Etymology and origin of the English word multicultural
- Confidence
- Established
- Formation
- Compound
- First attested
- 1935 American Journal of Sociology
- Ultimate origins
- English multi-,-alMiddle French culture
Etymology tree
From the same root
Pronunciation
- /ˌmʌltiˈkʌlt͡ʃəɹəl/[1]
Etymology
It is formed from English multi- + cultural,[2][3][4][5] that is, multi-, "many", with culture and -al.[6] The OED compares the earlier monocultural.[2]
Earliest recorded meaning
Of a society made up of a number of cultural groups, especially one in which each keeps its own cultural identity: 1935, in the American Journal of Sociology.[2][3] Etymonline dates it to 1941[6] and Dictionary.com to 1940–45.[5]
Semantic evolution
According to Etymonline the word was at first often used of Canada, was taken up by American writers on education in the 1980s, and came into wide popular use around 1990.[6] The noun multiculturalism, the policy of keeping the separate identities of the cultural groups within a society, is recorded from 1957,[2] or from 1965 according to Etymonline.[6]
Timeline
- 1935 – of a society made up of several cultural groups.[2][3]
- 1941 – Etymonline's first date, often of Canada.[6]
- 1957 – the noun multiculturalism.[2]
- 1980s – taken up by American writers on education.[6]
Meanings
Adjective
- Made up of, relating to, or designed for several or many cultures or cultural groups: a multicultural neighbourhood.[3][7][4][2]
Word family
- multiculturalism
- multiculturalist
- multiculturally
- multiculti
Related words
- bicultural
- counterculture
- intercultural
- sociocultural
- subculture
- transcultural
- culture
- cultural
- monocultural
References
- ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
- ^ a b c d e f g Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
- ^ a b c d Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
- ^ a b Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
- ^ a b Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
- ^ a b c d e f Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
- ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins
Cite this entry
“Multicultural.” Etymologically, 31 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/multicultural. Accessed 1 Nov. 2026.
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