altruism en · NOUN
Pronunciation
- (Southern-England) audio
- /ˈæl.tɹu.ɪz.əm/
Etymology
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₂el-der. Proto-Indo-European *h₂élyos Proto-Italic *aljos Proto-Indo-European *-teros Proto-Italic *-teros Proto-Italic *aliteros Latin alterī Vulgar Latin *alterui Old French autrui French autrui Proto-Indo-European *-id- Proto-Indo-European *-yéti Proto-Indo-European *-idyéti Proto-Hellenic *-íd͏̌d͏̌ō Ancient Greek -ῐ́ζω (-ĭ́zō) Proto-Indo-European *-mos Proto-Indo-European *-mós Ancient Greek -μός (-mós) Ancient Greek -ῐσμός (-ĭsmós)bor. Latin -ismusbor. French -isme French altruismebor. English altruism From French altruisme, which was coined in 1830 by Auguste Comte from autrui (“of or to others”) + -isme, from Old French, from Latin alteri, dative of alter (“other”) (whence also English alter). Apparently inspired by the French Latin legal phrase l'autrui, from le bien, le droit d'autrui (“the good, the right of the other”). Introduced into English by George Henry Lewes in 1853, in his translation Comte’s Philosophy of the Sciences, 1, xxi.
Meanings
-
(countable, uncountable) Regard for others, both natural and moral without regard for oneself; devotion to the interests of others; brotherly kindness.
Altruism allows doing for others as one would be done by. Unlike reaction formation, which also gives to the object what the self desires, altruism leaves the self at least partly gratified. Unlike reaction formation, altruism tempers asceticism with pleasure. Unlike passive aggression and martyrdom, altruism allows the object to feel blessed and not afflicted. Altruism attracts people to the user; martyrdom repels them even as it holds them close in chains.
1995, George E. Vaillant, The Wisdom of the Ego, page 68:The preposterous altruism too![…]Resist not evil. It is an insane immolation of self—as bad intrinsically as fakirs stabbing themselves or anchorites warping their spines in caves scarcely large enough for a fair-sized dog.
1918, W[illiam] B[abington] Maxwell, chapter XVI, in The Mirror and the Lamp, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, →OCLC:
-
(countable, uncountable) Action or behaviour that benefits another or others at some cost to the performer.
Altruism is a behaviour of an individual that benefits another at its own expense.[…]She decided to investigate what motivates ants to undertake these dangerous missions, where they risk getting trapped themselves or, worse, eaten by predatory antlion larvae, which dig pits and lurk, semi-concealed, at the bottom with their jaws wide open. Such apparently selfless rescue behaviour is seen by many as one of the purest forms of altruism.[…]Being nice to relatives is not pure altruism because they share your genes so, by helping them, you promote your own genetic heritage.
2013 December 24, Laura Spinney, Goodwill hunting: Random ants of kindness, New Scientist:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| altruïsm | alternative | lexicographic | |
| altruisms | Number=Plur | lexicographic |
Antonyms
misanthropy · egoism · selfishness
Deriveds
altruistic · nonaltruism · altruist · altruize · antialtruism · reciprocal altruism · hyperaltruism · effective altruism · biological altruism
Relateds
bell the cat · brotherly love · selflessness · misandry · agape · misogyny
Synonyms
selflessness · philanthropy · philanthropy
Translations (65)
tr altrüizm (policy that benefits others' interests) · fi epäitsekkyys (policy that benefits others' interests) · hy այլասիրություն (policy that benefits others' interests) · el αλτρουισμός (policy that benefits others' interests) · ca altruisme (policy that benefits others' interests) · ast altruísmu (policy that benefits others' interests) · de Uneigennützigkeit (policy that benefits others' interests) · sv altruism (policy that benefits others' interests) · uz altruism (policy that benefits others' interests) · vi chủ nghĩa vị tha (policy that benefits others' interests) · nl altruïsme (policy that benefits others' interests) · ro generozitate (policy that benefits others' interests) · ja 利他 (policy that benefits others' interests) · ja 利他主義 (policy that benefits others' interests) · ko 리타 (policy that benefits others' interests) · lv altruisms (policy that benefits others' interests) · be альтруі́зм (policy that benefits others' interests) · fr altruisme (policy that benefits others' interests) · uk альтруї́зм (policy that benefits others' interests) · ga soilíos (policy that benefits others' interests) · kk альтруизм (policy that benefits others' interests) · ar إِيثَار (policy that benefits others' interests) · sq altruizëm (policy that benefits others' interests) · sl altruizem (policy that benefits others' interests) · cmn 利他 (policy that benefits others' interests) · id altruisme (policy that benefits others' interests) · pt altruísmo (policy that benefits others' interests) · ro altruism (policy that benefits others' interests) · es altruismo (policy that benefits others' interests) · ru альтруи́зм (policy that benefits others' interests) · ko 이타심 (policy that benefits others' interests) · hi परहितवाद (policy that benefits others' interests) · ar غَيْرِيَّة (policy that benefits others' interests) · nl onbaatzuchtigheid (policy that benefits others' interests) · cmn 利他主義 /利他主义 (policy that benefits others' interests) · sh алтруѝзам (policy that benefits others' interests) · ko 리타심 (policy that benefits others' interests) · tr diğerkâmlık (policy that benefits others' interests) · ko 이타 (policy that benefits others' interests) · cmn 愛他主義 /爱他主义 (policy that benefits others' interests) · az altruizm (policy that benefits others' interests) · it altruismo (policy that benefits others' interests) · gl altruismo (policy that benefits others' interests) · ko 이타주의 (policy that benefits others' interests) · io altruismo (policy that benefits others' interests) · pl altruizm (policy that benefits others' interests) · nb altruisme (policy that benefits others' interests) · cs altruismus (policy that benefits others' interests) · fa نوعدوستی (policy that benefits others' interests) · da altruisme (policy that benefits others' interests) · tg алтруизм (policy that benefits others' interests) · ka ალტრუიზმი (policy that benefits others' interests) · fa ایثار (policy that benefits others' interests) · hu altruizmus (policy that benefits others' interests) · sk altruizmus (policy that benefits others' interests) · eo altruismo (policy that benefits others' interests) · ko 리타주의 (policy that benefits others' interests) · de Altruismus (policy that benefits others' interests) · de Selbstlosigkeit (policy that benefits others' interests) · mk алтруи́зам (policy that benefits others' interests) · th ปรัตถนิยม (policy that benefits others' interests) · fi altruismi (policy that benefits others' interests) · bg алтруи́зъм (policy that benefits others' interests) · ga altrúchas (policy that benefits others' interests) · sh altruìzam (policy that benefits others' interests)