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autonomous

Etymology and origin of the English word autonomous

History Permalink
Confidence
Established
Formation
Borrowing
First attested
1777
Ultimate origin
Ancient Greek (αὐτός,νόμος)

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ɔːˈtɒnəməs/ (UK); /ɔˈtɑnəməs/, /ɑˈtɑnəməs/ (US)[1]

Etymology

It is formed from Ancient Greek αὐτόνομος (autónomos, “having its own laws”) and -ous,[2][3][4] from αὐτός (autós, “self”) and νόμος (nómos, “law”) (see autonomy),[2][3] from Proto-Indo-European *nem- (“to assign, allot”).[2] Of animals the Greek word meant feeding or ranging at will.[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

Subject to its own laws: 1777, in translations of Montesquieu, in Etymonline;[2] Merriam-Webster dates it to 1799, and the OED's first quotation, relating to an autonomy, to 1800.[3][5]

Semantic evolution

Self-governing, independent, is from 1804,[5] and in biology an independent organism from 1861.[5] It has been used mostly in metaphysics and politics,[2] and in Kant's philosophy of a will that gives itself its own law.[6] Machines that operate without human control, as autonomous vehicles, are a recent use of the sense independent.[7]

Timeline

  • 1777 – subject to its own laws.[2]
  • 1800 – relating to autonomy.[5]
  • 1804 – self-governing.[5]
  • 1861 – independent (biology).[5]

Modern meaning

Adjective

  1. Self-governing, especially in local or internal affairs: an autonomous region.
  2. Acting independently; not controlled by others.
  3. (philosophy) Acting according to principles of one's own choosing.

Word family

  • autonomously
  • nonautonomous
  • semiautonomous

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ a b c Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  4. ^ Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ a b c d e f Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  6. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins
  7. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
Cite this entry

“Autonomous.” Etymologically, 17 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/autonomous. Accessed 17 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·