networks) in the U.S.: CBS, NBC, ABC, Mutual * Big Four Railroad, a nickname of the Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railway in the U.S. * Big Four American tech companies: Apple, Amazon, Google, Meta Platforms * Big Four television networks in the U.S.: CBS, NBC, ABC, Fox * The "Big Four" largest UK ITV companies 1955–1968: * Big Four state-owned car manufacturers of China, namely: SAIC Motor, FAW Group, Dongfeng Motor Corporation, and Changan Automobile *

Japanese Big Four The Japanese Big Four are the large motorcycle manufacturing companies of Japan: * Honda, which produces motorcycles since 1946. * Suzuki is a Japanese multinational corporation headquartered in Minami-ku, Hamamatsu, Japan. Suzuki manufactu ...

motorcycle manufacturers: Honda, Kawasaki, Suzuki, Yamaha * Big Four supermarkets chains in the United Kingdom: Tesco, Sainsbury's, Asda, and Morrisons

Groups of people

* Big Four (Central Pacific Railroad), 19th century American railroad entrepreneurs *

Big Four (debutantes) Chicago's Big Four were a quartet of debutantes in the Chicago social scene during World War I, described as "the four most attractive and socially desirable young women in Chicago." Background Each of the "Four" was born around the turn of the ce ...

, in the Chicago social scene during World War I * Big Four (Najaf), leading Grand Ayatollahs of Twelver Shia Islam *

The Four Companions The Four Companions, also called the Four Pillars of the Sahaba, is a Shia term for the four Companions () of the Islamic prophet Muhammad who are supposed to have stayed most loyal to Ali ibn Abi Talib after Muhammad's death in 632: * # Salm ...

, the most loyal companions of

Muhammad Muhammad ( ar, مُحَمَّد; 570 – 8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious, social, and political leader and the founder of Islam. According to Islamic doctrine, he was a prophet divinely inspired to preach and confirm the mo ...

and

Ali ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib ( ar, عَلِيّ بْن أَبِي طَالِب; 600 – 661 CE) was the last of four Rightly Guided Caliphs to rule Islam (r. 656 – 661) immediately after the death of Muhammad, and he was the first Shia Imam ...

. * Big Four (Scotland Yard), London detectives of about 1919 *

Big Four of Maryland Thoroughbred racing {{Short description, Maryland-based Thoroughbred trainers The Big Four of Maryland Thoroughbred racing were four American Thoroughbred horse trainers who dominated horse racing in the state of Maryland in the 1960 and 1970s and who helped modernize ...

, horse trainers in the 1960s–1970s *

The Big Four (Calgary) The Big Four were the wealthy Alberta cattlemen Patrick Burns, George Lane, A. E. Cross and Archibald J. McLean. Together they founded the Calgary Stampede, as well as other cultural and entrepreneurial activities in Calgary, Alberta, Canada in ...

, Alberta cattlemen of the early 20th century *

The Four Greats (Norwegian writers) The Four Greats ( Danish and Norwegian ''de fire store'') is a term used for four of the most influential Norwegian writers of the late 19th century. The Four Greats were: *Henrik Ibsen (1828–1906) playwright, theatre director, and poet who i ...

: Ibsen, Bjørnson, Lie, Kielland

Groups in sport

Big Four (Canadian football) The East Division is one of the two regional divisions of the Canadian Football League, its counterpart being the West Division. Although the CFL was not founded until 1958, the East Division and its clubs are descended from earlier leagues. T ...

, a forerunner competition to the Canadian Football League East Division * Big Four (English football) in the 2000s: Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester United * Big Four in Formula 1: McLaren, Williams, Renault (formerly Benetton), and Ferrari, from 1980s to 2008 *

Big Four (Mexico) In Mexican football, the Big Four (Spanish: Los cuatro grandes) is a group of four clubs: Club América, Guadalajara (commonly known as Chivas), Cruz Azul and Pumas UNAM. They are considered by the local press to be the most popular and successful s ...

, a group of the top four football clubs *

Big Four (polo) The Big Four in polo was the American polo team that competed for the International Polo Cup during the early 20th century. History The term was first used in 1909 for the team of Devereux Milburn, Harry Payne Whitney, Lawrence Waterbury, and Mo ...

, an American polo team of the early 20th century * Big Four (tennis), from 2008 to 2017: Federer, Nadal, Djokovic, Murray * Big Four, the leading

major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada The major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada commonly refer to the highest men's professional competitions of team sports in those countries. The four leagues traditionally included in the definition are Major League Bas ...

: MLB, NBA, NFL, NHL *

Big-4 League The Big-4 League was a top level senior ice hockey league that operated in Calgary and Edmonton, Alberta for two seasons between 1919 and 1921. Created with the intention of competing for the Allan Cup senior-amateur championship, the league's e ...

