racialism
UK[ˈreɪʃəlɪzəm]US[ˈreɪʃəlɪzəm]
n
The belief that people can be divided into distinct races, and that some races are inherently superior to others; racism.
Morpheme Breakdown
racial
ism
racial
relating to race
ism
doctrine or belief
Etymology
The word 'racialism' is a modern compound, formed in English during the 19th century. Its first element, 'racial', derives ultimately from the Italian razza (meaning "race, lineage"), a term of uncertain but possibly Latin or pre-Latin origin, combined with the adjectival suffix '-al'. The second element, '-ism', is a prolific suffix borrowed from Greek via Latin and French, used to denote distinctive systems, principles, or ideologies. Thus, the literal construction "pertaining to race" + "doctrine" logically yields the abstract meaning of a belief system or ideology centered on racial categories and differences, often implying a hierarchy among them.
Analysis
Structure: racial (relating to race) + ism (doctrine or belief)
- racial: From Latin genus (race, kind) via French race, functioning as an adjective-forming suffix -al meaning "relating to".
- ism: From Greek -ismos, a suffix forming nouns of action, state, or doctrine, via Latin and French.
Examples
The book critiques the pseudoscientific foundations of 19th-century racialism.
His political ideology was steeped in a dangerous form of racialism.
Scholars distinguish between casual prejudice and the systematic racialism that informed state policies.