Where does “authoritarianism” come from?
Authoritarianism derives from English authoritarian combined with the suffix -ism, from Ancient Greek -ισμός and -μός, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European -mós.
authoritarianism (English): A form of government in which the governing body...
Definitions
- A form of government in which the governing body...
Ancestry of “authoritarianism”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | authoritarian | Of, or relating to, or exhibiting strict... |
| 2 | English | authority | The power to enforce rules or give orders;... |
| 3 | Middle English | auctorite | Legal authority or control; the privilege of... |
| 4 | Old French | autorité | authority |
| 5 | Latin | auctōritās | credibility, prestige, reputation, importance |
| 6 | Latin | auctor | seller, vendor; author; authorship, agency,... |
| 7 | Latin | augeō | to increase, augment, enlarge, spread, expand |
| 8 | Proto-Italic | augeō | to increase; to enlarge |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂owg-éye-ti | — |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂ewg- | to increase, to enlarge |
| 11 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂weg- | to increase, to enlarge |
| 12 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂ug- | — |