ethnocentrism

noun

eth·​no·​cen·​trism ˌeth-nō-ˈsen-ˌtri-zəm How to pronounce ethnocentrism (audio)
: the attitude that one's own group, ethnicity, or nationality is superior to others
Yet Brumidi was ignored, the victim of ethnocentrism and snobbery. Though he became a citizen in 1857 … American-born artists cast him as a foreigner and resented his painting Capitol murals.Sheryl Gay Stolberg
When it comes to programs targeted at the poor, ethnocentrism correlates with stinginess …Matthew Yglesias

Examples of ethnocentrism in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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But nationalism and ethnocentrism run deep in both political cultures and could reignite long-standing territorial disputes. Charles Kupchan, Foreign Affairs, 4 Aug. 2021 Under such conditions, Putin will draw increasingly on Russian chauvinism, imperialism, and ethnocentrism for legitimacy. Alexander J. Motyl, Foreign Affairs, 27 Jan. 2016 As Western powers barged into people’s political and psychological worlds, a plethora of ethnocentrisms gave way to Eurocentrism. Manvir Singh, The New Yorker, 25 Dec. 2023 In response to this ethnocentrism, mainstream social sciences abandoned cultural evolution as pseudoscience for the better part of a century. Cody Cottier, Discover Magazine, 17 Nov. 2022 Oxytocin promotes human ethnocentrism. Razib Khan, Discover Magazine, 13 Jan. 2011 This ideology of progress amounts to a chronological form of ethnocentrism. Razib Khan, Discover Magazine, 16 May 2012 Only in recent years have scholars been able to confront the inadequacies (and ethnocentrism) of the ecocide theory. Emilie Le Beau Lucchesi, Discover Magazine, 12 Dec. 2022 Nativism and ethnocentrism and bigotry in high places on both sides of the Atlantic. Adam Shaw, Fox News, 30 Dec. 2020

Word History

First Known Use

1906, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of ethnocentrism was in 1906

Dictionary Entries Near ethnocentrism

Cite this Entry

“Ethnocentrism.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ethnocentrism. Accessed 11 Dec. 2024.

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