Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “structuralism” come from?

Structuralism comes from English structure, from Latin structura meaning a joining or building, from Latin struo meaning to pile up or arrange, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European ster- meaning to spread or stretch.

structuralism (English): A theory of sociology that views elements of...

Definitions

  1. A theory of sociology that views elements of...

Ancestry of “structuralism”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishstructuralOf, relating to, or having structure; Involving...
2EnglishstructureA cohesive whole built up of distinct parts; The...
3Middle Frenchstructure—
4Latinstructūra—
5Latinstruō—
6Proto-Italicstrowōpile up; construct, build
7Proto-Indo-Europeanstrew-to spread, to strew
8Proto-Indo-Europeansterh₃-to spread, extend, stretch out
9Proto-Indo-Europeanster-sterile, infertile

Words derived from “structuralism”

  • poststructuralism
  • antistructuralism
Every word from Proto-Indo-European ster- →