banana magazine use

Question
when was the banana style magazine first used and in what firearm was it used in?i am talking with some friends and they have their money on the ak47.i am not sure of its first use but i am sure firearms like the mp44 and the bren,to name a few,came before the ak47 using a banana magazine.thank you for clearing this up,i appreciate you taking the time to answer me and i look forward to your answer.

Answer
I'm not a firearms historian, but I'll tell you what I know.

The term "banana magazine" is, of course, not technical and therefore does not have precise definition, but it was first used to refer to magazines that curved to accommodate the stacked shape of tapered cartridges.

The Czech Bren light machine gun chambered in .303 has such a tapered case, and therefore has a curved detachable magazine that is top mounted.

Toward the end of the war, the Germans developed the concept of the "Sterm Gewer" or "storm rifle" (or what we term "assault rifle"), which had two basic characteristics: 1) an intermediate cartridge, smaller than a rifle cartridge by larger than a pistol cartridge, and 2) capable of full-auto fire. The StG44 chambered in the 7.92x33 cartridge which was developed specifically for that firearm had a detachable magazine that was curved to accommodate the tapered cartridge.

In the same year the StG44 was developed (1922) military arms designer Simonov introduced the SKS rifle, chambered in the intermediate 7.62X39 cartridge. This rifle also has a curved magazine which is nearly imperceptible because of its relatively low capacity (10) and the fact that it is a fixed rather than a detachable magazine.

The SKS was not fielded until half way through 1945. In 1947 Kalashnikov introduced his famous rifle based on the StG44 design chambered in the Russian cartridge. It was lighter, simpler to manufacture, and had a detachable 30 round magazine.

There is nothing revolutionary about the AK47's magazine design, so if by "banana magazine" you mean a detachable magazine that is curved to accommodate tapered cartridges, yes, the Bren and the StG44 predate the AK 47. But you didn't need my answer for that - you could have simply shown your friends some pictures.

You've won the bet. If it was for a beer, have one for me.