endocannibalism

E1N1D2O1C3A1N1N1I1B3A1L1I1S1M3

noun

A form of cannibalism, the eating of dead members of one's own social group, often associated with spiritual beliefs.

OriginEnglish cannibalism ← Spanish caníba ← Proto-Cariban *karipona →
Scrabble 22
Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

nounendocannibalism (uncountable)
  1. uncountableanthropologyA form of cannibalism, the eating of dead members of one's own social group, often associated with spiritual beliefs.

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*h₁n̥dóm
  2. Proto-Hellenic*éndon
  3. Ancient Greekἔνδον (éndon)
  4. Englishendo-
  5. Proto-Cariban*karipona
  6. Spanishcaribe
  7. Spanishcaríbal
  8. Spanishcaníba
  9. Englishcannibal
  10. Englishcannibalism
  11. Englishendocannibalism

From endo- + cannibalism.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Italian endocannibalismo
  • endocannibalismothe eating of dead members of one's own social group
Portuguese endocanibalismo
  • endocanibalismothe eating of dead members of one's own social group
Cite this entry
APA

endocannibalism. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/endocannibalism

MLA

“endocannibalism.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/endocannibalism. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “endocannibalism,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/endocannibalism.

Source: endocannibalism on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.