Etymology

orientalism

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Today it means: The tendency to represent eastern subjects, to assume stylistical characteristics original of the East, especially in 19th century Europe. Full definition →

French orientalisme
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The story

  1. French · borrowed fromorientalisme
  2. English todayorientalism

From French orientalisme, from oriental (“eastern, Oriental”). In the sense “patronizing Western attitude” popularized by Edward Said's 1978 book Orientalism. Equivalent to Oriental + -ism.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.