Etymologically
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racial

Etymology and origin of the English word racial

History Permalink
Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
1854
Borrowed from
Middle French race

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈreɪ.ʃəl/[1]

Etymology

It is formed from race2, a group of people of common descent, and the suffix -ial.[2][3][4][5] That race is borrowed from Middle French race, earlier rasse, from Italian razza (“race, breed, lineage”), of uncertain origin.[2][6]

Earliest recorded meaning

Belonging to or characteristic of race: 1862 in the OED, Barnhart and Etymonline;[7][2][3] MWU dates its first known use to 1854.[4]

Semantic evolution

The OED calls it a word of considerable frequency in the 20th century.[7][3] Arising from or based on differences between racial groups, as in racial discrimination or racial tension, is a common modern use.[8][9] Barnhart dates the related racist to 1932 and racism to 1936.[2]

Timeline

  • 1854 – first known use, according to MWU.[4]
  • 1862 – of race.[7][2][3]
  • 1932 – racist.[2]
  • 1936 – racism.[2]

Modern meaning

Adjective

  1. Of, relating to or characteristic of race or races.
  2. Arising from or based on differences between racial groups: racial discrimination.

Word family

  • racially
  • antiracial
  • biracial
  • interracial
  • multiracial
  • nonracial
  • racialism
  • racialize

References

  1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  3. ^ a b c d Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b c Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  5. ^ Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  6. ^ Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  7. ^ a b c Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
  8. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  9. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins

Related etymologies

Cite this entry

“Racial.” Etymologically, 16 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/racial. Accessed 16 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·