, a senior ice hockey league in Canada between 1919 and 1921

Other groups

Big Four (Western Europe) The Big Four, also known as G4, refers to France, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom. France and the United Kingdom are official nuclear-weapon states and are permanent members of the United Nations Security Council with the power of veto, w ...

: France, Germany, Italy, and the United Kingdom * Big Four Conference, various conferences between the victorious nations after World War I and World War II *

Big Four (World War I) The Big Four or the Four Nations refer to the four top Allied powers of World War I and their leaders who met at the Paris Peace Conference in January 1919. The Big Four is also known as the Council of Four. It was composed of Georges Clemence ...

, the four major Allied powers: United States, United Kingdom, France, Italy * Big Four (World War II), or Four Policemen: United States, United Kingdom, China, Soviet Union * Big Four

outlaw motorcycle club An outlaw motorcycle club is a motorcycle subculture generally centered on the use of cruiser motorcycles, particularly Harley-Davidsons and choppers, and a set of ideals that purport to celebrate freedom, nonconformity to mainstream culture, ...

s: Hells Angels, Pagans, Outlaws, Bandidos *

Big Four international beauty pageants The Big Four or the Big League Pageants refers to the four major international beauty pageants for women – Miss World, Miss Universe, Miss International and Miss Earth. The group was first described by the '' China Daily'' newspaper in 2004 ...

: Miss Earth, Miss International, Miss Universe, and Miss World

Arts, entertainment and media

Big Four (band) The Big Four is an all-male Hong Kong musical group formed by Dicky Cheung, Andy Hui, William So, and Edmond Leung in 2009. They released their first self-titled single in 2009, in which the single topped most of Hong Kong's music charts. Their ...

, a Hong Kong music group * Big Four (Eurovision), the four main sponsoring countries before 2011 *

Big Four (Grammy Awards) The Big Four Grammy Awards (also known as the General Field) are four Grammy Award, Grammy awards presented by the The Recording Academy, National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences which go to musical acts and works which are not restricted by ...

or the General Field, four standard awards * The Big Four (fashion), the 4 most notable Vogue covers: American Vogue, British Vogue, Vogue Paris and Vogue Italia *Big Four of

Fashion week A fashion week is a fashion industry event, lasting approximately one week, where fashion designers, brands or "houses" display their latest collections in runway fashion shows to buyers and the media. These events influence the upcoming fashio ...

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

and New York * Big Four of

Britpop Britpop was a mid-1990s British-based music culture movement that emphasised Britishness. It produced brighter, catchier alternative rock, partly in reaction to the popularity of the darker lyrical themes of the US-led grunge music and to the ...

: Blur, Oasis,

Pulp Pulp may refer to: * Pulp (fruit), the inner flesh of fruit Engineering * Dissolving pulp, highly purified cellulose used in fibre and film manufacture * Pulp (paper), the fibrous material used to make paper * Molded pulp, a packaging material ...

Suede Suede (pronounced ) is a type of leather with a fuzzy, napped finish, commonly used for jackets, shoes, fabrics, purses, furniture, and other items. The term comes from the French , which literally means "gloves from Sweden". The term was firs ...

* Big Four of Doom metal: Candlemass,

Pentagram A pentagram (sometimes known as a pentalpha, pentangle, or star pentagon) is a regular five-pointed star polygon, formed from the diagonal line segments of a convex (or simple, or non-self-intersecting) regular pentagon. Drawing a circle arou ...

Saint Vitus Vitus (), whose name is sometimes rendered Guy or Guido, was a Christian martyr from Sicily. His surviving hagiography is pure legend. The dates of his actual life are unknown.Basil Watkins, ''The Book of Saints: A Comprehensive Biographical ...

Trouble Trouble may refer to: Film and television * ''Trouble'' (1922 film), an American silent comedy-drama film directed by Albert Austin * ''Trouble'' (1933 film), a British comedy film * ''Trouble'' (1977 film), a Soviet drama film * ''Trouble'' ...

* Big Four of Grunge:

Nirvana ( , , ; sa, निर्वाण} ''nirvāṇa'' ; Pali: ''nibbāna''; Prakrit: ''ṇivvāṇa''; literally, "blown out", as in an oil lampRichard Gombrich, ''Theravada Buddhism: A Social History from Ancient Benāres to Modern Colombo.' ...

, Pearl Jam,

Soundgarden Soundgarden was an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1984 by singer and drummer Chris Cornell, lead guitarist Kim Thayil (both of whom are the only members to appear in every incarnation of the band), and bassist Hiro Yama ...

Alice in Chains Alice in Chains (often abbreviated as AIC) is an American rock band from Seattle, Washington, formed in 1987 by guitarist and vocalist Jerry Cantrell and drummer Sean Kinney, who later recruited bassist Mike Starr and lead vocalist Layne ...

* Big Four of

Power metal Power metal is a subgenre of heavy metal combining characteristics of traditional heavy metal with speed metal, often within symphonic context. Generally, power metal is characterized by a faster, lighter, and more uplifting sound, in contra ...

Helloween Helloween is a German power metal band founded in 1984 in Hamburg by members of bands Iron Fist, Gentry, Second Hell and Powerfool. Its first lineup consisted of singer and guitarist Kai Hansen, bassist Markus Grosskopf, guitarist Michael Wei ...

Blind Guardian Blind Guardian is a German power metal band formed in 1984 in Krefeld, West Germany. They are often credited as one of the seminal and most influential bands in the power metal and speed metal subgenres.Sabaton A sabaton or solleret is part of a knight's body armor that covers the foot. History Fourteenth and fifteenth century sabatons typically end in a tapered point well past the actual toes of the wearer's foot, following fashionable shoe shapes ...

DragonForce DragonForce are a British power metal band from London, England. The band was formed in 1999 by guitarists Herman Li and Sam Totman, and are known for their long and fast guitar solos, fantasy-themed lyrics and retro video game-influenced ...

* Big Four of

Thrash metal Thrash metal (or simply thrash) is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music characterized by its overall aggression and often fast tempo.Kahn-Harris, Keith, ''Extreme Metal: Music and Culture on the Edge'', pp. 2–3, 9. Oxford: Berg, 2007, . ...

: Anthrax, Megadeth, Metallica, Slayer ** '' The Big Four: Live from Sofia, Bulgaria'' a 2010 concert recording * Big Four, a key rhythmic innovation on the marching band beat, invented by

Buddy Bolden Charles Joseph "Buddy" Bolden (September 6, 1877 – November 4, 1931) was an African American cornetist who was regarded by contemporaries as a key figure in the development of a New Orleans style of ragtime music, or "jass", which later ca ...

* ''Big 4'' (sculpture), outside the Channel 4 headquarters in London * Big Four films of the

Disney Renaissance The Disney Renaissance was the period from 1989 to 1999 during which Walt Disney Feature Animation returned to producing critically and commercially successful animated films that were mostly musical adaptations of well-known stories, much ...

: ''

The Little Mermaid "The Little Mermaid" ( da, Den lille havfrue) is a literary fairy tale written by the Danish author Hans Christian Andersen. The story follows the journey of a young mermaid who is willing to give up her life in the sea as a mermaid to gain a ...

'', ''

Beauty and The Beast ''Beauty and the Beast'' (french: La Belle et la Bête) is a fairy tale written by French novelist Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve and published in 1740 in ''La Jeune Américaine et les contes marins'' (''The Young American and Marine ...

'', '' Aladdin'' and ''

The Lion King ''The Lion King'' is a 1994 American animated musical drama film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures. The 32nd Disney animated feature film and the fifth produced during the Disney Renaissance ...

'' *

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...

' Big Four Avengers: Iron Man, Captain America,

Thor Thor (; from non, Þórr ) is a prominent god in Germanic paganism. In Norse mythology, he is a hammer-wielding god associated with lightning, thunder, storms, sacred groves and trees, strength, the protection of humankind, hallowing, an ...

and Hulk * ''The Big Four'' (novel), by Agatha Christie, 1927

Places

* Big Four, West Virginia, U.S. * Big Four Bridge, connecting Louisville, Kentucky, and Jeffersonville, Indiana, U.S. * Big Four Mountain, Washington, U.S.

Other uses

* Big 4 (lottery), a game in the Pennsylvania Lottery *

Big Four (Indian snakes) The four venomous snake species responsible for causing the greatest number of medically significant human snake bite cases on the Indian subcontinent (majorly in India) are sometimes collectively referred to as the Big Four. They are as follows:W ...

, four snake species responsible for the most snake-bites in India *

Big Four (White Star Line) The "Big Four" were a quartet of early-20th-century 20,000-ton ocean liners built by the Harland & Wolff shipyard for the White Star Line, to be the largest and most luxurious ships afloat. The group consisted of , , and . Origin In 1899, Whi ...

, four British ocean liners of the early 20th century *

Norton Big 4 The Model 1, more commonly known as Big 4, was a Norton motorcycle made between 1907 and 1954 in various forms. With , it was the largest and most powerful side-valve engine in the model range and with plenty of low end torque was mostly used t ...

, a British motorcycle 1907–1954 * After

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

: The major allied powers (

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

, and

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

), who held separate sessions during the peace negotiations. * After

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

: The major allied powers

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

, and China (later

). * The main Nazi war criminals

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...

Heinrich Himmler Heinrich Luitpold Himmler (; 7 October 1900 – 23 May 1945) was of the (Protection Squadron; SS), and a leading member of the Nazi Party of Germany. Himmler was one of the most powerful men in Nazi Germany and a main architect of th ...

, Joseph Goebbels, and

Hermann Göring Hermann Wilhelm Göring (or Goering; ; 12 January 1893 – 15 October 1946) was a German politician, military leader and convicted war criminal. He was one of the most powerful figures in the Nazi Party, which ruled Germany from 1933 to 1 ...